Email sent. I'll let you know if I hear anything back.

They wanted you to pick a category of show that you'd fit into, so I picked the reunion one and said we've never met in Real Life but that we interact daily on a message board. And it would be cool to meet in Real Life and do the show. And I included links to our forum and even this thread. Who knows?

You might try Tyra and Oprah as well.

Some mistakes ... yup!
I was busy being overweight and looking after children. When I 'found' myself thin, I also 'found' myself 40-something. How the heck do they dress?
I think I'm getting the hang of it now but I did buy some stuff that pretty much went straight to GoodWill.

And then there is the mistake of mature discretion ... In May (I think) at about 133 lbs, I went shopping for shorts. Tried on 4's which were a bit snug looking. Wisely, I chose a good fit (6), rather than curve hugging hotty shorts. A fabulous fit! I bought 3 pairs!
It has come to my attention (via DH) that 'those don't do much for ya'.
I guess the last few layers of my paper towel roll are true to legend.
And so ... I'm wearing jeans

Meg - Good luck with What Not to Wear! I love that show and I'd love to see you guys on it.

I buy almost everything (except underwear) online. I dress really simply (always have) and work outside with dogs so about 90% of my stuff I get from LL Bean and Land's End (the cheaper version of LL Bean). It's sporty outdoor stuff. Eddie Bauer also makes really good stuff but it's way too expensive for what you get.

But this stuff is not sexy ladies. And it lasts for years so no new clothes every season. Things got a little boring in my closet.

Until I found Coldwater Creek. Really nice girly clothes - not too fancy/frilly but lots of textures, patterns, nice details, etc. I tend to wait and buy their stuff when it comes on sale.

Dagmar

Ah, Dagmar, you mentioned all my favorite stores! Living in a small town with truly no store that sells clothing (beyond socks and men's underwear at the grocery), I fall back on online. Otherwise I'd be dressed just like every other person in town - the nearest "clothing" stores are WalMart, and Fred Meyer (and they're building a Target) about 15 miles away. It's 50+ miles to "real" stores in Anchorage. I visited a friend near Dallas last spring and made a killing at a Coldwater Creek outlet sale, plus scored really well at an upscale consignment store she took me too. Get me out of Alaska and I need at least one day to power shop.

OK here is what I bought (at Fred Meyer's -Pat!)

Ennay, I love that top! It's gorgeous and such a great color on you. And look at you in the sideways pose -- you almost disappear! (but you still have a nice little curve to your butt, if you don't mind me saying so )

Why thank you Meg Its hard to tell in the pic, but the pants are a chocolate brown...I may have to buy shoes

Ooh, ennay, look at you! Very nice!

We should totally be on What Not to Wear! Don't take that the wrong way! I don't mean that you all don't have style, but that we could all use some expert advice and free clothes!

Speaking of which, my brother's girlfriend (who I am now the same size as, whoohoo!) who is a complete fashionista has given me her hand-me-downs (her own sister is bigger than her- in height and a bit in weight, so I am next in line apparently). It is great! I have only had to buy one pair of jeans because I got 3 from her as well as some great tops! I have never been able to share clothes with my friends growing up so this is a completely new experience for me.

Great topic Mel! Mind if I jump in here.

When I first began losing weight my goal was to lose enough weight to be able to confidently wear clothes from Lands End or LLBean. I remember studying the mags and looking at them online for hints on how they would appear on my figure at nearly 190 pounds. Not great. As I began to lose the weight I realized that even if I was close to goal many of those clothes just would not flatter me for all kinds of reasons. Nice on other people, but not on me.

Last summer I spent almost every weekend shopping for clothes to fit my quickly changing body. No kidding, ask my mom, she was there with me just like when I was in elementary school shopping for beginning of the year clothes. In fact in the spring of the year I spent two hours in the dressing room of Banana Republic with the manager and assistant manager trying to find a pair of pants that fit well or just a look/any look... The problem was that I'm a classic pear and the waists in these pants were huge! I purchased one pair but they still weren't quite right. But after two hours of their time I felt like I should buy something. DH had a fit when he saw how much they gaped when I sat down in them.

It was such a challenge to not only learn how to dress this new shape I created but what exactly does a 38 year old mother wear? So many new rules...and head games at play here. Like you had mentioned I dressed in ways to hide my bottom half. Long tunic tops, lots of jackets, things that probably just made me look heavier. Oh, and there were florals too. ~sigh~

After the Banana Republic fiasco I began to search online for clothing catalogs that may specialize in womens activewear. I stumbled across sites for www.titlenine.com and www.lucy.com Have you seen these? They are almost like magazines/catalogs where they give you a bio or story about their real life models who live very fit/active lives. AT LAST! Real women, my age or a little younger/older who looked great in these clothes. I used these mags as a guide. I would have loved to purchase many of their things but I still need to try everything on and these stores are a little further west than I travel on most weekends.

It was a little weird experimenting with a new style for myself. One of my first purchases, during a second trip to the mall, was a form fitting clingy t-shirt from Banana Republic. Fortunately, I had just purchased moments before a properly fitted bra from VS that is meant for the more sheer tops. I stood there in the dressing room blushing and thinking, damn this looks good I just don't think I can walk around looking like this. I mean ya know, is it okay? I bit the bullet and bought it. DH smiled at dinner when he saw me in it so I think it passed the test. I'm now smaller now than when I purchased the top so it's not quite so form fitting but its still my favorite for sentimental reasons. It was my official transitioning piece.

I'm still a work in progress though. My no brainer favorite thing to wear are my gym clothes because they fit well, look good, and no one is going to say "Did you see what she had on?!" "Isn't she too old for that?" To which I could reply, "What, you mean to exercise?"

Oh gosh, I could definitely use What Not to Wear. When I was really Fat, I just wore anything that would cover everything. Now, I buy too much and end up not liking a lot of it. My MIL tells me , I "dress too young" for my age. Maybe she's right, I don't know. Then again, she tells me I'm too old to have long hair.

I didn't get this wt. off til I was 46, so I don't know how I'm supposed to dress. DH thinks I look "Hot", so I guess that's what matters.

Ennay -- That's a pretty outfit.

Shrinkingchica -- My sister has also been giving me clothes. Isn't it a wonderful feeling, especially when it comes from a person who, even when they wore a bigger size, were considered as thin and normal?

I need to learn that lesson from Stacy ... try things on! The shorts all looked sooo small. I tried a six in these army green shorts. They looked awful! Baggy butt, stickin' outin' pockets! Mostly because there weren't many shorts out ... I grabbed the 4's. They look much better.
Peach T, white cami ... and I've got something for next weekend's picnic.


Oh I forgot ennay! The chocolate and blue is one of my favourite things about the latest clothes I've seen. And you look great in yours!