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Dressing for Success....

Just a rant and thought about clothes and dressing for weight-loss success...

I have been used to wearing big sweaters, baggy clothing, etc. for the past few years... This past summer, when I started walking in training for the Breast Cancer 3-Day walk, I started to lose a few inches....Because of that, I went out and bought a few "form-fitting" sweaters, etc....

What I've discovered was this:

Wearing more form-fitting top or outfit makes me feel more confident. Yes, the flab is still there, but because I'm not wearing a shapeless sweater,i don't look or feel like a big giant blob... It makes me feel better about what I see in the mirror and also gives me more incentive to continue towards my path of weight loss and better health.

Not that I won't wear a baggy sweatshirt now and then (they are, after all, the most comfortable!!), However, when it comes to work or going out, I will try to find something that fits my figure (even got a shirt with a little bit of decollete / plunging neckline--something that I haven't done in the past because I tend to be relatively flat-chested.--but I have noticed that it actually gives me a bit of a chest vs. a higher neckline...)

After all, when you look at the movies and such, you'll notice that people like Queen Latifah or the full-figured model Emme do not hide behind giant baggy clothing-- they show off their curves and celebrate their womanly figures, the clothing thye wear are not "fat chick clothes", but clothes that are stylish and not there to hide the extra pounds.... :-)

I've come to realize that I need to exude confidence in myself, whether or not I'm heavier than I'd like to be.... I can visually make myself feel fatter when I hide behind the baggy clothes.... Want an instant "head" makeover? Wear some baggy and amorphous clothes and then change into somethiing more fitted and stylish.... You'll find that your head will see a person that's lost a lot of weight just by changing her clothes!!!

Why hide myself when I know that a fabulous self exists inside!! Strap on those stylish shoes, wear that fabulous top and bring on the world!

--IrisSVB


Mon. Jan 2, 2:57pm

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I LOVE this. Thanks for posting.

Monday, January 02, 2006, 3:11 PM

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Great info, Iris! I'm ready to get rid of my first wardrobe and slip into my "tight" clothes again. I'm going to have soooo much room in my closet now and I really don't want to start buying more clothes until I'm out of this "tight" wardrobe. I've got 25 lbs off so I think I'll start shopping at around 50 lbs again.

Thanks for reminding us to celebrate our curves!
Trish

Monday, January 02, 2006, 3:22 PM

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I have lots of clothes in my closet tha don't fit well, or have been "wishful thinking" clothes for a few years.... So... I am purging and going to send them to goodwill.... (might as well get a tax deduction and someone else can benefit from my clothes!)

In the meantime, I have found that Marshalls or TJ Maxx (or something like that) is a good place to shop-- they tend to have designer clothes at discount prices, if you are willing to dig around a bit. No sense in spending thousands of dollars on "transitional" clothing... But, a few strategically purchased items can do wonders for the self-esteem! ;-)

I don't know if it's around anymore, but for a short while, there was a magazine that celebrated the bigger sized woman. They had women of all fitness levels as well, I'm sure... It helps to look into a magazine that shows women of larger sizes wearing beautiful clothes. The last place to for me to look for fashion ideas (for the present) is in those magazines with the size 1 models. I've come to terms that no matter how much I lose, I'll never be someone that size (nor do I aspire to be that size.)

Instead, I'll make the pledge to CELEBRATE myself and to make myself feel good and self-confident no matter what size (or what the scale may say!) If I don't feel good about myself and how I look, I'll be less motivated to make the changes for good health.... :-)

Try this sometime--if you are sick and have the flu or a cold and just feel BLAH.... get out your favorite lipstick or make-up or put on a bright colored top-- you'll be surprised at how much better you will begin to feel when the face staring back from the mirror looks like a million bucks... :-)

Monday, January 02, 2006, 7:37 PM

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Bumping this back to the top! :-)

Tuesday, January 24, 2006, 12:32 AM

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If you don't want your Ex to see you in it

Trash it. Get rid of or fix anything with a rip, tear or a stain. We only really need two weeks worth of clothes and one nice dress anyway. Buy a copy of the Lucky Shopping Manual. You will save hundreds of dollars a year by avoiding shitty outfits.

--Amanda911

Link

Tuesday, January 24, 2006, 3:18 AM

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show some light!

I once went to a BMW ladies breakfast, they had a Clothing Consultant as speaker and she gave the following good advice. Whatever top, jacket or blouse you wear : when you stand upright with your arms hanging down your sides, you must be able to see a little light throught the gap between your arms and body. Meaning - your clothes need to fit snuggly, not necessarily tight. It creates 3 slimmer vertical shapes, instead of one square in a baggy top. It's all about the slimmer illusion you create, same as the old vertical stripes vs. horizontal stripes.

Tuesday, January 24, 2006, 4:55 AM

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I am proud to say that, because of PEERtrainer, I no longer have any clothes in my closet that are too small, or wishful thinking!! And it's not b/c I threw them out or gave them away, it's because they FIT!!! Thanks, everyone, for the support and motivation!

jilli10582

Tuesday, January 24, 2006, 10:18 AM

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if you want to see large women still looking sexy, check out hipsandcurves.com. Lingerie for full figured women. You can and should feel sexy whatever size you are!!! (and no, this isn't really an ad for their clothing- I've yet to buy from them because of shipping costs to my country- but it gives me encouragement when I "feel" fat)

Link

Tuesday, January 24, 2006, 1:17 PM

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Movie recommendation

Along the same lines as this thread, I recommend watching a movie
Real Women Have Curves. It's about a girl and her family. She has enough confidence in her body to inspire her sister, a clothing designer, to switch from making dresses for the ultra skinny to making clothing for real women's curves. Loved it.

Tuesday, January 24, 2006, 1:21 PM

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Yeah yeah yeah

Love your curves etc. The thread isn't about body image, it is about dressing for success and that means looking successful. But there is very much the issue when dressing for success that skinny women can get away with more damage to or cheaper clothes than bigger women. The bigger you are, the more the details matter because it is easier to look sloppy and unkempt.

a911

Tuesday, January 24, 2006, 3:51 PM

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Glad to see some good discussion going on in this thread!!! :-)

Tuesday, January 24, 2006, 7:16 PM

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a911 - Excuse me, but body image and dressing for success are very much related. If someone wearing a bigger dress size does not feel confident about her body image, it can be difficult to portray an image of a successful person.

The tone of your comment was very negative. PT does not need negativity, we are all here to contribute and help each other.

Tuesday, January 24, 2006, 11:22 PM

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Weird, I didn't think that was a negative comment at all!

Maybe I took what a911 said totally a different way or something but I didn't get a negative tone out of that at all.



Tuesday, January 24, 2006, 11:31 PM

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that's not negative

a911's comments weren't negative to me. The fact is, fat/chubby/overweight people DO need to work a bit harder on their appearance in order to look neat and professional. (This from a girl who used to have a whole lot of exceptional SIZE 22/24 suits and now wears size 12/14). Nothing used to get on my nerves than seeing someone that just gave up on their appearance because of weight.

I think it's hard to continue to invest in new wardrobe items when we're working on shedding pounds, but it's really important for self-confidence. There is a a great non-profit called Dress for Success that will accept donated plus size business suits to do interview makeovers for women in transition. Get the tax write off and go buy a few transition pieces for yourself. It's a win-win.

Wednesday, January 25, 2006, 9:28 AM

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negativity police

Hard to have an actual conversation when people knock a comment... Ooh, is that negative? Knocking a comment? I think that's a little negative.

My point is...

People notice if you are plus size and missing a button, have chipped polish or scuffed shoes. There's a bigger canvas for the little things to stand out on... And everything stands out when you stand out... Bright nail colors, wrong bra, messy tattoos, wrong makeup... Too many things that aren't taken care of and the message sent is "I don't have control over myself or my environment." which is not an indicator of success. Physical communication comes before verbal communication.

-Amanda911/a911
(who is 6' tall, 250+ lbs, size 14/16, and has been a size 22, which sucked but gave her a great rack)

Wednesday, January 25, 2006, 2:13 PM

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Bumping this up, as I truly think that my change in mind-set (fitted vs. baggy) has really helped me to reshape my own self-image and self-confidence these past few months!!

Tuesday, March 14, 2006, 2:27 PM

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Found this thread and thought it might be good to bring it back up to the top again! ;-)


Thursday, July 06, 2006, 2:31 PM

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The Pocket Stylist is a great book for learning to dress for your shape - no matter what size it is. It's not so much about looking "thinner" as it is about looking well-put-together

Thursday, July 06, 2006, 3:22 PM

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I'll have to check that book out! ;-)


Thursday, July 06, 2006, 11:16 PM

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Time to revisit this post!

Thursday, January 18, 2007, 11:52 PM

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Great Thread!

Monday, April 30, 2007, 1:27 AM

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I agree that wearing more fitted clothing does give you a better appearance ! it's so true , in the movies you don't see the larger women wearing massive baggy clothing !
also, it was funny , I was having lunch with a friend a few weeks ago. we were chatting about clothes etc. and then she said , I think the best thing you ever did was to start wearing fitted jeans ! it made me laugh , but it was so true ! I use to wear huge baggy jeans , which probably made me look 10 x's bigger ! and in a way , I just sort of grew into them..when you are wearing huge clothes , you don't seem to notice as much when things are getting tight on you. So, I agree , ladies throw out /or donate those tent clothes and get your fab self into something a bit more fitted !

Monday, April 30, 2007, 12:33 PM

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I actually have expunged all clothes out of my wardrobe that make me feel horrid either due to style , fit or color. I'm thrilled with what's left in its place.

I love wrap dresses. I love matte jersey. I'm actually 5-7 pounds away from my "low" goal weight, but I'm pear shaped, and because of that certain clothes look bad on me, and others look smokin.

I learned a lot from what not to wear - even if I don't so much agree with all of what they say (i.e. my skinny flat feet hate a kitten heel, and so no, I won't sacrifice comfort for style. Now ballet flats are trendy and in, but that wasn't always the case, and Stacey seems to find it hilarious that people complain about heels. I have 2 kids, work full time out of the home, etc- can't slow down, need shoes that can keep up. That being said, I can wear somewhat attractive shoes even if I have to take it down a notch from what I'd ideally like to see on my feet



Monday, April 30, 2007, 3:22 PM

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Love the shoe comment.
I'm a shoe-lover, but I've learned that I will NOT buy shoes, no matter how cute they are, if they don't fit right in the store.

Once, I bought 2 pair of sandals. They were almost identical except for the shape of the heel strap. 1 pair I wore so much that it broke, the other pair gave me painful blisters on both heels within HOURS of wearing them the 1st time. Needless to say, I dumped the painful pair....

Now-a-days, I won't buy anything that doesn't fit or look right in the store. Why spend money on something that will make me miserable later?! :-)

Tuesday, May 08, 2007, 4:42 PM

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What not to wear is a cool show... Unfortunately, I don't get cable and can only catch it once in a while if I'm in a hotel... :-(

Sunday, June 10, 2007, 5:15 PM

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wearing form fitting clothes helps my self confidence a lot! now if my clothes are too baggy i feel like they're making me look chubbier than i am, because they sag in the wong places and aren't flattering. i feel like i've been buying more transition clothes but it's worth it to look and feel good.

Sunday, June 10, 2007, 8:30 PM

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That's another question.. When to buy 'transition clothes" and what to buy. I don't want to invest in a whole wardrobe, but maybe a few choice pieces to get me through my weight loss...

Tuesday, June 12, 2007, 12:34 PM

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Time to revive this thread....

Thought it was time to revive this thread, after reading one of the posts in my groups...



Friday, January 22, 2010, 4:11 PM

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