Thursday, October 1, 2009

Mad Maxi

I'm short (5'2" on a good day), so maxi dresses are kind of not happening for me. I'd have enough fabric left over after hemming to make a separate dress, so I just don't bother. But, I don't discount the style just because it doesn't work on me. On other women, it ends up looking very flattering and bohemian. And in the case of this Forever 21 model, freakishly Amazonian:



Amazing, right? She looks statuesque. A Forever 21 model looks statuesque. How often does that happen? The picture actually makes me want to buy one, just so I can pretend that I will look 6 inches taller and 25 pounds lighter.

That is a maxi dress done right.

This, on the other hand, is not.



It just looks like there is so much fabric. The giant pattern might be cute on a skirt, or a short sundress, but on a maxi dress it overwhelms the model. And models are not designed to look overwhelmed. But this dress manages to make her look tiny, like a little girl trying on her mom's dress. And there's just a ton of fabric in the skirt, which defeats the whole streamlined, long and lean look that a maxi should give.

It's kind of befuddling how one clothing company can get the same style so right and so wrong, all in one go.

But, then again, that's the magic of Forever 21, isn't it?

Forever 21 Knit Maxi Dress - 17.80
Forever 21 Wild Floral Maxi Dress - $22.80

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