another idle thought

[rm]

Is our culture's excessive obsession with weight a partial product of the casualization of clothing?

I realize that wealthy societies as a rule tend to favour thinness and poor ones heaviness, because those things are markers of affluence (i.e., time to work out and be "healthy" or proof you have enough to eat and are therefore "healthy"), but as I was look at all the bad fashion choices in Union Square today, I realized almost everyone looked like shit because their clothes had no damn structure and excessive thinness can at least fake that structure or "require" less of it, than a larger softer body. That said, people are not made of perfect curves, straight lines and ideal angles at any weight, and I say this as a woman who can bring death with her elbows. I'm not convinced that better tailoring and accurate sizing can solve problems, but I sort of think the lack of both has caused a bunch of them.

Comments

[winterknight.livejournal.com]

I think it's more mass production and lack of emphasis on quality combined with a complete loss of skills. I think that's the problem with people's diets, too.

It is hard work to create something that's well-made. It cuts down the profits at the top. Therefore, cheaper clothing.

Loss of skills means that people don't know how to fit clothes, they don't know that their clothes don't fit, and they wouldn't know how to fix it if they did. I think the nation as a whole is somewhat depressed (emotionally, not financially) and aimless, and it doesn't really realize how it looks.

[rm.livejournal.com]

I think the nation as a whole is somewhat depressed (emotionally, not financially) and aimless, and it doesn't really realize how it looks.

I think this is brilliant, and true.

Moving the waist around doesn't seem to help either

[haya.livejournal.com]

As we speak... tons of very tiny women look very pregnant.

Re: Moving the waist around doesn't seem to help either

[rm.livejournal.com]

hahahah yes. Also, as someone who does Regency reenactment, I have to say, those dresses don't work on everyone and the short version everyone is wearing now? doesn't work on ANYONE!

[beemerbike.livejournal.com]

I say we thank every major designer who sold out to Walmart and Target...

I think well fitted clothing makes a world of difference, but in the haste of daily life I think it was one of the first things to go.

[hangedwoman.livejournal.com]

It's actually kind of amazing how little time it's been since being fat was the sign of affluence in this country.

I blame our obsession with weight on the skyrocketing media coverage and the fact that so many people are gaining it, and these days I'm inclined to blame that on corn syrup.

Re: Moving the waist around doesn't seem to help either

[rothko.livejournal.com]

i haaaaaaaaaaate all that crap. and it's the only thing you can even FIND anywhere. i haven't been able to buy clothes at all for nearly a year now.

[rm.livejournal.com]

Seriously, that stuff is the devil. I mean, I'll always be thin because of celiac, but there's something to the fact that I just don't like or drink soda.

[abnormal-apathy.livejournal.com]

I've been thinking much the same when I see gorgeous women walking around in things that are hardly acceptable as housecoats. Ugh ugh ugh ugh ugh. But hey, whatever floats their boat...

And this is coming from a woman who is always bitching about things not fitting right because fat clothes tend to just be "scaled up" versions of things that really only look good on thin women.

[sdn.livejournal.com]

oh, interesting observation!

let's not forget overly tight and revealing clothing and the use of "workout wear" as clothing.

[sdn.livejournal.com]

explain about the corn syrup.

[miep.livejournal.com]

I look about 15 pounds lighter since I quit wearing clothes that don't fit and don't have good structure.

[laurel]

Great observation, I think there's something to this.

It dismays me how much higher end clothing or expensive clothing is uber-casual or just poorly designed. Poorly thought out too. I think some people think that if they spend hundreds of dollars (or more) on a cashmere jogging suit, that means it's okay to where pretty much anywhere. Gah!

[annablume.livejournal.com]

And don't forget properly fitting undergarments. Or lack of, as is frequently the case.

[marzipan-pig.livejournal.com]

I've noted that 'thin' women tend to think everything looks good on them and can sometimes end up wearing stuff that really is more flattering to heavier or curvier women, and then heavier women try to wear stuff that looks better on thinner women.

I think people should wear what they like, and of course we've all worn dumb stuff b/c it's in style, but having a sense of what is flattering and what looks good on you goes a long way. I also think people should have a little more fun with their clothes than a lot of us do, and I try to widen my comfort zone some. Other times I buy one more gray quarter-length sleeve boat necked top, or another black tshirt, and know I'll always have something to go with it.

[ladyofthelog.livejournal.com]

People seem not to understand how clothing drapes on their body at all.

Also, wtf with the pregnant lady tops, really.

I mean, I have wider than average shoulders and barely fill an A cup, and I'm a weird size (the cusp between "average" and plus size). But I am totally confident of my ability to look hot because I know how to shop for my body. For instance, I am not one of those people who look good in Regency clothing, to my sadness.

The moral of the story: know thyself (and a good tailor).

[hangedwoman.livejournal.com]

Well, first of all, it's really about HFCS - high fructose corn syrup, which has become a more and more common food additive since it about the mid-seventies. It's cheap and transports easily and mixes well, so food processors really like it (and of course if you want to you can get into the evils of the agricultural lobby in this country and how that affects things).

Part of the problem is that it's not just used as a sugar substitute in things you'd normally expect such as soda, but in other foods to prevent freezer burn and keep bread soft and such. And while there is still debate as to what the effects really are, there is a lot of concern about how our bodies process pure fructose as opposed to cane sugar or naturally occuring sugars such as those found in fruit. It strains the heart and certainly the liver and might have a lot to do with our increasing problems with diabetes.

Now I'm certainly not skinny like rm - I am in fact very overweight. But my blood sugar (as well as my blood pressure and cholesterol) is well within the healthy range, and I can't help but wonder how my dietary choices figure into that. See, I tend not to like sweet foods; I mean, on one hand I enjoy some candy and other desserts as much as the next person, but I also find myself avoiding a lot of other foods because of their sweetness levels. I don't eat a lot of bread and I don't like most condiments, and I rarely drink soda. I prefer to make my own tomato sauces for pasta because the premade kinds are too sweet for my preference - things like that. And I think that cuts out a lot of "incidental" sweeteners, if you will, and I think that helps keep me just a little bit healthier.

And in case you're wondering why I would blame the majority of other people's weight problems on HFCS and not my own, well, I know that I'm overweight mostly because I'm a binge eater, but I doubt that's the case with the majority of overweight people.

[hangedwoman.livejournal.com]

Only vaguely related because of the funky way my mind works, but I only just recently watched Casino Royale, and that bit about the tailored dinner jacket was pretty much worth the whole movie.

[stupid-drawings.livejournal.com]

Most of my tshirts have been given darts in the lower back region to keep me from looking like a pear. The problem with mass producing is that to fit everyone, it can't truly fit anyone.