Okay, I think I'm doing this blogging thing properly this time, so let's have a discussion of the purpose of this blog.

This blog is an aim to create a space in the fatshion world/fat-o-sphere that perhaps looks more at thrifting. I am not interested in assimilating my body into the mainstream - I want on trend clothes, yes, and I'd rather that Evans wasn't permanently full of calf length skirts and elasticated waists - but at the same time, I want to be more than that - I want to be innovative, fresh and against the mainstream. The mainstream high street industry is what determines what a fat person can wear in the first place, whereas I want to be the person who determines what I wear.

Kathleen LeBesco talks about fatshion in her book Revolting Bodies, in a way which I feel sums up the ways in which fat people dressing up can be revolutionary and genuinely seeking of social change:
'When fat people are no longer relegated to unflattering tent-dresses made of interior fabrics, when they look more like their slim counterparts in terms of appealing garb, there's one less thing to dismiss them for. But when they disdain 'blending in' in favour of cobbling together a look from the scattered resources available and becoming more brave about appearing in ways that defy the 'tasteful' intentions of the commodifiers of corpulence, fashion is revolutionary; its newfound ability stymies fat oppression.' (LeBesco, 2004: 73)

I am not intending to cause waves here, but I sometimes get a bit concerned about the way fatshion blogging is heading. The focus seems to be far more on plus size retailers, i.e. Torrid, Evans, Lane Bryant, New Look and so on, and less about innovative ways to dress. Sometimes, especially when companies give pieces to bloggers, and with more bloggers choosing to blog for companies, the line between individual and corporation seems to blur. The whole point about fashion blogging is surely for everyday people, people that the fashion industry perhaps isn't focused on, to have their two cents about what's in and what's out. When fashion bloggers themselves become sponsored by companies, and become part of the corporate machine themselves, then are their words really their words anymore?

Also, I'm poor, and quite frankly, I can't afford the high street nowadays. So, this blog, I hope, is a step back to the start again. I'm going to talk about thrifting, jumble sales, car boots, vintage shopping, and I'm going to talk about how to do all these things as a fatty. I'm going to talk about living on an arts slave salary (sadly, not even that at the minute!), and still looking awesome. I'll probably still perve over more expensive clothes on here too, but what I hope to show is that you can be fat and radical and fashionable on any budget.

Over and out xx