Woman Recreates Outfits To Show The Double Standards Of Fashion Trends, But Not Everyone’s Convinced
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Meet Brooklyn Allen, a 23-year-old part-time retail worker, and part-time social media aficionado.
Recently, Brooklyn saw a number of thin women participate in a trend on TikTok where they recreated popular Pinterest looks. So she decided to take part herself.
“My intention when recreating these outfits is to wear them exactly how the original model did and show how they look on my body,” Allen told Bored Panda. “I’m trying to show women who are my size that we can wear these outfits and look good! I do the best with what I have and sometimes the outfits don’t turn out well. In that case, I talk about society’s standards and how hard it is to find items as a plus-size woman and how our treatment is entirely different from thin women’s.”
Image credits: brooklyn.dallen
Image credits: brooklyndallen
Her TikTok already has over a million views
@brooklyndallenlove y’all but I said what I said #WidenTheScreen #plussize #fashion #style #pinterest♬ Kiss Me More (feat. SZA) – Doja Cat
In the video, Brooklyn explains that she’s “missing the key accessory that makes these outfits so desirable and perfect to society, and that is a flat stomach”
Image credits: brooklyndallen
Image credits: brooklyndallen
“I’m sure I wasn’t the first plus-size person to do it, but I felt like with my specific body type and size, I could help a lot of my followers understand that they can wear anything they want and look great doing it,” Allen told BuzzFeed.
“When I refer to a flat stomach as an accessory, I am in no way being mean or bitter!” Brooklyn explained. “I’m completely okay with thin women using what they have, but I just want people to understand that it’s not the same for fat women. Our fat stomachs are systemically considered an imperfection, while a thin stomach is something that society would see as an elevation to an outfit.”
Allen thinks that “fat women don’t have the privilege of accessorizing with their fat stomachs unless they want stares and rude comments.”
Image credits: brooklyndallen
Image credits: brooklyndallen
Brooklyn aims to highlight what she believes to be a double standard in the fashion world that “has to do greatly with systemic fatphobia.”
“I don’t like the word ‘flattering’ anymore, because I’ve noticed that what’s considered ‘flattering’ on fat women is clothing that hides our bodies,” she said. “Fat women have been ridiculed for ages for wearing crop tops, short skirts/shorts, and just anything that shows skin. Whereas skinny women are celebrated in these items because it shows off their thin bodies — which there’s nothing wrong with, it would just be nice to not be treated differently as a fat woman.”
Image credits: brooklyn.dallen
When it comes to TikTok as a whole, Brooklyn thinks the platform has done a lot of good and a lot of bad for the body positivity movement. “On the good side of things, I have met some of the most loving, accepting people that I now consider friends. And on top of that, I have such an amazing following that truly gets me and relates to me!”
“On the other hand, I think TikTok has pushed a lot of women who would barely be classified as mid-size to the forefront of the movement, which isn’t what the movement was made for. Of course, everyone can be body positive, but I think it’s important for smaller-bodied creators to advocate for the women who are on the larger side of the spectrum and push for their representation.”
Image credits: brooklyn.dallen
“The body positive movement was started by fat black women and was meant to give them representation because they lack(ed) that!” Brooklyn said. “I think we have tons of work to do with putting the bodies this movement was made for as the face of the movement, really uplifting them, and giving them the representation they deserve.”
The woman hopes that people take away from her TikToks the idea that all bodies should have access to fashion.
“I really just want my plus-size women to understand that we can wear whatever we want, and for the thin women following me to understand where I’m coming from, that I am never personally attacking them, and for them to understand their privilege and use that to advocate for plus-size women,” she added.
Image credits: brooklyn.dallen
Brooklyn said the reactions her TikToks have received are mixed. “I have a great support system and tons of followers who understand my intentions and meaning behind the series. They get that I’m always just trying to start a conversation and advocate for fat women.”
“Some people on the other hand take it as a personal attack, and that’s never my intention. They think that ‘some things just don’t look good on fat people’, and prove my entire point with their responses.”
Here’s what people have been saying about Brooklyn’s TikToks
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!["Karen Complains To HR About My Body, I Uno-Reverse Her Complaint, [And Now] Everyone Hates Her"](https://www.boredpanda.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/coworker-complains-to-hr-about-womans-body-revenge-latest.jpg "\"Karen Complains To HR About My Body, I Uno-Reverse Her Complaint, [And Now] Everyone Hates Her\"")
I don't get this. She seems to show that certain clothes don't fit certain body types? Why is that a problem? I don't wear skinny jeans or leggings because I look fugly in them, but I don't blame anyone else for that? I just wear other pretty pants.
You’re right - though I share the resentment towards clothes that are centered around a flat stomach. I have serious flatness envy. Many women are perfect weight and quite muscular and STILL have a little belly. That’s actually a lovely thing. You know, something that looks really good naked. But not in many fashionable clothes, alas.
You've nailed it. Even if you're "mid sized" or "curvy" most industry clothing isn't designed to be flattering. There's a whole bunch of body types between "plus sized" and "skinny." In high school I was 5'4 & 125-130lbs- I was curvy & large chested but looking back I still don't get how all of my tops had to be XL? Is 128lbs "XL"? Imagine the mystery that I'm still wearing those XL tops 20 years later & 40lbs heavier? Also, I've lost 50lbs since last October but somehow my clothing size has only changed by a single pant/ dress size number. Industry standards are insane.
I dont care about fashion. I have a flat stomach, but it is not firm. I am able to simply wear semi-fited, and I'm confident. However, you do you! No one should tell you what you "should" look like. Chunky doesnt matter. In fact, a north Korean defector said she thought runway models disgustingly skinny when she came here...they prefer weight (as a sign of wealth, like in the hunger games, unfortunately)
How are clothes centered around a flat stomach? Unless you are talking about skinny jeans which are centered around people with match sticks for legs. Or baggy jeans for people who love to get swol doing squats.
On social media flat stomachs are seen as ideal.
Yea, I agree. I have been both very skinny and fat and there's clothes and looks out there that work well for either but rarely for both. I don't get the point in making "skinny" styles look bad because they don't fit your personal body type. Does she want skinny styles banned so skinny people can only wear clothes that are too big for them??
Same, I just wish stores would stop selling things that are a "trend." Exhibit A: Crop Tops. I can't find decent clothes to wear for my body type because 80% of the stuff in stores are crop tops right now... That sh*t just doesn't look good on me... Getting on me nervessssss
Same. The worst part? I had to live through this trend as a teen in the 90s once already!!! Crop top baby tees, cropped zip up hoodies and high waisted baggy sweats or track pants. Now it's back again!!?? Wt actual f?
same thoughts here. Also there‘s enough different clothing types for all kinds of body types. Just find something, that flatters you or that you want to wear. Also It seems like she‘s purposley posing in a way, that makes her examples look less flattering. For example the white skirt look. The Model wears it covering her belly, she purposely wears it deeper down so it shows her belly. She could‘ve just pull the skirt up her belly and it it would‘ve looked different. Based on her other looks, she knows damn well how to pose on the camera. So i‘m not buying that, sorry.
I agree. I don't wear skinny jeans because it makes it hard to move around and feels uncomfortable, not because of how my body looks.
I posted it as a reply to someone already, but if anyone has 2 mins and wants to see a summary of pics of 100 years of the ideal and fashionable body type for women, the link is: https://www.insider.com/models-evolution-photos-2018-2?amp It's amazing to see all the ways women have been viewed as "ideal", depending on what decade you are referencing
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The point is that the clothes do fit, but that they're considered 'unflattering'. The last great taboo in body positivity is having a protruding stomach - look at any depiction of women in the media (except Lizzo!) and the one thing they have in common is unnaturally flat bellies. What you call 'fugly' has been carefully brainwashed into you to keep you in line with what society wants and expects, and so long as we go along with it we continue to be part of the problem. If a woman wants to show off belly rolls or a flat bottom or droopy boobs, what's so terrible about that?
It creates the illusion that being overweight isn't grossly unhealthy. Lizzo is more dangerous than Covid.
@Becky: Everyone is allowed to wear anything, but I will find some things ugly. If you want to flaunt your belly rolls, go ahead, but I have the right to not like the look of that. I won't tell you to your face, actually, I wouldn't talk about it at all, and I wouldn't think less of you for it, but I WILL think it's ugly. I do look f*cking ugly in tight pants though, that's no brainwashing. I also have a little belly, even though I'm skinny, and I won't wear clothes that emphasise that. I dress to accentuate my 'strengths' not my 'weaknesses' and calling people brainwashed for that is just as bad as 'fatshaming' and all that stuff. I am perfectly capable of finding things beautiful or ugly all on my own.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
If a body part is healthy, then why is it a "weakness"? There are cultures where a chubby woman is considered highly desirable; if you had grown up on one of these then I'm sure your view of an ideal body would be very different. The Western idealised view of the female body *is* a form of brainwashing, and all the downvoting and denial in the world won't change that.
For reference too, if you look at that famous photo of Cindy Crawford, who was considered to have a perfect body in her time (not long ago), she would no doubt be considered a plus sized model by today's beauty/model standards. But she is not obese, not dangerously overweight, she's very fit and healthy. And for Ben Smith: women aren't exculsively either underweight or overweight (both can impact on health in some cases but thats by the by for my point); there's also the whole middle ground which you seem to have overlooked. One can be neither underweight nor overweight. It may shock you.
You make excellent points. Ben is a tool who enjoys providing blunt & oversimplified comments to stir the pot. The above being a fantastic example.
100 years of womens changing bodies in fashion. Its less than a few mins read, has images of each type of 'ideal' of the last century; they are varied and constantly changing. Its well worth a couple of mins: https://www.insider.com/models-evolution-photos-2018-2?amp
Ben Smith: her weight is hers and only her issue. She doesn't deserve any less respect because of it. Stfu.
@Ben Smith So? Firstly, what business is it of yours? Secondly, being underweight can also be grossly unhealthy, and yet women get praised and held up as icons for it. If you're so convinced that Lizzo is unhealthy look up the video of her running on a treadmill while belting out one of her songs, then copy it and post *your* effort. Sucks to have someone "grossly unhealthy" be fitter than you, huh?
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
Lol @ Becky. Keep trying so hard to be woke that you're blind to reality.
Lol@ bitter incel.
Well... I look terrible in some clothes... I'm 1.86, 85 kg, pandemic body... If something doesn't fit me... Well... I look for something that it does... I don't get the point of this vídeo... Also, most of the pictures in printerest and IG are photoshopped and the clothes are fixed for the model in that moment... What's her point? That not all the clothes fits you? That's for sure... That the people on those pictures do extra excercise and diets to look like that?... Well... Duh... Of course... But... Why does she wants to use clothes that doesn't fit her????
Exactly! I'm smaller than 1,60m and obvisously i can't wear trendy "oversized" clothes or i will look totally lost in fabric, like Dopey from Snow White, i can't wear long dresses or i will look like a piece of fabric with a small head on top... And i have a 35feet size (2-3) so it's a pain in the "foot" to find pretty women shoes... "Boo hoo hoo double standards are so hard on me! I will take pictures with clothes that fit tall women and start a movement to free tiny women from such a significant injustice! " Or i will stay happy to buy sneakers with children prices and avoid tall woman clothes to avoid being cast as Dopey in the next Disney live action movie and i will continue to be happy with the body that carry my brain.
Yeah for the longest time the only jeans that would fit me were in the kids section.
Kaori Panda we do what we can... Last time i bought a really beautiful tencel long red skirt, made in Italy "one size fits all". I wear it as a strapless dress with a high waist belt and it's still below the knee long but technically yes "it fits".
what? what is the point of this?
The point seems to be making itself obvious in this comments section. That people who scream blue murder about discrimination when it comes to race, disability or gender have immediately ganged up to attack anyone who challenges their thinking about what clothes are 'acceptable'.
So the point is a white middle class women thinks being fat is the same as racism blacks face. I swear some of you suburban over privledged white girls have too much time on your hands .
I don't get this. She seems to show that certain clothes don't fit certain body types? Why is that a problem? I don't wear skinny jeans or leggings because I look fugly in them, but I don't blame anyone else for that? I just wear other pretty pants.
You’re right - though I share the resentment towards clothes that are centered around a flat stomach. I have serious flatness envy. Many women are perfect weight and quite muscular and STILL have a little belly. That’s actually a lovely thing. You know, something that looks really good naked. But not in many fashionable clothes, alas.
You've nailed it. Even if you're "mid sized" or "curvy" most industry clothing isn't designed to be flattering. There's a whole bunch of body types between "plus sized" and "skinny." In high school I was 5'4 & 125-130lbs- I was curvy & large chested but looking back I still don't get how all of my tops had to be XL? Is 128lbs "XL"? Imagine the mystery that I'm still wearing those XL tops 20 years later & 40lbs heavier? Also, I've lost 50lbs since last October but somehow my clothing size has only changed by a single pant/ dress size number. Industry standards are insane.
I dont care about fashion. I have a flat stomach, but it is not firm. I am able to simply wear semi-fited, and I'm confident. However, you do you! No one should tell you what you "should" look like. Chunky doesnt matter. In fact, a north Korean defector said she thought runway models disgustingly skinny when she came here...they prefer weight (as a sign of wealth, like in the hunger games, unfortunately)
How are clothes centered around a flat stomach? Unless you are talking about skinny jeans which are centered around people with match sticks for legs. Or baggy jeans for people who love to get swol doing squats.
On social media flat stomachs are seen as ideal.
Yea, I agree. I have been both very skinny and fat and there's clothes and looks out there that work well for either but rarely for both. I don't get the point in making "skinny" styles look bad because they don't fit your personal body type. Does she want skinny styles banned so skinny people can only wear clothes that are too big for them??
Same, I just wish stores would stop selling things that are a "trend." Exhibit A: Crop Tops. I can't find decent clothes to wear for my body type because 80% of the stuff in stores are crop tops right now... That sh*t just doesn't look good on me... Getting on me nervessssss
Same. The worst part? I had to live through this trend as a teen in the 90s once already!!! Crop top baby tees, cropped zip up hoodies and high waisted baggy sweats or track pants. Now it's back again!!?? Wt actual f?
same thoughts here. Also there‘s enough different clothing types for all kinds of body types. Just find something, that flatters you or that you want to wear. Also It seems like she‘s purposley posing in a way, that makes her examples look less flattering. For example the white skirt look. The Model wears it covering her belly, she purposely wears it deeper down so it shows her belly. She could‘ve just pull the skirt up her belly and it it would‘ve looked different. Based on her other looks, she knows damn well how to pose on the camera. So i‘m not buying that, sorry.
I agree. I don't wear skinny jeans because it makes it hard to move around and feels uncomfortable, not because of how my body looks.
I posted it as a reply to someone already, but if anyone has 2 mins and wants to see a summary of pics of 100 years of the ideal and fashionable body type for women, the link is: https://www.insider.com/models-evolution-photos-2018-2?amp It's amazing to see all the ways women have been viewed as "ideal", depending on what decade you are referencing
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
The point is that the clothes do fit, but that they're considered 'unflattering'. The last great taboo in body positivity is having a protruding stomach - look at any depiction of women in the media (except Lizzo!) and the one thing they have in common is unnaturally flat bellies. What you call 'fugly' has been carefully brainwashed into you to keep you in line with what society wants and expects, and so long as we go along with it we continue to be part of the problem. If a woman wants to show off belly rolls or a flat bottom or droopy boobs, what's so terrible about that?
It creates the illusion that being overweight isn't grossly unhealthy. Lizzo is more dangerous than Covid.
@Becky: Everyone is allowed to wear anything, but I will find some things ugly. If you want to flaunt your belly rolls, go ahead, but I have the right to not like the look of that. I won't tell you to your face, actually, I wouldn't talk about it at all, and I wouldn't think less of you for it, but I WILL think it's ugly. I do look f*cking ugly in tight pants though, that's no brainwashing. I also have a little belly, even though I'm skinny, and I won't wear clothes that emphasise that. I dress to accentuate my 'strengths' not my 'weaknesses' and calling people brainwashed for that is just as bad as 'fatshaming' and all that stuff. I am perfectly capable of finding things beautiful or ugly all on my own.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
If a body part is healthy, then why is it a "weakness"? There are cultures where a chubby woman is considered highly desirable; if you had grown up on one of these then I'm sure your view of an ideal body would be very different. The Western idealised view of the female body *is* a form of brainwashing, and all the downvoting and denial in the world won't change that.
For reference too, if you look at that famous photo of Cindy Crawford, who was considered to have a perfect body in her time (not long ago), she would no doubt be considered a plus sized model by today's beauty/model standards. But she is not obese, not dangerously overweight, she's very fit and healthy. And for Ben Smith: women aren't exculsively either underweight or overweight (both can impact on health in some cases but thats by the by for my point); there's also the whole middle ground which you seem to have overlooked. One can be neither underweight nor overweight. It may shock you.
You make excellent points. Ben is a tool who enjoys providing blunt & oversimplified comments to stir the pot. The above being a fantastic example.
100 years of womens changing bodies in fashion. Its less than a few mins read, has images of each type of 'ideal' of the last century; they are varied and constantly changing. Its well worth a couple of mins: https://www.insider.com/models-evolution-photos-2018-2?amp
Ben Smith: her weight is hers and only her issue. She doesn't deserve any less respect because of it. Stfu.
@Ben Smith So? Firstly, what business is it of yours? Secondly, being underweight can also be grossly unhealthy, and yet women get praised and held up as icons for it. If you're so convinced that Lizzo is unhealthy look up the video of her running on a treadmill while belting out one of her songs, then copy it and post *your* effort. Sucks to have someone "grossly unhealthy" be fitter than you, huh?
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
Lol @ Becky. Keep trying so hard to be woke that you're blind to reality.
Lol@ bitter incel.
Well... I look terrible in some clothes... I'm 1.86, 85 kg, pandemic body... If something doesn't fit me... Well... I look for something that it does... I don't get the point of this vídeo... Also, most of the pictures in printerest and IG are photoshopped and the clothes are fixed for the model in that moment... What's her point? That not all the clothes fits you? That's for sure... That the people on those pictures do extra excercise and diets to look like that?... Well... Duh... Of course... But... Why does she wants to use clothes that doesn't fit her????
Exactly! I'm smaller than 1,60m and obvisously i can't wear trendy "oversized" clothes or i will look totally lost in fabric, like Dopey from Snow White, i can't wear long dresses or i will look like a piece of fabric with a small head on top... And i have a 35feet size (2-3) so it's a pain in the "foot" to find pretty women shoes... "Boo hoo hoo double standards are so hard on me! I will take pictures with clothes that fit tall women and start a movement to free tiny women from such a significant injustice! " Or i will stay happy to buy sneakers with children prices and avoid tall woman clothes to avoid being cast as Dopey in the next Disney live action movie and i will continue to be happy with the body that carry my brain.
Yeah for the longest time the only jeans that would fit me were in the kids section.
Kaori Panda we do what we can... Last time i bought a really beautiful tencel long red skirt, made in Italy "one size fits all". I wear it as a strapless dress with a high waist belt and it's still below the knee long but technically yes "it fits".
what? what is the point of this?
The point seems to be making itself obvious in this comments section. That people who scream blue murder about discrimination when it comes to race, disability or gender have immediately ganged up to attack anyone who challenges their thinking about what clothes are 'acceptable'.
So the point is a white middle class women thinks being fat is the same as racism blacks face. I swear some of you suburban over privledged white girls have too much time on your hands .