I have been meaning to comment on something for a little while now. Recently, one of the searches used to find my blog was “fat people wearing American Apparel disco pants”. OUCH, sucks to be me. I’m a UK10/US6, not skinny skinny or model thin, but defo not fat. I have the “OMGGG I’M OBEEEEEEEEEEEEESEEEEEEEEE” moments. Which are not helped by eating greasy breakfasts in Premises and Pellici’s and I could probably (definitely) do with toning up and stop eating a million chocolate bars a day. I have fat on my body, but actually, I’m not overweight. Unless you talk to the internet. It has somewhat peeved me, because it has anonymously and insidiously knocked my confidence when I wear my favourite item of clothing. I LOVE disco pants. But now, when I wear them I feel just…..fat.
I have two points here. The obvious one is that I’m raging over the fat thing. Am I blinded by the shiny spandex into a misguided sense of security? Do I, in fact, look somewhere between a beached whale and boiled ham? Should I take the hint and put the disco pants away, fat girl. What IS a fat person in this case? Someone who has more than skin and bone to put in their disco pants? What is the line? Are disco pants a no-go for size 14 girls (or size 10 girls, seemingly)? What are the rules? While I think there’s a lot to be said for dressing according to your style and not your dress size, I definitely try to pick things out that sartorial venn diagram that flatter me*. Why can’t these internet creeps do like normal people and just bitch about me behind my back, leaving me with my ill advised, happy shiny pants.
The other point is why disco pants cause such controversy. They are skintight trousers I suppose, and American Apparel are really good at marketing their clothes as provocative, but they are no more loud or extreme than a lot of things. However, they seem send out a weird message I am not fully aware of. Obviously, wearing tight things puts your figure on show, but I have loads of tight clothes, many of which are also American Apparel and disco pants just bring it to a whole other world of attention. I just like that they are SHINY, which is fun. They are more jazzy than skinny jeans and more sturdy than leggings. They are comfortable for doing things like dancing, and running around doing your daily business. And dancing. So I just don’t get why they always cause such a furore, and why people are so mystified by them. Maybe fashun has turned my brain into mush and I can’t see the obvious problem with wearing shiny pants like it’s a totally normal thing, unless you are some insanely thin person.
Anyway, here’s my “fat” self in my favourite things ever. There are two pics, because they are in fact somewhere between these two levels of shiny. Harsh flash + reflective surface = :/
Disco Pants & socks, American Apparel; everything else, charity shops and stolen from my mum
*Unless it’s too unbelievably-freaking-amazing-like-have-you-seen-how-cool-this-top/dress/trouser-is good to pass up. Then I will wear it anyway and not give a flying monkeys what anyone else says.
