Let’s face it. Your average body-type does not look good in tapered-leg skinny jeans. We’re not even saying “average body type” as code for “fatty.” We actually mean it. Regular people look bad in these fashions and do not want to purchase cheap Walmart versions of them. People want to buy socks at Walmart. Big bags of socks.
We know this, but Walmart’s Apparel Chief Claire A. Watts didn’t. She’s resigned from her position after Walmart’s attempt to snag some of the trendy clothes market failed miserably.
From the Washington Post:
Watts’s duties will be split between Mark Larsen, who oversaw merchandise for babies, children and men, and Dottie Mattison, who worked for Walmart.com.
Marshal Cohen, a senior analyst with consumer research firm NPD Group, said Watts’s departure did not mean that fashion was dead at Wal-Mart. But he said the retailer needed to refocus on the desires of its core customers rather than chase after trendsetters.
Watts had pushed Walmart’s trendy line “Metro 7″ into 1500 stores nationwide. The skinny pants and slutty tops confused and frightened shoppers who were there looking for toilet paper and huge jars of pickles.
Wal-Mart’s Fashion Maven Departs As Trendy Merchandise Languishes [Washington Post]
(Photo:ashcroft54)
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@enm4r: Yes, there are changes coming (thank gawd!), but it is because of the women who courageously spoke out! This didn’t happen overnight. And actually, this “movement” is a fairly recent thing. Before that, it was scarce to find a popular media outlet discussing how a celeb might be anorexic or that runway models are too skinny. Even though things are changing, it is still not uncommon to find anorexia all around the media (and even encouraged). You don’t see an ad saying “How to be anorexic in 10 easy steps!” but you do see an interview with unhealthly skinny celeb saying “Oh, I see you lost weight! You look great!” This is just one example of many. Tyra Banks is another example.
So the the tide is shifting but to think that this still does not exist and in heavily masked formats, you’d be dead wrong. I’m sorry, but whether you are aware of it or not, it is still rooted deeply into the media.
As for the beauty, if the media didn’t consider it beautiful, there would have been no way that these admitted/not admitted anorexic women would get jobs. I highly encourage you to share your thoughts of beauty with as many people as you can because unfortunately there are a lot of women out there who have low self-esteem as it is (for various reasons, related or unrelated), and constantly being exposed to these images can be severely damaging to them.
@Amy Alkon: “I don’t know who’s wearing whatever size 12 is these days, but if I meet them, I’ll try to steer them away from sitting on any antique chairs!”
I am also about 5’9″, but I’m not the same build as you. The smallest size I’ve ever worn in my adult life is a size 10 – anything smaller than that will not fit over my hip bones and/or shoulders.
Am I overweight? Yes, moderately. I won’t make excuses for it. But you can’t assume that everyone wearing a certain size is fat. They might just be built differently than you.
@smallestmills: So you’re a “true 4″? What exactly is “true” about any women’s sizing system? What does “4″ mean in any sizing system? Until women’s clothing sizes are uniformly based on an objective system of measurement (like the way men can buy pants that are marked with a specific waist and inseam measurement), no one is a “true” size anything.
The images are most damaging to children, teens and young women who ultimately feel a responsibility to be as thin as possible to keep up with their celebrity peers and American Idol peers. I went to a catholic high school with uniforms and even in our school there was competition to lose weight, who could eat the least and whoever at the least was considered more popular than the other girls because they were either dieting or trying to diet. Whoever lost the most weight was more respected than those who didn’t try. The fat girls (about size 22-24 plus womens) were those that didn’t have any friends, and there were several fat girls. I would imagine its much worse today.
Most older adults and adults that are well versed in the ways of the world can reject these images most of the time however I do agree every woman feels like they have to be thinner to be better at least once or twice in their life even if the woman is at a very normal body weight for their age and build. You always feel like you are expected to always lose a few pounds just because you are a woman and you could ALWAYS be better than you currently are. It just never ends.
We now have 3-4 year olds wearing high heels, mini skirts and shorts so short that they ride up with every step that is taken, so this is evident that even children who are exposed to enough images of thin women feel like they have to dress and look like them to be accepted. The children’s clothes sections in most stores are also geared super-skimpy and geared to show off as much as possible (especially the summer clothes) because these are the fashions that kids want nowadays and they will not wear anything different.
@MMD: Even waist and inseam measurements can be fudged. Though not as much.
And “officially” even women’s sizes mean some set of numbers that can be found somewhere. i.e.:
[www.anntaylor.com]
Some of what people call vanity sizing is actually just people useing various (semi-official) “remappings” of various measurments on to numbers. So you pretty much always have to know your measurements and look up the size chart and hope they are keeping reasonably close to it. Most stores do actually honor their own size charts pretty closely, though.
@yasth: Points taken – but if Ann Taylor sizes mean one thing and Gap sizes mean another thing and Old Navy sizes mean yet another thing…then really, nothing means anything. Women should not have to memorize 30 different size “standards” before they go to the mall.
@MMD: Sizes are fairly standard when it comes to the sewing world. However, they are about 3-4 sizes off from what’s in most stores. (i.e. I’d wear a 14 if I were to make myself something from a pattern, but I can usually fit into a 10 in stores)
@Sinflux: Both you and yasth only prove my point. If there’s one “standard” for sewing and differing (and multiple) “standards” for clothing in stores, then I’m sorry, but there are no “standard” or “true” women’s clothing sizes. I repeat: until actual measurements in inches/centimeters are uniformly part of the language of clothing women’s clothing styles, it’s all arbitrary B.S. And I’m not holding my breath…
Thanks all for the help with my question! </sarcasm>
@timmus: Don’t be sad. I have been sitting here thinking about your request since I got online this morning, but I’m not a dude and was thinking more along the lines of… Is there an online market for this guy? I like department store websites for basics (Nordstrom, Saks, Bloomingdales), but when I look for stuff for guys, I think most of the stuff on those websites is too “trendy”, which certain men in my life might write off as “too gay”. How about Macy’s?
I don’t trust women’s sizes anymore, and do a couple of things called “eyeballing” and “trying on lots of clothes.”
I have to do this anyway, to ensure the cut of the garment is flattering (which is not always related to the correctness of the fit). What’s the big deal? Sometimes the nature of an item of clothing necessitates a bigger or smaller size … related to the fabric, the cut, etc.
@timmus: Along the lines of a Walmart budget … Old Navy? H&M? H&M has a little more style, but both sell perfectly “manly” t-shirts, polos, jeans, dress shirts, and shorts. I’m a girl but I get all my basics — t-shirts, camisoles, even underwear — at H&M, which always has a stock of them, cheap and without frills.
I’m not sure why, but I can’t think of anyone my age who I know regularly buys clothes at a department store.
Sorry, timmus!
I have a lot of luck at Target, except for the Isaac Mizrahi stuff which never fits me right.
Also, the higher quality the clothes, the lower the size. Even in the same store.
@Gloria: Department store = lame, I get it, but in their favor they offer a large selection of brands and styles available “over the Internet”. Does H&M offer online shopping? Old Navy does and I guess that is a step up from WalMart, which takes us into Banana, J Crew, Gap territory. I was interested to know if there was an ONLINE niche for “late-30s” men.
@padabo: I never said it’s lame to shop at a department storem; nor was I trying to imply it (I say this honestly). I’ve just noticed it’s not the automatic choice anymore for lots of shoppers. I was wondering why.
Maybe it’s prices … sometimes I find awesome bargains on brand names at department stores, but since I’m on a student budget, I generally rely on individual chains for fast, cheap clothes. I’ve noticed department stores stick with pricier brands (which often have their own stores anyway).
Few people I know personally — which means tons of others don’t necessarily do the same — don’t really insist on department stores. They’re more of an alternative. That’s pretty much what I meant to say.
Online shopping is nice for those who might not have those stores within travel distance, but I still prefer going to a brick-and-mortar store when I can. This is especially so in Canada, since lots of American websites don’t ship here, and customs fees can really destroy deals.
Sorry, I must’ve misread Timmus’s question … I see now he was asking for Internet stores only. Good luck though!
I actually find it kind of a challenge to scour the clearance racks at Walmart, sometimes you can find some pretty good deals stuff maked WAY WAY down.
As for socks, the last time I bought any there they began slipping down my feet as soon as I put them on! New socks? What do they put into them now that makes them start disolving as soon as you open the bag they come in and the air hits them?
I like the people posting about how skinny they are in here. “I have to have a size zero taken in tee hee.” “I’m a bean pole.” Just so you guys know, there is a scientific reason why people come in all shapes, sizes, and colors. And it has nothing to do with the current fashion trends.
@Timmus
Are you looking for jeans? I buy clothes for my husband from Pacific Sun. He likes the loose fit Bullhead jeans, and he typically wears either t-shirts or polo-type shirts. He’s 25 and maybe 15-20 pounds overweight.
@agent2600: go eat a ding dong loser
@Gloria: The “big deal” about non-standard women’s clothing sizes is that this allows the clothing industry to manipulate women. “Size inflation” relies on the presumed desire for a woman to see a smaller number on her clothing in order to make her feel good and increase sales. Nonstandard sizing also allows the bridal industry to “deflate” sizes, thereby charging extra money to more women for “plus-sized” wedding gowns and bridesmaid dresses. I’m a bridesmaid in an upcoming wedding and the boutique I had to buy from defined plus sizes as size 12 and up – but a size 12 was at least 2 sizes smaller than what you’d be likely to see at a normal retail store. Bottom line – women are being lied to. That’s a big deal to me.
I bought a pretty sweet pair of cargo shorts at Wal-Mart for $14. They look exactly (except for shade of tint) like some cargos I got at Aeropostale that were $30. And they both look basically the same as some $60 shorts at Abercrombie…
For the record, I’m <150# and I like my Wal-Mart cargos. The store still smells like sour milk, though.
The problem with buying skinny jeans at a place like Walmart or Target is that the cut is NEVER right. They never cut them skinny enough and they always just end up fitting like a pair of tapered men’s jeans. They also tend to use weird (cheap) denim and it just doesn’t quite work. Even if people want to buy their skinny jeans at Walmart it’s unlikely they’d be able to find something that looked right.
I don’t know what people are talking about, as well, saying they’ve never seen anyone outside of celeb photos wearing skinny jeans. They really are not that inaccessible and most people would actually look alright in them. It doesn’t have to be ultra-tight drainpipes, but the flare cut is so nasty. A straight leg looks so much better.
I’m glad the consumerist knows about fashion now. Skinny jeans actually look really hot on the right kind of girl. Aka, a hot one.
I shop at WalMart for clothes- and I also shop at Nordstroms- There are just certain things I am not willing to shell out the dough for- I often see better fitting clothes at Walmart anyway- go figure. Why pay $56 for a t-shirt made in China when I can pay $8 for a t-shirt made in China?
It is a choice I make. I will agree on the jeans, although, I haven’t bought any jeans at Walmart or otherwise since the “low-rider” trend came along. I say no to crack at all stores.