When it comes to walking down the aisle

Don't you find it astonishing that providers of plus-size clothing don't always live up to that claim?

I recently contacted a Bridal store (no, I'm not getting married! ha), but I wanted to see for myself what was being offered to young women who were planning to walk down the aisle. Their advertisements (in large print) throughout local and national newspapers and magazines said, "Are you a plus-size planning to get married?" Further in the ads I read that the collection designed by an award winning UK designer, goes from sizes 18-30.

But when I actually got to the point of asking to "see" some of the bridal gowns, I was given a beautifully presented colour brochure. Sorry, I can't imagine what a garment will look like on a curvaceous young girl/woman or even an older woman. What I want to see are some actual examples of bridal wear.

How frustrating and disappointing for the young women who eagerly walk through the doors of this boutique store in the hope they'll be able to touch and see some lovely bridal gowns, only to be given a brochure.

Is this good enough?

Did you realise?

According to the Australia Koala Foundation, www.empowher.com, 1 in 3 teenage girls have starved themselves or refused to eat in an effort to shed kilos.

It's bad enough the discrimination shown towards adults, but it's wrong, wrong, wrong, that our teens feel they HAVE to be slim, if not downright skinny, to meet the media's expectations.

In today's world when it is (supposedly) illegal to discriminate against gender, culture, faith, and disability, why is it still permitted to discriminate against the plus-size and the aging. No-one seems to be bothered about confronting this, except of course for the plus-size and the aging. And when we do say something, we're told we're whinging and whining and complaining.

I say, let's complain loudly and often. Perhaps someone with clout will stand up for us, and with us, and be counted!

* And I question this ridiculous measurement of "plus-size" or overweight or "obese" (a hateful word and should never be used against another person - it's soul destroying). None of us are identical in height, weight, width, and shape, and yet we're all supposed to fit into an "ideal". Who was it that worked out what "ideal" is? Obviously someone who thought they were the perfection upon which we should all aspire to. What nonsense.

Plus-size garments

Garments should flow over and around the body
rather than restrict and suffocate it