Large Plus Size Clothing

terra_ferma

newleaf wrote: »

Lands End had a sale just before Christmas - I bought a coat for my mother and got 40% off with free delivery. I think many retailers discounted heavily pre Christmas, rather than waiting for the traditional January sales. All to keep us on our toes, I suppose.

I had a look but there was nothing in my size in their Parka section at a decent price, I think it changed in the last couple of years, before I used to get a 40-50% discount + a discount code on top, and the last heavy winter jacket was £50 (and quite poor quality as well, which was unusual, as anything else I bought from them was very good).
Same with their cotton t shirts, got some at very low prices, now they are much more expensive, and the alternatives I've tried, from Evans, they were so thin that they were see through, not much use.
I got a few viscose t shirts from TS that they were OK, not cheap but nice.

newleaf

I agree, Lands End has got much more expensive in the last couple of years, but then so has everywhere else

System

terra_ferma wrote: »

Do people find the new AH the same quality as before? They are getting a real bashing on Facebook. Complaints about too much polyester and dark colours.
I have to say that although I used to buy 80% of my clothes from them I've now moved on and the name Bonmarche doesn't inspire confidence in the brand I have to say.

No the quality isn't the same, I ordered a lined skirt from Bonmarche and it was dire it went straight back .

I have found that generally any night wear I buy from yours shrinks or goes out of shape very quickly.

sunflowersuffolk

http://www.romanoriginals.co.uk/icat/coats#esp_sort=lowest_selling_price

Just another possibility - In the past I got a parka style jacket from Roman Originals , size large is about a 20, and they go to XXL. Some styles are not great, but the coat I had has lasted ages, and was light and warm. Fre delivery, have to pay for returns unless you have a shop near you (se their web site)

Lifeforms

Dragged myself out to train to the nearest primark to grab some more leggings.
They're £3, come in Black, green, red, burgundy and grey. Lengths of various sizes, standard, long, extra long, and either in viscose, or cotton. 18 were fine for me so I stocked up a few more pairs in cotton. Mileage varies in types, lengths available! They had 3 sides full of the black, and 1 side of the other colours in the shop, and the lengths were all mixed up so i ended up getting mixed lengths.

Additionally I did pick up a pair of navy fleecy inside leggings which were really quite nice/warm upon trying. They did have a grey version, but none in a 20 (which was the matching size for me) £5. Also picked up some nice patterned/stretch vests there again. Reduced down to £1-£2 each.

terra_ferma

How do people find Simply Be?
Right now there is a kind of boycott on the blogosphere because they stock more in size 12 than they do in plus sizes from 28 onwards.
Particularly their nicer ranges now only go up to size 26.

Lifeforms

Is this in store, or online?
I've only shopped online, have never seen one of their shops, but whilst the current seasonal styles now are not so nice (to me, but im more into floaty dresses, joe browns light prints etc) but in the stuff I look for there is always plentiful options, if not desirable to me

They deal with a few outside designers, so it's not simply be not providing the sizes (outside of their own catalog brand) but their designers not producing the sizes. To be fair J D Williams & Company along all the catalog sites have never produced stunning clothes, more basics you need at a larger size. I rely on the other brands for clothing, and I guess if I directly shop 28, which is about half the number in (all) dresses for say a size 26, then I never see what I miss style wise. As much as a site hosts plus size designers, someones still got to make it.

There's no reason why Tescos, or any of the non-plus ranges, couldn't take their current range and expand the sizes into proper plus. They often do up to 20, so why not up to 30 and not stick with a separate plus size section.

But i kind of think this comes down to what fat people should wear which makes me baulk. I live one life. I wear what I want to wear, and enjoy wearing, not what some blog, or person, or book says I *should* wear because I'm fat. Until they invent clothing that cloaks fatness, whether I wear jeans and a baggy top, or a fitted dress and leggings, I'm still going to look fat, but I sure as hell feel better myself in the dress and leggings. Oooh don't get me started on this :$

There's little enough choice still out of there for plus size, any site that I find something on that I like, i'll use. I still remember the days when Evans was it. Randomly you'd find one or two items plus size, but otherwise it was Evans. And that was ok, it was pretty decent stuff then, but now any choice I like

Frankly

terra_ferma wrote: »

How do people find Simply Be?
Right now there is a kind of boycott on the blogosphere because they stock more in size 12 than they do in plus sizes from 28 onwards.
Particularly their nicer ranges now only go up to size 26.

terra_ferma

It's online. I've not shopped there for ages, I don't like their websites, the pictures are not very good.
Bought lots of stuff over the years, but don't used them as much. Asda do a line up to size 32 I believe, but I never bought any clothes from them, do my shopping there but don't buy supermarket clothes in general.

monruth

On the HoF website they have a Lands End dress @ £50. I hesitated and now my size sold out. Same dress on Lands End website is £76. I called Lands End to see if they would honour HoF price but no luck (yet HoF would do so the other way round). The reply was HoF have discretion to charge what they like. I agree that Lands End prices are now too expensive. I went to Marks Spencer yesterday in Westfield Centre and they had many cashmere garments in Sizes 22 and 24 on sale around £40 to £49. But they seemed quite thin and those I tried on looked like acrylic.

Mrs_Ryan

Simply Be have some lovely things but I baulk at the prices they charge- unreal. However I did buy a set of 2 very nice lace bras in there just before Xmas- they had 20% off so I only paid something like £12 for them. I also bought two bottles of their perfume for £9 which turned out to be a bargain- it smells exactly like Lady Million which I love and can't afford
I've had to stop buying clothes- I'm too poor and I never go anywhere to wear them however I did buy some stuff in the sales where I made some interesting discoveries.
New look's sizing is awful- their 16's are not 16's. When measuring against last year's 16's which fit, this year's falls woefully short which is why they don't fit. Their size 18 t-shirts are enormous. I ordered a Pembridge and Rose one that I could get two people in
I bought a Lonsdale ladies tracksuit from Sports Direct. It was labelled as an 18 but my size 24 friend tried it on and it fit quite comfortably...!!! As you can imagine, I'm about a 16-18 so it absolutely drowned me!
Dorothy Perkins- dear me. A size 20 t-shirt I bought is still a bit small. Another one with naff sizing.
And a bra-related rant why is it I can't get a bra in a size 40 back from most high street shops?! I'm finding I still have to pay premium prices from somewhere like Evans or Simply Be. The only shop ive found that does bras in my size on the high street is M&S and even then the range is limited :mad: I needed a strapless bra recently and found the perfect one in Debenhams. Luckily my Mum is a Debenhams cardholder and gets all manner of discount gubbins so I phoned her and asked her to buy it for me which she did at half the price I would have had to pay. It cost more because it was in the 'larger range' which is one thing guaranteed to make my blood boil :mad:
Oh and re Primark their fleece PJ's come up big. When I was a size 24 I wore their 20-22 but now I'm wearing 18-20 and they're enormous their size 20 t-shirts come up big as well but some are teeny. My mate is a size 24 and she bought a 20 jumper in there which she loves and fits her nicely.