Yesterday was Boxing Day in Australia, and that means sales. Serious people-crushing, wake-up-early and GO GET THEM sales! But you know what? I wasn’t there, I just couldn’t spend the spoons or the money (shopping centres give me the heebies!) I have been feeling a tad fraudulent lately, because I had it in my head that in order to participate in fatshion blogging one must have shiny new clothes all the time. And that just isn’t practical for me, we can’t afford to do that. So I had a little ponder and a chat with some great people on Tumblr and I was reminded of why I started blogging about my outfits: to normalise fat bodies.
When I started reading about fashion online it wasn’t high fashion I was into, it was the things that people wore every day to express themselves. I was a huge fan Bits and Bobbins and was thrilled by the community she created called wardrobe_remix. It’s all about remixing the garments you own and creating really truly individual style without much focus on consuming fast fashion. The people who posted outfits had items of clothing passed down through their family, stuff they’d made themselves or thrifted. I really loved how meaningful it was. But as someone who didn’t fit into Mum’s amazing old clothes or much in op shops I felt a bit out of the loop, and fast/ cheap OR high end/ couture plus size fashion really doesn’t exist in Australia so when I came across the world of Fatshionista and online shopping, my world was pretty much rocked.
My focus turned to shopping overseas on eBay, through the Fatshionista sales posts as well as with online retailers. Fatshion blogs started popping up everywhere and I got the overwhelming impression that it was all about shopping and showing off new stuff every week… and you know what? I just couldn’t keep up. I felt ashamed that I couldn’t keep up, and that shame sticks like tacky capitalist chewing gum.
I need to get back to my original modus operandi, to normalise my body and to express myself through my presentation. I know a lot of people who might want to blog, or have been blogging, but felt intimidated by not having hauls to show off each week and I want to invite you ALL to this thing. Let’s remix and express and normalise. Hold swap parties with friends. Give clothes you no longer wear freely to people who need them. Paint a picture with the things you already own and if you’ve got things that need modifying look up some DIY sewing resources, call a friend with a sewing machine and have a refashioning party or visit a seamstress. Of course if you don’t have access to these things it’s completely understandable, and as someone who can sew I do have that head start. I just want to stop feeling ashamed that I don’t have the money to buy clothes every week. (And if you do have the money, by all means, please feel free to spend it on what you wish!)
My blog will not be about the latest and greatest fashion. It will be about what I like to wear and what makes me feel like the me-est me I can possibly be.
So this is what I wore to go to the shops today. We decided to brave the sales to buy Nick some clothes (and geeze, buying nice clothes for fat men is really fecking difficult.)
LIGHTEN UP IT’S JUST FASHUN.
What I wore:
Blouse – Target
Singlet – Fitting Image (Bought from a boutique and I can’t remember its name)
Skirt – Evans
Necklace – Me
Shoes – Crocs
I wholeheartedly agree and want to reiterate how much I LOVE THAT LIPSTICK ON YOU.
This is pretty much why I stopped blogging. I had it in my head that to be a Successful Blogger I had to have shiny new things to blog about all the time and that people wouldn’t read if I was too opinionated to anything political had to be avoided. With no income all year that left me with pretty much nothing to blog about and an epic sense of frustration. So, I gave up.
In short, thank you. You’ve reminded me of why I began blogging – to express myself, not to express who I thought other people wanted me to be.
Also, your hair is fabulous!
I love seeing new stuff on blogs — I reckon blogging has been the greatest boom for overseas stores because I know I’d rarely buy from a website but, seeing other blogs wearing the clothes makes it easier to imagine myself wearing them. Having said that, I think that fashion, interesting fashion, is not about money.
You really notice it in Tokyo – where girls have tiny bodies and seemingly unlimited spending money – but only a small percentage really do anything interesting with what they wear.
Natalie I just love the way you write about your clothes. I was actually just having a think about maybe blogging some of my outfits… but I get scared because I am worried I am telling people that I think I am “fashionable”, when actually I can’t afford to buy new things and quite often I am too tired in the morning before work to get up and do my hair and make up. But you are so right, it is about normalizing my body, and the awesome sense of community. So happy to see a few more posts up from you lately. x
P.S the lippie looks fab!
I love what you’ve written. It is true. I hate it when people APOLOGIZE for saying that “THEY WORE THIS OUTFIT/THIS TOP/THIS *insert garment here*” It’s like… ummm, lol? Why do you need to apologize for wearing AN OUTFIT on YOUR blog and OMG I REPEATED A GARMENT!1111!11 Like really. It is just wasteful and sad. Idk.
Amazing post. I’v been thinking about this too, and how I’ve been spending way too much money on clothes recently since getting into online shopping and the blogging community. I’m going to try and calm down because I really can’t afford too much either, so I’m glad you’ve written this (and the comments on tumblr) as it was awesome to see I’m not alone. I’m going to try and concentrate on remixing and reworking pieces too, as you’re right, it’s often far more interesting than just seeing a new piece of clothing!
I think blogging has stopped being about expression and is now a thing of competition and keeping up. I too feel the same frustration with fashion blogging (in regards to buying new things and keeping up on trend) but luckily I have always been creative and love lopping off dresses and turning them into blouses, vests, really anything I can think of. I love your article and I totally hear you!!!
I love seeing the fat necklace on you, like fat clothes it is nice to see how things look on a real fat person. You look adorable by the way and I think it is really helpful to see how others put old and new stuff together. Who wants to buy new stuff every week and were the heck do they keep it all???
I’ve just started my blog, and couldn’t quite put my finger on what I was trying to say… I also tend to post only when I get new stuff, which really slows my rate of posting and makes everything a little wooden – there’s also pressure to have a new, shiny outfit to show off. I’m glad someone else has been feeling the same way! Thanks Natalie, I’ve really latched onto normalising fat bodies as my goal. That may be a little behind the pack in terms of fatshion blogging, but it’s a great place for me to start.
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Unlike you, I did go to the boxing day sales, and I bought up big on t-shirts for me. Not to wear straight, mind you. I decided to get some ruffle neck singlet tops at Myer BIB so I could freezer paper print them later on. I make all my own skirts and frocks, so didn’t even think to try those things on. However I did invest in a cute denim Jane Lamertons skirt (only $55!) because I don’t have a denim skirt, and I certainly wasn’t ever going to make one.
Having a set wardrobe each day is just so boring – remixing is definitely the way to go! You are so inspiring to me – loking forward to seeing what else you can create out of what you already have!
great post. also, it definitely is really freaking hard to find nice clothes for cute, fat boys! they’ve got it rough. i like to tease my boyfriend for his lumberjack uniform, but really, it’s hard to find much else. i’ve been wanting to blog about men’s fatsion, but don’t even know where to begin… did you and nick end up having any luck? i’d love to see target get it to together, and start extending their men’s section. time will tell.
I love this outfit, and I need to know what lipstick that is – it looks so fantastic on you!