# 'forever 21' going big time



## docilej (Apr 20, 2009)

The clothing company 'forever 21' has just come out with a 'plus size' clothing line called 'faith 21': http://www.fabsugar.com/3034411


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## toni (Apr 20, 2009)

I am liking the preview of Faith 21. I am nervous about the sizing. The line only goes up to 2xl, I am a 2xl but who knows what Forever 21 considers 2xl. Still can't wait to check it out in the store on May 1 st.


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## toni (Apr 20, 2009)

Boooooooooooooooooooooooooo 
That is a shame. 

Missaf, are they in stores already? The article said the 1st.


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## Tooz (Apr 21, 2009)

On a 2xl the waist is well below 40 inches, I think


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## troubadours (Apr 21, 2009)

don't let it discourage you. i can fit into some of their size L tops. and i am def a 2x. 

personally, i'm counting down the days


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## cherylharrell (Apr 21, 2009)

I can't figure out why if they are doing plus sizes they aren't making them big enough? Most places go to a 24. I wonder if they realize most of us can't fit into that stuff? They need to go to a 28 so us 24's can fit in the stuff & if it's cut too snug be able to go up a size or 2. Plus with going to size 28, they'd get more customers going to a larger size than most. They are gonna wonder why the stuff's not selling. It's too small to fit anyone...

Here's where to contact them & beg them to up the size range:

http://www.forever21.com/customerservice/customerservice.asp?content=contact_merchandise


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## Weeze (Apr 22, 2009)

troubadours said:


> don't let it discourage you. i can fit into some of their size L tops. and i am def a 2x.
> 
> personally, i'm counting down the days



lol
that's because you're like, queen of stretching stuff the eXACT RIGHT WAY.


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## cherylharrell (Apr 23, 2009)

I got a reply from them. Evidently they are not calling them plus sizes but extended sizes. Well extend them then. Please. I wanna wear cute stuff. I bet they don't add larger sizes tho with our luck. Here is their reply:

Dear Ms. Harrell,

Thank you for emailing us with your concern.

In regards to your inquiry your comments and suggestions have been forwarded to the appropriate department. Please note Faith 21 is an extended sizes line and not labeled a Plus Size line.

We apologize for any inconveniences.

If you have any further questions/concerns, please call our customer service line at (888) 494-3837 or by emailing us at [email protected]. Our representatives are available to take your calls and emails Monday through Friday, 6:30 AM to 6:00 PM, and Saturday through Sunday, 10:00 AM to 7:00 PM Pacific Standard Time.

Sincerely,
Yadhira Sanchez


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## toni (Apr 23, 2009)

GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR, they suck!


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## Tracii (Apr 23, 2009)

Well then I would be a 2x by their sizing.40 is that as big as they go in waist sizes?Cute stuff tho'


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## troubadours (Apr 23, 2009)

krismiss said:


> lol
> that's because you're like, queen of stretching stuff the eXACT RIGHT WAY.



i would not stretch clothes that i pay money for? it's definitely all in the kind of fabric. anyone can do it.


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## Suze (Apr 30, 2009)

the secret word is *jersey knit*. 

i bought 4 different dresses from ae.com (on clearance) some weeks ago that arrived today. according to their sizing chart i'm at least 1 size to big for their clothes...but because of earlier experience with jersey knit i went with the xl. guess what? it worked out fine, with room to spare. i'm GLAD i didn't get the xxl, and that has nuttin' to do with vanity, just that my boobs would have fallen out if i got their biggest size.


i'm definitely gonna check out the f21 homepage tomorrow!


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## Suze (Apr 30, 2009)

double double


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## ashmamma84 (Apr 30, 2009)

Suze said:


> the secret word is *jersey knit*.
> 
> i bought 4 different dresses from ae.com (on clearance) some weeks ago that arrived today. according to their sizing chart i'm at least 1 size to big for their clothes...but because of earlier experience with jersey knit i went with the xl. guess what? it worked out fine, with room to spare. i'm GLAD i didn't get the xxl, and that has nuttin' to do with vanity, just that my boobs would have fallen out if i got their biggest size.
> 
> ...



yes. counting down the hours as well.


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## cherylharrell (Apr 30, 2009)

Ya'll are so lucky. Wish I could get excited but I can't. It's the same old mess I've been experiencing since sometime before 1986. The clothes are too small & will never be in my size. Sigh...


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## Suze (Apr 30, 2009)

cherylharrell said:


> Ya'll are so lucky. Wish I could get excited but I can't. It's the same old mess I've been experiencing since sometime before 1986. The clothes are too small & will never be in my size. Sigh...


cheryl, god damnit 

just give it a try!


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## cherylharrell (May 1, 2009)

I'll have to try them & see. Problem is the closest one to me is an hr away I think, and now that Mike's passed I'd have no one to go with me. Oh well...


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## intraultra (May 3, 2009)

Has anyone gotten anything?

There are maybe a couple things I would probably consider trying if they offered the Faith 21 line at the F21 store near me. But there's not really anything I am that wowed by that I would go through the trouble of ordering it online and see if it fits when it gets here.


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## Tooz (May 3, 2009)

http://www.fatshionista.com/cms/index.php?option=com_mojo&Itemid=69&p=190

My opinion.


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## Surlysomething (May 3, 2009)

Tooz said:


> http://www.fatshionista.com/cms/index.php?option=com_mojo&Itemid=69&p=190
> 
> My opinion.



I'm with you, girlie.


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## Tania (May 3, 2009)

Word. Their "2x" is barely equivalent to size 16, which is hardly anything to write home about. What they've got now is essentially a standard Misses range, which I suppose would be an improvement over Guess? circa 1989...but even then, not by much. 

Maybe they're just testing the waters to see how things will go, but given that their new neighbors in the land of Plus usually meet or exceed a true size 20, you'd think they'd have tried to squeeze more of a range out of their initial investment.


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## Suze (May 3, 2009)

the clothes don't even look half as cute as the ones in their regular line and the sizes are ridiculous. 


major disappointment.


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## Liberated Curves (May 4, 2009)

Hi everyone,

Fashion is a passion of mine and I wanted to share my .02. 

I just read the article that Tooz posted and I couldn't agree more. I was pleased to know that I'm not alone in my thoughts on such ludicrous false advertising on the company's part but frustrated that the fashion world is still clueless regarding the general demographic. I have heard that 62% of North Americans are overweight and we're still not being catered too! The manufacturers are retailers are the ones missing out on a tonne of revenue walking into their stores and then out of their stores. 

In the meanwhile, I'm going to continue to march toward my dream of opening up a trendy, plus-sized boutique in Ontario, Canada. I'll definitely be keeping my eye on this board. 

-Cheers

-Liberated Curves


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## Lina (May 19, 2009)

It is actually surprising what stuff you can buy from there and stretch it. When I go I just stick my arms in the shirts to see if I can get into it. So covert. My trench coat and sunglasses give me away though.


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## Hathor (May 19, 2009)

So size 14 is considered plus size to them? WTF ever...


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## katherine22 (May 19, 2009)

Liberated Curves said:


> Hi everyone,
> 
> Fashion is a passion of mine and I wanted to share my .02.
> 
> ...



The average size in America is a plus size. I just read an article where 2 women opened boutiques in Seattle and New York never having studied design formally. The article was in this month's Vogue pattern magazine. I would love to see a design concept for ssbbw that was not hokey. Good luck in your pursuit


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## Tania (May 19, 2009)

Hathor said:


> So size 14 is considered plus size to them? WTF ever...



14 *is* a plus size, but sizes 12-16 don't exactly make a full "plus line." I'm kind of annoyed that they deflected Cheryl's request for more sizes with the whole "these are extended sizes, not a plus line" bullshit, and then they go and market the whole dog and pony show as a full "plus line." Typical corporate hypocrisy, I guess.


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## cherylharrell (May 19, 2009)

I agree with ya. If they wanna do plsu then go all the way. Not this half hearted having only a few plus sizes...


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## triniroti (Aug 18, 2009)

I brought an extra large tunic top of their reg site and and it fit like a medium now as I losing weight it getting loser, but never whould buy again.


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## LillyWest (Aug 20, 2009)

What areas of the USA are they marketing to? I've tried my Forever 21 here in SoCal, and no large sizes. The biggest size IS a large.


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## Buttah (Aug 21, 2009)

i'm a size 26/28 and i could fit a few things and have pix to prove it. coming soon...


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## Suze (Aug 21, 2009)

I think they have improved. Looking forward to the winter season when they hopefully get in more jackets. I would LOVE getting a wool coat under $100.

am i the only one thinking their skirts and (especially) dresses are cut awfully short? i realize it's a lot of mini dresses in the stores now, but i don't want to show my butt if i drop something :S (just a bit over the knee would have been perfect!)


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## intraultra (Aug 21, 2009)

Wow, they really have improved. I would actually like to try some of those dresses. They're the only thing they have that could _possibly_ ever fit me. They do look a bit short but I am also probably at least 3" shorter than those models.


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## Fallenangel2904 (Aug 21, 2009)

Buttah said:


> i'm a size 26/28 and i could fit a few things and have pix to prove it. coming soon...



Oh pictures! Oh boy! I'm dying to see how these things fit/look on someone similar to my size! (I'm a 24/26)


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## Miss Vickie (Aug 21, 2009)

We just got a forever 21 store in Anchorage and the selection for plus size clothes is tiny, and extremely unattractive. I only saw one of the outfits from the website, a cute tie dye dress that I bought. Usually I wear a size L to XL and the bust on the XL was way way way way way too small -- the elastic came only to halfway down my breasts. The 1x is marginally better, but I saw very little there, of what little they had, that was greater than an XL. And this was in a huge store (it took over the whole of a Gottschalk's).

So, color me unimpressed.


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## Tania (Aug 21, 2009)

Last month, Kayrae and I found ONE Faith 21 dress in XL at the Powell/Market Forever 21 in San Francisco. It was probably a shipment mistake.

It fit, but K felt it was squishing my boobs oddly.


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## elle camino (Sep 19, 2009)

hey ladies. 
apologies for the thread necromancy, but i actually (FINALLY) saw this line in person today and wanted to report my findings. 
in no particular order, and totally limited to what i shop for (skirts, tops, coats, dresses - mostly dresses):

- designwise, i was frigging SHOCKED by the number of really, seriously cute things they have. especially in the tops and dresses. i plotzed over at least one thing on every rack. i took about 15 things to the dressing room. 
- size-wise, we're looking at junior plus sizes that top off at a 19-20ish. So definitely limited. BUT i wear a 22 at torrid and every size 2X i tried on fit me. they didn't all look good, but the issues weren't fit related. 
- i was also really surprised by the relative quality of the clothes. i'm just used to torrid i guess, so like terrible craftsmanship at crazy high prices, but most of what i tried on at faith 21 seemed well stitched and detailed, and the fabrics didn't scream "WE GOT FORTY THOUSAND YARDS OF THIS FOR $200 AT A FIRE SALE!" like torrid's usually do. 
- the skirts and dresses are SHORT. a lot of 'is this is a crazy short dress or a long top?'. i actually like short things and have a serious problem with torrid and LB making every skirt and dress hit below the knee, so i was pretty thrilled about this. 
- overall, at least at the one store i went to (the only one in my state with the line, it seems to still be pretty limited), the plus size selection is actually fairly huge. it's still only about 1/5th of the overall stock, but there's a healthy selection of everything, and for the most part it just seems to be the normal forever 21 stuff, just scaled up (a bit). there were even two or three clearance racks of just faith 21 stuff.
oh also:
- EVERYTHING IS SO CHEAP. cheaper than target for the same or better quality.the most expensive thing i saw was a coat for $40, and the most expensive dress i saw was $25. i got two dresses off the sale racks at 50% off, plus a necklace and paid $22. 

i'll probably take pictures tomorrow of what i got.


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## ashmamma84 (Sep 19, 2009)

elle camino said:


> hey ladies.
> apologies for the thread necromancy, but i actually (FINALLY) saw this line in person today and wanted to report my findings.
> in no particular order, and totally limited to what i shop for (skirts, tops, coats, dresses - mostly dresses):
> 
> ...



We share pretty similar experiences with the line. And because I'm so short, the higher hems are like a dream...most of the time.

Pining for pics, sugah! :kiss2:


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## Tania (Sep 19, 2009)

So I went to the Modesto Forever 21 to try on some more Faith stuff. It was kind of nightmarish, except for one floor associate named Lorraine who was awesome. 

Most of the 2x items were sold out. Already. The sizing is all over the map, and almost everything is cut super small around the hips. Not pear friendly. Depending on the fabric and cut, I could wear anything from an XL to a 2x. 

Beware of Forever 21 construction - they sometimes tank a perfectly nice knit or lace garment by stiffing it with a much, much smaller lining or attached cami made of cheap, giveless fabric (LB used to do this, too). One black and pink bubble dress would have been absolutely perfect in 1x had the acetate tube inside not been cut super, super, super small. Such a shame, given all the fabric that went into the skirt portion AND the fact that the bodice fit extremely well. 

Other pieces might have been a good fit had the waists not been set crazy high. Sorry, but waistbands that hit you mid-tit just ain't gonna work. Also, double-meh on the cheap, easily breakable zippers. Old Navy is guilty of the same zipper sins. 

I found four pieces I really liked: 

- A clearance-rack sixties-style dress made from white cotton with red roses (2x)
- A long patchwork top (1x)
- A short pink dress with black lace overlay (1x)
- A short white lace dress (1x)

I purchased the first two (see pics below) and passed on the rest - for now. Also picked up some random jewelry because poisonous, rhodium-plated trade deficit cheapness is my secret weapon against retail-deprivation-induced depression. 

View attachment Photo on 2009-09-19 at 18.24.jpg


View attachment Photo-on-2009-09-19-at-18.jpg


View attachment Photo-on-2009-09-19-at-18.3.jpg


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## cherylharrell (Sep 20, 2009)

I love the floral dress. Wish their stuff fit me...


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## tinkerbell (Sep 20, 2009)

I wish we had one! Some of their stuff looks pretty cute.


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## Miss Vickie (Sep 21, 2009)

Wow, those clothes are CUTE! They must have left everything in the Lower 48 and only sent the crappy stuff to Alaska.  The store I went to was huge, and packed, but even my beautiful and leggy Size 6/8 daughter had trouble finding things that fit right.

I do love the dress I got, though. But it was the only cute thing I found in my size -- a size 14.


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## Tania (Sep 21, 2009)

Will you show us your dress, Vickie?


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## Crystal (Sep 21, 2009)

Hmm...I'm thinking as a 26/28, the stuff would be a bit small. They just opened a new Forever 21 in our mall in Knoxville. I'll check it out and let you guys know.


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## Crystal (Sep 22, 2009)

Wow, sorry guys. I didn't realize that the 2X was equivalent to a 15/16. My 24-26 ass wouldn't fit in that in a million years.


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## Tania (Sep 22, 2009)

Their shit is seriously small! Hopefully they'll wise up and realize what a killing they can make with the Torrid crowd...


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