Styling Streetwear as a Plus Sized Woman

Anyone who knows me knows that I am the definition of a stereotypical “girly girl” through and through. I love makeup, heels, dressing up, romantic comedy films, and I consider shopping a sport. However, for some reason lately I have been really drawn to streetwear fashion which is quite the opposite of how I normally dress. On many of the streetwear style pages that I have been frequenting for inspo, I noticed there was a lack of plus-size representation. Surprise surprise. There has always been this image of what people think plus sized women are “supposed” to wear. People have this notion that plus sized women should “dress their size” and “cover up”. For a long time, plus sized apparel was just big ugly church frocks and other pieces that basically looked like a tent you would pitch in your backyard. No sexiness, nothing appealing and nothing fun. The basic message was typically to hide your body and try not to stand out. However, on this side we do not look to blend in because what fun is that? We were born to stand out baby. I am sick and tired of people trying to dictate what we should wear because who the hell are you??? My message to anyone reading this is: WEAR WHATEVER YOU WANT! As long as you are comfortable and feeling fabulous, what else really matters? People are going to bump their gums either way, so I personally love to give them something to talk about. Take risks, step out of your comfort zone, and rock the hell out of the outfit boo. Nuh gyal cyan style yuh! Today there are a lot more stylish and fun options than in the past, but there is still a long way to go for more stylish plus sized options.

I wanted to do my own take on streetwear fashion as a plus sized woman. One of my streetwear style inspirations is one of best friends, Tennessee. Even though we are no where near the same size, I love how she coordinates her looks - the colours, the kicks, the vintage pieces, and especially her DIY items. Make sure to check out her style page!

Styling streetwear clothing as a plus sized woman is really like styling any other type of clothing you would wear. It is really is up to you and your personal style. The most important thing is to be yourself and pick things you genuinely like as opposed to things that are just trendy. When it comes to streetwear, there are so many options to play and have fun with. Jerseys, coats, utility vests, joggers, baggy pants, denim, graphic tees, sneakers, and I could really go on and on. I personally love the look of baggy pants and fitted tees; but my hips literally make every pair of pants fit me like leggings. My suggestion is to go at least 1-2 sizes up to get the baggier fit that you may desire. That applies not only to pants, but shirts as well. I would also recommend looking in the men’s section of your fave stores as they do have larger cuts especially for t-shirts. Also, if you’re like me and not necessarily a sneaker head, you can never go wrong with a pair of all white AF1s. They go with almost everything!

Some great options for plus-sized friendly streetwear (black-owned shops will be directly linked) are Shop FOC (Flaws of Couture), Sorella, Shop Babes, and Rebdolls. ASOS, Boohoo, Pretty Little Thing, and Forever 21 are some mainstream spots that I find have some great plus sized options. Pro tip: your local thrift store can be the best gem for one of a kind vintage t-shirts, belts, bags, and jeans that are at a great price point.

With this particular featured look I wanted to incorporate my take on streetwear with as many local black owned brands as I could. I think it came out great. I did want the pants to be a bit bigger, so I will def size up moving forward. The t-shirt was actually designed by a friend of mine from high school and features characters from one of my favourite movies ever, Paid in Full, as cartoons. Full details on the outfit are listed below.

What I love about streetwear is that it’s not about matching colours up perfectly or having the perfect figure to fit something. It’s all about simplicity, originality, and coordination. Just have fun with it!

I hope you enjoyed my take on plus sized streetwear. If you enjoyed this article and/or have any style tips of your own, leave a comment down below! Don’t forget to subscribe to our newsletter to make sure you do not miss any posts in the future. Thanks so much for reading!