A… dressing room post!?
Hello my dears! I hope you’re all very well. I’m excited as it’s just 2 sleeps to Fattylympics! Arrrgh! And of course 2 sleeps to Plus North, too!
If you’ve been reading my blog since ye olde early days, you’ll remember that a lot of my early posts consisted of me in various dressing rooms, trying on clothes. I liked doing it because I thought it gave people overseas with similar bodies an idea of what the clothes they lusted after online would look like. But lately I’ve been more of a hermit, so haven’t done it for a while apart from the odd photo here and there, which I put on my facebook page.
But, last week I hung out with the lovely Hanna, spending a day at capitalist wet dream Westfield in Stratford, and so I tried on as much as I could – with pictures to prove it.
PRIMARK:
As you might know, last year Primark extended their size range to 20, which was admittedly pretty cool. I’m too big for their fitted stuff, but their sundresses and anything stretchy is a yes. I loved this neoprene peplum top in chartreuse – total wrong colour for me, but I had to try!
H&M:
I saw this on the site and was ready to bankrupt myself (yeah, even H&M is too expensive for me now!) for their XL but of course it sold out in minutes. I was actually only showing pictures of Gabifresh in hers on my phone (god bless you, Flipboard) before we stumbled on it in store. The annoying thing about H&M is that they don’t stock their XLs in the shops (same as how Dorothy Perkins in/around London rarely stocks 22s)- this is an L so even tighter than it would have been! As a heads up, the Westfield H&M doesn’t stock their + range, either.
FOREVER 21+:
This is a super cute sundress that’s so easy to wear, they also had a pink and orange version. (Size 3X)
While this fits, I find the waistband is a bit too low for how I’d like. I think this is better if you have a bigger bust and lower waist. (Size 3X)
I actually liked this a lot! I do worry about the crotch area riding up when wearing playsuits, but this would be SO nice on holiday! (Size 3X)
I’m impressed that Forever 21 stocks Forever 21+ in the Stratford store, small as the section is. I hope it makes money – Hanna bought an awesome jacket from them that day. The selection is decent although it concentrates on their casual items, rather than their stand out stuff. And of course, the 3X is the largest size. I’d love to see them increase this over time.
NEW LOOK INSPIRE:
I’d been lusting after this for months – there was one left in an 18, so I tried it – it did fit, although I found it wasn’t as “WOW!” on me as I’d expected which is a shame.
Again I desperately wanted this lace skater dress, too. The blue is STUNNING, so rich in real life. I tried a 24 as that’s the only size they had in the shop and it’s definitely too big, but because it’s fairly stretchy I reckon if you’re usually a size 26, you could definitely wear this.
This was cute. As you know I’m a sucker for dresses with cute prints! I tried this in a 22 and it was so roomy, sizing down once or even twice wouldn’t have been a problem.
This dress (currently only a tenner!) is the same shape as the famous bird print dress loads of us ran out to buy at the beginning of the year. I tried it in a 22 and it was a perfect fit. It’s a light jersey so really nice and easy to wear if the summer ever decides to come back.
You know, I thought this was gonna look terrible on me, but it doesn’t does it? I was so pleasantly surprised! (Size 22)
Look, I can smile and pull wacky faces in my photos! This actually isn’t from the Inspire range, although they do have a similar one, but this is a size 18 from their maternity range. And it’s MASSIVE! It could easily fit someone bigger than I. So do make sure to have a look around.
I’m really pleased New Look have Inspire at their Stratford store. I know the team have been working really hard to improve the range, although not without sacrifices – they’ve downsized the size range and taken the sections out of my own local stores, which is really upsetting – and I can definitely see a difference. That said, I found the Inspire section a bit too nondescript – the majority on show was their casual wear. I’d have loved to see some of their really striking options proudly displayed! I also imagined they’d have stocked their brands, such as Koko or Ruby’s Closet but alas that wasn’t the case. But as you can see, I managed to find the most clothes in New Look to try on, so well done guys!
Well, I hope you’ve enjoyed this post. Do let me know if it’s helped you in any way – or even if you think it’s a waste of my time! Before I go, I have to link to Valerie’s post about plus size shopping in London, and how plus size sections are being taken off the shelves. As someone who much prefers to try before they buy, I find it really annoying.
