Sunday, November 9, 2008

open for business

Welcome.

I started this blog not because I have a great desire to write it (I'm busy with my main blog over here) but because I want to read it. I'm large, and so is my life and it is a constant disappointment to me that the blogs I read, the forums I search and the pictures I see so often don't apply to me.

My main thing at the moment is fashion. Like lots of plus size people I seem to oscillate between wanting to be invisible and wanting to really stand out. I find it difficult to determine the line between finding what suits me and wearing the clothes I feel my culture dictates fat people should wear. I worry about taking fashion risks and about being a middle age matron before my time (or at any time at all for that matter).

In real life I find feedback and advice, inspiration and community invaluable but often limited. I want to see more images of big people looking good, I want some role models and some advice from people who are unafraid, practical and innovative.

And because I sew a lot of clothes, I want more than just advice on what I wear. I want to talk about sewing experiences for big clothes too. The stylish sewers tips and tricks, the pattern and fabric wins and pitfalls, the tried and true methods and finishes that make people feel good about their clothes.

Knowing where to buy stuff is good too, especially down here in Oz where there are less clothes for plus size people and they are harder to find. Experience with individual brands, retail stores and online buying can really help other people size up their choices.

What I don't want this blog to become is one big whinge about being fat. I'm sure this blog will evolve and there's lots of stuff beside fashion that's worth talking about, but views and life choices about size and diet are too complex and personal for this forum. Neither do I want it become a place where people are harshly judgemental, humiliating and taking delight in other people's bad choices. A little bit of fashion disaster posting is always fun, but the main game is what we like, not what we don't.

I'm going to have to be braver than I usually am to post some of the stuff here I think it would be good to post. Sewing clothes in progress for example would be a great feature but you'll get to see some wobbly bits I usually keep out of view. I hope all those who post here will be brave too and I hope readers will respect that. A lot of us find it hard to step out into the harsh light of public scrutiny, so even those of us seeking feedback want it to be constructive and delivered with sensitivity and humour.

While I hope to post here often and retain the role of administrator for large, this is designed to be a community blog. The more people who post, the better it will be. I encourage you to contact me (soozs.com@gmail.com) if you'd like to be involved, either to become a regular poster, a one-off poster, or even just to email me a tip, link or suggestion for something you'd like to see posted about. Equally, commenting on other people's posts and photos is really important so I urge you to make the extra effort to do so, feedback and community are two way streets.

12 comments:

sueeeus said...

O hooray, good for you, getting this thing going!

Anonymous said...

Yay, can't wait to read more.

Janet said...

yay! after the move, after the move.....

and I do believe I am large's first bloglines subscriber!

Solorn said...

I don't make day to day clothes, I'm convinced I can't do it for some reason, but I do make costume for larger and 'odd' sized people. I would be happy to help you if you would like.

For a long time I was a large lady, now I'm still large by 'fashion standards' but happy in my own skin. It's all about getting things to fit right I think.

Anonymous said...

I'm hooked already, can't wait to see more from this new blog. Let me know if there is anything I can do to help

Stacy
http://www.kidsstuffworld.com

Sarajessica said...

Hi, I'm so putting this blog on my to read-list! Yay!

Katie said...

Yay! What a wonderful idea. I can't wait to see what everyone comes up with.

Erica Tesla said...

Best idea ever - and I hope to both read regularly and contribute as it makes sense.

:)

knittingrid said...

Yay, you did it!

Unknown said...

Now this is a blog I can relate to!

Sarah Doyle said...

So glad to see this - I'm subscribing to this also, and will add content as it seems appropriate. Good luck!

Sarah J Doyle
http://BigBeautifulPeople.com
http://SewingBusiness.com (blog)

Julie Zaccone Stiller said...

What a great idea for a blog! I'm in the same situation, wanting to dress for comfort, sometimes for style, not finding much to buy retail, trying to sew my own with hit and miss results. Feedback and advice from others in a similar circumstance will be useful, so thanks. btw, I saw you mentioned on whipup.