Plus size - post pictures of your dresses please

[Sea rabbit]

Hi everyone. I have sat and read this whole post tonight and I love the way everyone is so supportive, kind and complimentary, I am embarking on my first cruise in July (pun intended!) and looking for fomal dresses. Sailing on IOS RCI. I am a British 16/18 apple shape and short. I have one cocktail dress, some long dresses but these are more for winter. Sail in July to western med, hope will be warm. Keep your suggestions coming. I am unsure if the American stores will post to England and unsure what my size would equate to. Any help gratefully received.

[bass1946]

I decided to go with a long black skirt and several different tops....rather than several dresses. The tops have sparkles on them, and some can also go with pants....for the more casual evenings. I think this will make it easier to pack, I find packing formal dresses take up lots of room.

 

Happy cruisin;)

[ifuonlyknewme]

HI Ladies

I just bought this one for my cruise in June.

[ifuonlyknewme]

This picture is better.

[brooklynfc]

Found a new place for plus size dresses. Found this online store through a blog I read. The sizes look wrong at first glance, but you need to look at the size chart. A Lane Bryant size 24 is their XL. Free shipping too! Here are a few I liked:

 

 

 

 

 

They had a few more. http://www.citychiconline.com/

[Milaandra]

You can't really see the dress, but I went with a short black version of the longer one I showed in my Cruise Fashion Post:

 

 

The pearls worked out well I think:

 

 

 

 

You are so beautiful! And I love that you can wear glasses and some extra weight, yet manage to look like a model...gorgeous and with no awkwardness at all.

 

I may be substantially older than you, but I want to be you when I grow up.

[Milaandra]

Hi everyone. I have sat and read this whole post tonight and I love the way everyone is so supportive, kind and complimentary, I am embarking on my first cruise in July (pun intended!) and looking for fomal dresses. Sailing on IOS RCI. I am a British 16/18 apple shape and short. I have one cocktail dress, some long dresses but these are more for winter. Sail in July to western med, hope will be warm. Keep your suggestions coming. I am unsure if the American stores will post to England and unsure what my size would equate to. Any help gratefully received.

 

I'm so sorry you didn't get answers! I hope your cruise was wonderful.

 

In case other UK readers want the same answer, if you are a 16 in the UK, you're likely a 14 in the US.

 

Most online stores will post anywhere, the big question is customs. I can get items sent from the UK to Canada with no customs, but the US to Canada is hit and miss. Canada puts huge customs charges on items originally manufactured in certain countries, like China. You would have to check what the regulations are like for the UK.

 

Buying through ebay tends to avoid that. Sometimes you are buying through an individual, rather than a store, and it's rare for customs to care if Betty So-and-so sends you a dress in the mail unless it has a high declared value.

[crusinpsychRN]

I just remembered today to look and there's nothing in my email from my own cell phone so will have to re-send. Here are some of the dresses I've chosen to purchase and wear, but none of them are me in them:

 

 

 

Beautiful!

[brooklynfc]

You are so beautiful! And I love that you can wear glasses and some extra weight, yet manage to look like a model...gorgeous and with no awkwardness at all.

 

I may be substantially older than you, but I want to be you when I grow up.

 

Thanks. Beauty only really is about 50% physical, the other 50% is how you let your confidence and personality shine through. Good photographers help too.;)

[mollymoo12]

Hi All

 

I was the original poster of this thread.

 

Unfortunately, I never did get to go my cruise last year due to my DH's sudden illness and I stopped looked at the site for many months so it was lovely to see how much my post had expanded since I last looked at it, which would have been about October 2010. There are certainly lots of fantastic photos, links and advice been posted and I hope that you have found it useful.

 

DH has now completed his treatment and we have recently returned from a fantastic cruise on the Queen Victoria. Unfortunately, an even larger plus size due to all the stress of the last year!

 

It has been great to see all the links that have been posted to websites that stock dresses for us larger ladies.

 

I am going to start a couple of new threads to create a list of them all together, one for UK websites and one for USA websites which will hopefully act as a quick reference without having to scroll through lots and lots of posts.

 

Hopefully, this will be as sucessful as this thread has been. I will post a link when all sorted.

[smoothdancer]

LOL, Brooklyn. The pearls worked well is an understatement. You wear pearls so wonderfully!!

 

I notice you also wore them with your full length black gown in your post with the choices of purple or black for an event you were attending. Everyone said purple, while I thought you wear black so well, and with the pearls, just stunning!!

 

Small thread hijack... A few months back my 90 yr old Aunt/Godmother passed away and she always wore pearls. My 5 sisters and I wore pearls to her funeral in honor of her... Pearls are just so timeless

[brooklynfc]

LOL, Brooklyn. The pearls worked well is an understatement. You wear pearls so wonderfully!!

 

I notice you also wore them with your full length black gown in your post with the choices of purple or black for an event you were attending. Everyone said purple, while I thought you wear black so well, and with the pearls, just stunning!!

 

Small thread hijack... A few months back my 90 yr old Aunt/Godmother passed away and she always wore pearls. My 5 sisters and I wore pearls to her funeral in honor of her... Pearls are just so timeless

 

The pearls will probably make another appearance this cruise. I'm having trouble deciding my 2nd elegant dress. The purple will def. be one. I have been slacking on posting my final fashion blog for this cruise. I should probably get into gear and get it done this weekend for some final advice.

 

And yes, pearls are timeless. My grandmother has always been my inspiration for fashion. Her classic looks had a great impact on me as a young girl and I know she would be proud of my choices today.

[mollymoo12]

Hi

 

As promised, link to new thread for USA websites:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1497871&referrerid=427532

 

And equivalent UK site is here:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1497850&referrerid=427532

 

June

[kbmeow]

Asking a silly question. I am going to the UK in Jan. If I needed to buy cloths what are the names of some of the stores that sell plus size. I am a 14/16/18. i tend to wear mostly 16 and worry about if I forget something.

[Courier95]

Asking a silly question. I am going to the UK in Jan. If I needed to buy cloths what are the names of some of the stores that sell plus size. I am a 14/16/18. i tend to wear mostly 16 and worry about if I forget something.

 

What's available to you will depend on where you will be located for your shopping and your age range. Most UK towns will have an Evans, Marks & Spencer and British Home Stores . Evans specialise in larger sizes while M&S and BHS carry at least up to UK size 20/22. Remember that American size 16 is a UK18. Larger supermarkets also have quite a range of clothes.

 

What type of clothes are you likely to be wanting? With some more information I can probably offer some more suggestions as there should be quite a choice available to you in the size(s) you mention.

[Sea rabbit]

Hi Kbmeow. As courier 95 has posted quite a good selection in the stores mentioned. Debenhams have several ranges of clothes, some middle range and some slightly more pricy, many do up to UK size 20/22. Also House of Fraser have some ranges which go to larger sizes (tend to be more expensive but more unusual).

[Medtech2]

I bought a formal dress at, of all places, Overstock dot com. Don't forget to look on line. I could browse for features I wanted ( had to have at least a little sleeve, high or A line waist, etc).

arrived in two days and fit perfectly!

[Prairie_Gal]

I just ordered this dress for our next cruise. I had been watching it for a while, and they didn't have my size. Well today ... voila! They must have got a shipment in. :D I don't wear dresses in my day to day life, so it is so much fun to dress up on cruises.

[Liv4cruzin]

Love the color.

[kbmeow]

Hi Kbmeow. As courier 95 has posted quite a good selection in the stores mentioned. Debenhams have several ranges of clothes, some middle range and some slightly more pricy, many do up to UK size 20/22. Also House of Fraser have some ranges which go to larger sizes (tend to be more expensive but more unusual).

 

 

TY I will write down those names so if I need anything I will look for those stores.

[Patswife2]

My solution to formal nights is NOT dresses, but rather formal black pajama style slacks which I have in a satin, low nap velvet and a flat nylon. I have several tops to wear with them, along with scarves. All are wrinkle free fabrics and I could conceivably do a two week cruise with formal nights EVERY night with a different look each night. Today I bought a nylon wrap style dress to add to the arsenel, absolutely necessary (I HATE STOCKINGS). It's sleeveless and can actually be worn w/ a fes of my tops to make it look like a skirt and dressy top. I have a pair of gold lame "chinese" flats (w/ a medallian) and gold purse and black lace flats w/ a black beaded purse. All are stylish, but most importantly, I'm always comfortable! I try to make all my clothes do double duty when traveling as I hate to overpack even more than I hate to underpack! :D

[huggs]

Hi Ladies,

Great photos and discussion. My first time posting pics..so hope it works. I find like a few of you, that I take a stretch elastic band pair of black chiffon pants that have slit up the side and almost looks like a dress. Due to health problems I am unable to wear fancy sandals, so this works better as well... Here are the same pants with two different tops, taken on Mexican Riveria cruises a couple of years ago... It all packs so easily and very few wrinkles to worry about.

Phewwwwwwwww it worked...

On our recent cruise to Hawaii I was unable to walk much..so wore a very casual long black dress bought at walmart for $18, added a purple "jacket" / cover up and dressed it up with a necklace I found in Hawaii... so hard to see the details of the dress in the picture - our formal pic of myself , with DH and BF who accompanied us on the cruise.

[Esjohnso]

My two favorite formal dresses are from David's Bridal. One thing I like about them is that they are fairly easy to pack and resist wrinkling--not easy to find in formal gowns!

[christie629]

I just ordered this dress for our next cruise. I had been watching it for a while, and they didn't have my size. Well today ... voila! They must have got a shipment in. :D I don't wear dresses in my day to day life, so it is so much fun to dress up on cruises.

 

Prairie Gal - that dress is beautiful! I used to have a dress somewhat like it. Would you mind sharing where you found it? I'd like to check it out.

 

Thanks!

[Prairie_Gal]

Prairie Gal - that dress is beautiful! I used to have a dress somewhat like it. Would you mind sharing where you found it? I'd like to check it out.

 

Thanks!

 

It is from www.igigi.com.