"As the owner of a 32E bosom, I was once informed that the Vivienne Westwood clothes I was eyeing up were for women who want to look as if they have breasts, not for those already in possession of them. On another occasion, a designer stared at my unclothed form and stuttered: "Hourglass!" in tones one might use to utter the word "paedophile". Most mortifying of all was the moment an Armani tailor waved her hand dismissively across my chest, before pronouncing: "These are not Armani!" - Hannah Betts, in the Daily Telegraph.
Mar 26, 2008 @ 9:35am
posted by shinyredthermos
Mar 26, 2008 9:49AM
oh that article is disheartening.
but its good to know that people in the real world think the exact opposite of the fashion world.
i am a bit on the curvy side myself and flipping through glossys can sometimes make me jealous that these girls can wear almost anything and they dont need a bra...
then when i go shopping with my stick thin, less than 'gifted' friends, and i look fantastic in low cut v neck dresses and their eyes beem with jealousy it makes me feel a little better.
i will always, however, let them know that in the grueling heat of the summer months, they will always have the upper hand in staying cool because they do not have to be strapped in by supportive harnesses.
the grass is always greener......
posted by syako
Mar 26, 2008 10:08AM
I can't empathize as I'm the owner of a bosom much closer to the beginning of the alphabet, but what an interesting quote! And hourglass?!? quelle horreur! ;)
posted by guest
Mar 26, 2008 10:40AM
coincidence? that ali michael is the girl they chose to represent the modern model?
it was the first thing i noticed..
posted by sarahchivonne
Mar 26, 2008 10:43AM
thank god that most men don't think like this, otherwise anyone who doesnt look like a flat chested 12 year old boy wouldnt stand a chance at getting a date.
posted by xxi
Mar 26, 2008 10:49AM
I have the same exact problem. It's awful and shouldn't be a problem in this modern age. It's kind of disgusting, I didn't choose to have a 34D, but yet I'm being punished by fashion designers who only design for A's and B's. Or making me have to buy a medium or large when I'm a small just so that my chest can fit and not look like the shirt is too tight. Epic fail.
posted by iloveyou
Mar 26, 2008 11:08AM
I'm 17, 5'3 and I have a 34 D chest... I am definitely an hourglass! It makes it almost impossible to shop. Every time I try something on it's like 'does it draw unnecessary attention to my chest/hips?' The thing with bigger breasts is that it is hard to make them look fashionable and not trashy. I do wish I had a body like Caroline Trentini or Doutzen Kroes (slim but curvy) but as someone said earlier... the grass is always greener...I'm sure a lot of models that are stick thin probably do wish they had womanly bodies
posted by guest
Mar 26, 2008 11:27AM
I totally understand. At 110 pounds with a 32DD chest and 23 inch waist I can buy nothing that fits with out either making me look pregnant,or a whore. This has to be a new phenomenon of the last 30 or so years because I have no problem finding clothes that fit perfectly from the 50's,60's and 70's on Ebay.
posted by Jac
Mar 26, 2008 11:35AM
i'm closer to the beginning of the alphabet too and have had people say that'd look better if you had bigger breasts. This conversation always furstrates me a bit, because i definitely do not have an unwomanly body, a lack of breasts does not a 12 year old boy make. oh well, grass is greener, but itd be nice if people acknowledged the fact that there are other types of bodies then models and then curvy people. Butts, breasts, legs, etc. are all different.
posted by Divina
Mar 26, 2008 11:38AM
Vive le hourglass figure!! Gosh, I miss the old days (30's, 40's and 50's) when the hourglass figure was celebrated.
posted by guest
Mar 26, 2008 11:53AM
Fashionista! this would be the perfect time to help us girls shaped like this find some clothes that actually fit! i'm just like guest at 11:27 and stay away from most clothes because they really make me look like i'm trying to show them off!
posted by guest
Mar 26, 2008 4:28PM
I can not describe how relieving it is to hear from a fellow 32E. We aren't common and seriously, it makes shopping so difficult. Guest @ 11:27, I too feel your pain.
posted by guest
Mar 26, 2008 4:42PM
I was a 32G and had a breast reduction to a 32D and I still am too well endowed to fit into most designer clothes.
This whole breasts and hips as evil thing is so awful. The fashion industry makes its money off making the very people it serves feel disgusting for what should be considered completely natural.
If anyone (let alone someone who was expecting me to PAY them for their services) talked to me like they spoke to Hannah Betts, someone best call the police because I would be sticking a stiletto right up the offender's ass.
posted by bananahana
Mar 26, 2008 6:29PM
Having a flat chest does NOT make you look like a 12 year old boy.
It makes me so, SO incredibly furious when I hear stupid sayings like this. You don't have to be mean and RUDE to make a point.
posted by guest
Mar 27, 2008 3:03AM
I agree with bananahana (even though I'm the formerly 32G commenter above her) what's with this "real" women vs 12-year-old-boys thing going on? We are all real women, and all of our shapes are normal, and we shouldn't be making each other feel worse for being somewhere else on the spectrum of healthy and natural.
posted by guest
Mar 27, 2008 11:15AM
I have a 32E as well and always just love the expressions on the salesperson's face each time I try to buy lingerie. (32? E? You mean like, together? Is that a real size?) And heaven forbid I want something...pretty! It's almost humourous. In clothing, I would love to wear edgier, streamlined looks, but tend to look like an escapee from some sort of institution when I do so. I end up feeling a wee bit pigeonholed into a more romantic, girly vein of clothing (my ever-present friend: the wrap dress and co). And it is frustrating for a fashion-fiend to feel so often alienated from what is on the cutting edge.
I have seriously considered cosmetic breast reduction. In a world full of implants and people claiming to long for larger breasts as a result of the media, I want the opposite, in no small part because of fashion and the media.
I recognize that I am beautiful as I am, but I do often feel a little at war with my ample cheat.
posted by bananahana
Mar 27, 2008 3:44PM
thank you guest 3:03. it's hard enough hearing things said to your face about your body. it doesn't matter if you're flat chasted or large chested we all go through the same doubtfullness over our body and must make peace with the way we look.
posted by guest
Mar 27, 2008 4:14PM
Guest 11:15 - try Agent Provocateur for pretty, they go up to G cup!
Also a lot of French and UK brands go much higher than your average Vickie's Secret. La Perla, Lejaby, Aubade, Miss Mandalay... The internet is your friend - just make sure there's a good return policy and you get to order & try on in the privacy of your own home!
posted by guest
Mar 26, 2008 9:46AM
Even as a 32D, I gotta say, I've occasionally been to boutiques where they stared at my chest like a foreign object, trying to figure out what would look best on my "shape".