Embrace a positive fashion attitude
Something I abhor is the use of “fashion” to be held up as a stick with which to shame people. Earlier this week, a study from the sociology department at the University of East Anglia sold itself on the point that the existence of plus-size clothing was fuelling the obesity epidemic.
Dr Raya Muttarak, the associate professor, marked out Marks & Spencer’s Curve collection (sold online and in less than 10 per cent of its stores), castigating it for “introducing a new design and styling tailored for plus-size customers using carefully selected fabrics complementing fuller figures… promoting body positivity. While this type of body-positive movement helps reduce stigmatisation of larger sized bodies, it can potentially undermine the recognition of being overweight”. I read this as: “How dare chubby people try to feel better about themselves!” Dr Muttarak didn’t offer an alternative solution.
I wrote about this study and received messages from young girls thanking me for voicing an opposition, one said that such reports made her feel “ostracised”. This is not a productive point to start improving one’s health from – physical or mental.
Dr Muttarak’s study showed that it’s men who were more likely to underestimate their weight, and thus not do anything about it. No doubt
women are constantly
made aware that we’re not perfect, that we need another photo filter, that we should stand with our legs another way to make them look thinner…
Because of this scrutiny, to generalise, women are more attuned to the fact that an outfit can affect mood. The power of a well-fitting, favourite piece fuels a lucrative industry for good reason. If you feel positive about your appearance, you’ll be happier and more confident.
This truth is expertly documented on the Netflix binge-watch, Queer Eye – the second series of which has just been released. The show – fronted by the Fab 5 – offers makeovers with a difference. They take men who have lost something of themselves and re-frame them, not turning them into something new, but bringing out what is already there: a few tweaks – haircut, beard trim, a pair of jeans that fits and the art of the French tuck. It’s unashamedly and unrelentingly upbeat. But, most of all, it recognises that, at its best, fashion can give us that little extra armour, and it never needs to be something with which to bash people.