Thursday, January 11, 2007

A Perkier Mood.

I read a very funny article in the Guardian last week about the changing demands in the breast sizes of fashion shop dummies.

Contemporary boutiques, it seems, want mannequins with a larger embonpoint. I can only imagine this is to better display clothes made for a demographically larger lady. Models are available up to a size DDDD, and have hand painted nipples.

Now I don't spend much time at all in clothes shops [although in my new leisure centred lifestyle this may change!] but my first guess is that, like all fashion, it's about aspiration. Buy our shirt and you'll be happier, because your boobies will look bigger.

Having said that, something that has always amazed me about shop mannequins is the permanently erect nipples. Has it not occured to designers that, for a device largely used to promote the sales of wooly jumpers, the models should at least give the impression the jumpers would keep your chest warm?

Or is that not what's required here?

Andrew Mishmash

5 comments:

Ilse in Brighton said...

Breast size in plastic has always been about fantasy.

Spain recently made it illegal for shop windows to display mannequins in sizes smaller than 10 (equivalent) in order to take small step against the epidemic of anorexia in young women; start to notice how many fashion window displays the clothes are discreetly tucked and pinned tight to fit around what appear to be "normal" human size plastic bodies.

Having said that - long live Bravissimo! And there is no such thing as a DDDD for real women, though J and K bras are now being made in fabrics other than white canvas.

Ilse in Brighton said...

www.bravissimo.com

Andrew MishMash said...

Hello Ilse

I have been been impressed too by the Spanish governments attempts to subvert the malign influence of the fashion biz on young women. If only the media were so inclined...

In a similar vein theres a private member's bill launching today which will move the power to control retail planning from local authorities to community bodies. It won't go through of course, but it has had good coverage this morning.

The DDDD was directly quoted from the sales lit of a mannequin design site - might have been american I suspect.

What's most shocking is that howler of a split infinitive you've let me away with! "to better display"! Fifty lines boy! Although I did read the word "terrorist-behaviours" in a Home Office press release not so long ago.

If you'll pardon the expression - "it's all going tits up around here"

Drew

Unknown said...

I am so rubbish, I have not been keeping up to date and am saddened by the demise of mishmash books. I am so rubbish.

The explains the random text the other day.

As for boobies, will find they have changed shape too as tastes change and fashion revolves.

Dave said...

Drew!

Never, never, never split infinitives again! Or, rather, I want you to boldly split infinitives like no man has split infinitives before!