Armed with a gift card in my hand and Nordstrom love in my heart, I headed to the nearest Nordstrom Rack, in San Leandro, California, to do a little shopping.

The first thing I noticed is that Nordstrom Rack does not exactly provide the full Nordstrom Experience. I’ve been to Nordstrom proper many a time, and have had luck finding gorgeous clothes and fancy party dresses. Nordstrom also has impeccable customer service, making it a joy to shop there. Not so with Nordstrom Rack, which is more like shopping at a really really nice Ross Dress for Less. But of course, the prices are a lot lower, so that’s the tradeoff.

Whereas the selection at Ross is hit-or-miss (and mostly miss), the selection at Nordstrom Rack is amazing. (And they are expanding their plus size selection and adding plus to more stores starting September 15.) They have everything from Coach handbags to Bliss products to (of course) designer clothes, with a nice selection of plus sizes (I saw sizes up to 3XL and 26/28). My favorite thing about the Rack is actually the shoe section, as they have a great selection of shoes that go up to Women’s 13. My time was a little limited since I had a B-A-B-Y with me, but I found a lot of stuff to try on in an effort to put together a fall outfit. I was looking for something to wear when I go back to an office job in October, with “comfortable” being my main criteria.

The first thing I found was a pair of black Not Your Daughter’s Jeans. I’ve never heard of this brand before, but they are super comfortable. I was in love with this pair of pants the minute I put it on (original price $138). I paired it with an oversized striped Blu Seven top ($48) that says “fall” to me somehow. I’m also super into stripes! I added a Calvin Klein cropped shrug ($58) as a nod to the crisp San Francisco weather, and a super long, jet crystal necklace ($78) from the Nordstrom Crystal Collection. The original total cost was $322; my total before tax was $125.88 (pants $37.97, top $24.97, shrug $19.97, necklace $30.97). I saved almost $200! That’s almost enough for one of the purses I was drooling over!

fall outfit , a photo by mo pie on Flickr.

I also had picked out a pair of gold shoes (original price $78; my price $38.97) in size 11 1/2 to finish off the look. However, there was a slight customer service snafu, and I didn’t end up getting them. I didn’t get bad customer service, exactly, it just wasn’t particularly good. I should say that the dressing room attendant was very nice about accommodating me and the stroller that I had, and a woman restocking merchandise was very friendly, but the checkout experience wasn’t great.

I had picked out a shoe and had neglected to go to the “shoe mate” window because A) the baby had started crying, and B) I had no idea how the shoe mate window worked. I asked if I could pay for the shoes and then go pick up the second one; this is apparently against policy (which I understand) but I was told I had to go to the back of the store to get the second shoe, wait in the line again (which had gotten really long) and then pay for the shoes separately. Since the baby was fussy and hungry by that point, I simply had to put the shoe back. I think if I were at regular Nordstrom, someone might have been willing to either run back and get the shoe for me, or let me skip the giant register line that I’d already waited in once. But again, it was my mistake, and their policy makes sense.

Overall, if you’re a fan of Nordstrom and a fan of saving money on expensive Nordstrom merchandise, it’s definitely worth poking around Nordstrom Rack.

Want to try Nordstrom Rack out for yourself? One lucky winner will receive a $100 Nordstrom Rack gift card to create their perfect fall look! Simply leave a comment telling me what fabulous fall piece is a must-have in your wardrobe. Make sure to leave your email address! Sweepstakes runs 9/15-10/31. Visit the Promotions & Prizes section. Official Rules.

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You may receive (2) total entries by selecting from the following entry methods:
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This giveaway is open to U.S. Residents age 18 or older. Winners will be selected via random draw, and will be notified by e-mail. You have 72 hours to get back to me, otherwise a new winner will be selected. Good luck!

I hadn’t seen the show, so I went and checked out some clips to get a feel for what it is like. There seems to be a range of fat experience here: some women have lost weight, some are dieting, some are very accepting of themselves. Many of them are matter-of-fact about their bodies, and have seemingly learned to blame the clothes, not themselves, if something doesn’t work. And of course, some are less confident, or apprehensive about the whole experience. Some hate trying clothes on; one woman admitted she hadn’t worn a dress in 20 years. The people helping them seem to be pretty positive and encouraging. (Although after watching a bunch of these videos, I still haven’t seem them find one dress that isn’t strapless, what is up with that.) (I also suddenly feel like getting married all over again in a giant white poofy strapless dress. Maybe I’ve watched too many clips in a row.)

So, have you ever seen the show? Do you have any advice for Laurie? Check out the clips below and let us know in the comments what you think. And good luck, Laurie! Let us know when the episode airs!

And the downside to all of that glam? The family gathering.

Some of us are lucky enough to have happy families, supportive and warm loving families that do not thrive on dysfunction and backstabbing (and to you I say: what’s that like? And also, can I pet your unicorn sometime?) but I for one do not. It’s totally the wrong response, but I find that I do much better mentally if I am wearing something that I absolutely love and that I know looks fabulous on me. Pants that pull or shirts that pucker are not allowed! To risk the chance of absent-mindedly plucking at your clothing in a way that would be misinterpreted as weakness or insecurity will certainly give some well-meaning relative an opening to corner you just to remind you that you have such a pretty face if only you’d do something about –you know. UGH!

For instance, I fell in love with this SWAKDesigns purple paisley number before it was even out and have been wearing the hell out of it for weeks*. I love it and it makes me feel like I can take on the world, even when I wear it to work with a modesty cami and a boring cardigan to deal with our unpredictable office environment.  And while I was in San Francisco two weeks ago, I stopped into the Igigi office to chat with a friend and was literally stopped dead in my tracks when I spotted the Donna Corset Top hanging near their work area. Sexy and powerful and enough to give even Aunt Betty pause. I ended up being very crass and turning a social visit into a shopping one, but I was powerless to resist buying the Moda Italiana*: the wool is seriously like buttah. Clearly I’m not the only one who loves it, as they are nearly sold out but the maxi coat is exactly the same indescribably baby soft wool and also gorgeous.

I’m also keeping an eye on this cute sweater dress from Lucie Lu and I must have purple on the brain, because I keep wandering back to gaze at this wrap dress from Kiyonna. And anyone who haunts Fatshionista already knows about the English score ASOS Curve but this dress is either totally rock star or tragically marred by that fat girl dress shop need to slap shiny stuff on everything. My instinct is that it’s saved by the blend of sapphire and black.

What about you? What are your power outfits? Where should we be shopping for our next It Girl dress?

*This post is totally unbiased and was not compensated. Both the SWAK dress and the Igigi coat were my purchases and neither company requested a review. Additionally, neither I nor BFD received compensation or requests from LucieLu, Kiyonna or ASOS.

Gaultier is, of course, the same designer who used Velvet D’Amour in a previous runway show. More pictures at HuffPo, where they pair the slideshow with this recent quote from Ditto:

“It’s really interesting to me that people will look at a thin person and go, ‘That’s a healthy person’. I want to go, ‘Come open my refrigerator and look and then let’s talk about what you think is so bad’. To be thin and to stay really thin, sometimes…some people literally do coke all the time. Some people smoke cigarettes instead of eating. That’s crazy. But that’s ‘okay’ because you look healthier.”

Thanks to Christina for the link! And thanks to Beth, and Jean Paul Gaultier, for being awesome.

Because they are never JUST shoes. They’re what I was, for a long time, allowed – when you’re fat and your options are limited, sometimes shoes become the thing you use to express yourself…

It’s one of the only areas in which I’ve ever had just as much choice as any other person on the street when it comes to things required for getting dressed. And that’s a powerful thing. It’s one reason I have what feels like so many shoes. It’s one reason I have so many DISTINCTIVE shoes – it matters less that my fashion options are limited if I can make a statement with my shoes.

In her post, Marianne acknowledges that this is only possible for those who wear a readily available size shoe. And this reminded me I’ve been meaning to do a post for those of us who, like me, don’t wear a common shoe size.

I have always been tall and had large feet—I was wearing a size 9 shoe when I was 13. And of course, Persons of Size also sometimes have wider than average feet. All of this means we can’t walk into a shoe store and expect to find something that fits. Except Payless which, god bless em, goes up to a 12 and has wide widths, to boot. (HA! TO BOOT!) But, you know, Payless shoes do tend to fall apart sometimes.

So, what are our options? We can search Zappos by size or width, paying close attention to the customer notes in the comments (some brands tend to run large or small) which allows us to hit shoes at a variety of price points.

As for specific designers, Fluevogs go up to size 13, and they have some “unisex” styles as well. I know Weetabix has gotten Stuart Weitzmans and Guccis in size 12 at Nordstrom (which is currently having a “free shipping on shoes” sale). She’s the fancy Nordstrom shoe shopper, whereas I am the Payless shoe shopper.

And in this comment, Lisa mentioned that drag queen shops usually have women’s shoes in generous sizes. (Well, they would.) So if you need a red leather stiletto boot in a size 15, this is your lucky day.

So, how about it? Ladies with Feet of Size, which brands work for you, and where do you buy them?

1. From Feed Me: Fat women are paid less than men in the workplace. So obviously, we should lose weight. Wait, what?

Fat women are paid less than women who aren’t fat; fat men, on average, earn comparable salaries to men who aren’t fat. So women are penalized by employers for being fat… All the young women who don’t identify as feminists because they don’t have to fly that flag anymore should take note of studies like this one. Gender discrimination is alive and well in 21st-century America.

But that’s not where the writer of this story went. No, her conclusion was quite different. She wrote, “It’s bad news, but maybe it will help fund better prevention strategies and new treatment methods for this growing scourge.”

Excuse me? Did I hear you right? The answer to discrimination is getting rid of the quality that’s being discriminated against?

2. From Already Pretty: the problem with “she shouldn’t wear that.”

[S]tylistic shoulds and shouldn’ts reinforce the idea that there are absolute rights and wrongs in clothing choices, tastes, and body shapes. Saying a woman “shouldn’t” wear something because of her figure supports the idea that there is one way to look good. And there isn’t. In fact, women who push social comfort levels with their stylistic choices may gradually force the observing public to accept that. Although some may prefer that women with cellulite conceal it, women with bony clavicles mask them, and women with zits apply cover-up, each woman is entitled to make her own choices.

3. The theme of the comp class I’m teaching this semester is feminism (actually, I told them it was unofficially called “F the Patriarchy”—it’s led to some terrific debate and discussion) and I shared this tidbit from Shakesville with them the other day. A headline reads “Man badly burned when girlfriend’s house set on fire” when, in actuality, he was her ex-boyfriend and stalker. And oh yeah, he set the fire.

[A]n amazing example of how violence against women is minimized in news reporting… the violent stalker is badly burned. His intended victims, who merely were doused with gasoline and terrorized, are OK.

4. From Womanist Musings: Gabourey Sidibe as “Mammy.”

There can be no denial that there are some people who will look at Gabourey and see mammy smiling back at them both consciously and unconsciously, yet that is not a function of her, but a function of Whiteness. When we use fat hatred to claim that her success is obscuring the talents of other Black women, we are only playing into the divisive strategy that Whiteness has long used to control people of colour. Even the Black women that some believe are deserving of greater accolades, are still perceived by Whiteness as fitting into either the jezebel or sapphire trope, and therefore; the way to divest ourselves of these horrible caricatures, is not to further demean another Black woman, but to defeat the idea that any of these labels are representative of Black womanhood. The entity that needs to disappear is mammy and not Gabourey.

5. Terrific satirical essay from Lesley about the importance of the “suffering ween.”

The sight of fat women is a heavy cross said men must bear every moment they step out into the public spaces where people congregate, be they city streets or shopping malls or public transportation or the dentist’s office. Their eyes burning as though filled with a raging fire, their inability to control their speech — the inescapable, uncontrollable need to instruct the offending woman on the pain she is selfishly causing them — this is hardly their fault! They must say something, in the hope that their words will drive the fat woman back into the shadows and thereby cause the unthinkable torture being imposed upon their enfeebled weens to finally relent. They cannot be responsible for the things they say and do while in such agony. We cannot rightly blame them when it is men, and the relative rigidity of their supremely important peckers, who are being attacked here, attacked by fat women who dare to allow themselves to be seen.

Pretty awesome collection of links, am I right? Let’s discuss in the comments!

2. Levi’s has come out with new “Curve ID” jeans, with different cuts similar to the Lane Bryant Right Fit concept. They go up to a size 24.

3. Making space for all kinds of bodies when we talk about body image, from Disabled Feminists. The post also addresses the idea of making space for those who don’t love their bodies at all. A thought-provoking read.

4. 500-pound teen dies in a fire when fire crews are unable to lift her. Heather, who sent in the article, pointed out how hateful the comments are in response to this tragedy, with references to her “eating herself to death.” Ugh.

5. Shapely Prose officially shuts its doors, and Kate Harding talks about her plans for the future. The end of an era!

Want to talk about any of this stuff? I know I do! Let’s take it to the comments!

If I were to do a clothing line, it would be for sizes 16 and higher. Because I really believe that those women are truly a neglected population, and when I visit department stores and I go to the shop that’s called “woman,” I am horrified! Horrified by the awful, degrading, disrespectful choices that women have. It is mind boggling. I mean, selecting these gigantic prints, and it’s… I mean, who wants to look like a couch?

Thanks to Kathy for the link (and transcription)!

There’s a chart at that link, but before you click, be warned: there’s plenty of fatism to be had in that article. The writer assures us he’s “no cow,” conflates larger sizes with poorer health (and ice-cream eating) throughout, and talks about how he doesn’t “deserve” to feel good if his pants size is really 39″. Ugh.

Anyway, women complain about vanity sizing all the time because it makes it so difficult to reliably shop for clothes (particularly when brick-and-mortar stores refuse to carry your size, and you have to order online, cough cough). We say, “Why can’t the sizing be straightforward! Measured in inches! Like men’s sizes!” We do not say, “Why can’t men’s sizes be equally misleading and confusing, because that would be more fair!”

Fashion industry, you’re going in the wrong direction.

Hello all, I’m Lisa. I’m 32, 5’4″ short and weigh about 300lbs (it fluctuates). Would that I could say that I have the blessing of an hourglass shape, but no. I’m one of the fat girls ‘blessed’ with a rather large belly. Of the spare 170lbs I’m toting around, I’d guess that 50-75% of it is concentrated in my stomach. Any one have tips on how to dress for that shape?

So, any fashion tips for Lisa, and all the other apple shapes out there? Links to the Fatshionista photo stream are welcome!