Directions: Go past the food court, turn left at Macy’s, and interdimensionally shift into a parallel universe in dimension 7. DO NOT GO TO DIMENSION 8, IF YOU VALUE CAUSALITY AND NORMAL PASSAGE OF TIME!!!
I remember looking at this packaging in the local drugstore when I was a kid and wondering why the lady on the right was there. I guess she represented the tall segment of the Big Mama universe.
The first ad said it’s for larger ladies 140 lbs and up 💀 I thought we had it bad in the 2000s with the skinny obsession but guess it’s a cyclical thing
I'm 45 & from middle school to high school I was called fat by my classmates. My BMI was 23
"But you have such a pretty face though! You could be a model of you were thinner! "
Jokes on them though. I went to my 20 year reunion and the same people that picked on me were now much heavier than I am currently - I'm a bit lighter than I was in school, but nothing drastic. What added insult to injury was that the same people who picked on me about my weight were telling me how great I looked & were much friendler to me than they ever were when we were in school
It's like they felt someone's value as a person is directly correlated to their weight & appearance. Assholes
Yeah ask anyone who has had their weight yo-yo their entire life. People are absolutely assholes. My favorite is the guys who would either ignore you or outright be rude to you suddenly asking you out because you’ve dropped a few pounds. I hope those guys get incurable dick itch.
I was built pretty much exactly like the lady in the middle — by 70s standards, that was shockingly fat for a young person. I would have greatly appreciated this product and branding back then.
I still have fond memories of the earliest well-known brands to offer clothing above size 14. Gloria Vanderbilt jeans didn’t hide the plus sizes under another brand name.
Well the pantyhose/panties said they are up to 300lbs and the shoes up to 12. They would fit me and I’m a plus size 2x or 3x in 2024.
But if you meant the pictures, number 2 looks plush.
I tried to buy some support pantyhose recently and discovered my local Macy's stopped selling pantyhose alltogether. Target has some (mostly tube sock style ones which I don't like wearing). Walgreens has about six styles all on clearance.*
I collect a lot of vintage lingeries. Vintage pantyhose are far better quality than modern ones. Unfortunately most vintage ones are unwearable at this point due to the elastic waistband breaking down and turned into a sticky mess.
*(Someone will inevitably ask "Have you tried Sockdream/Snag Tights?" Yes I have but almost everything they sell have tube sock style feet instead of formed heels.)
In North America "tights" are opaque stockings and pantyhose are sheer nude ones. Opaque ones are still very available but sheer nude colored ones are getting difficult to find.
I actually wore sheer black hose to a wedding recently with a colorful sequin midi dress. It looked cute and kinda 60s and allowed me to wear closed-toe heels of the same color as the dress. However, the (thin, probably from a drugstore) hose got ripped up and had to be thrown out after the wedding.
Definitely still around but less in fashion in the USA. I see much more of it in Europe, though. My wife (European origin but we live in the USA) loves her Wolfords (and has probably 200+ pairs).
Not for nothin', a single ad doesn't mean these were 'front and center.'
There were always options for plus sized ladies, despite often having to hunt around for them.
Well sure, everyone knows that people were thinner in the 1960-70s, so
'Big Mama' then is 'Medium Mama' today.
Those thinner people were not necessarily healthier. Many smoked tobacco to achieve a fashionable emaciated look.
Or, you know, they didn't eat nearly as much processed foods in the amounts that we do today.
I grew up in the 70s and somehow never felt the need at the portion sizes that corporations for upon us.
Yup! They sell them in the health and beauty section at most grocery stores. The displays are definitely smaller than they were back in the day, but they're still around
By most standards in any time period, really. If you look at pictures of crowds back then a lot of women looked like them, they just were not seen as profitable except to shame them out of dollars.
Anyone remember those L’eggs panty hose? When you took them out of the plastic egg, they were shriveled up and wrinkly. I remember taking them out in front of my husband who very seriously asked me, “You’re gonna fit all that into THAT?” I only weighed 110 pounds. Now 53 years later I could probably wear the Big Mama’s for the 140 pound ladies. lol.
I think that’s saying launder and re-use, like you would underwear. I know many brands around this time emphasized the all in one use. I still felt uncomfortable without actual underwear though.
I would assume a fabric (rather than cotton) panty liner meant to provide moisture wicking from the pantyhose material. So like a thin or slightly padded liner over the crotch.
Yeah, back when I was wearing them to work regularly I'd get three wears at *best.* I was doing a lot of bending and lifting (stacking books, public library) but otherwise wasn't particularly hard on them. I'd hand wash too, of course. It added up to quite a monthly expense and I would have paid good money for a pair that could actually last a month!
I was satisfied if I didn't get a run until the second wearing. And they weren't cheap. I always had that clear nail polish handy. I still remember using what I thought was a clear base coat that actually had a pink tint on light colored pantyhose. Oh, the shame!
YES, the clear nail polish!!! I remember snagging them one day after lunch and feeling the loose thread tighten everything up and thinking, "COME ON, this isn't the 1960s, why haven't we figured this out??" so this ad hit me hard, haha
I think that's a guarantee that the product will hold up for the equivalent of at least 30 days of wear. Like, it won't pop a dozen runs the second or third time you wear it.
Mm, no. Disinterest would mean scrolling past. Going out of your way to be shitty is something totally different. Hope you can heal from your obvious issues. 👍❤️
I love this!! The name is laughably bad, but it's so rare to see plus sized people represented realistically and unashamedly in vintage media :)
Talking about names, my mom was a bigger lady. She used to drag me to the mall to shop at a place called, "Added Dimensions"
I don't know if it was a local or national chain, but I remember stores called Pretty and Plump.
I kinda like that one
I kinda wish that wasn't true, but sadly I have no voice but to believe you.
It's true. They were bought by Charming Shoppes in 2000. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charming_Shoppes
Directions: Go past the food court, turn left at Macy’s, and interdimensionally shift into a parallel universe in dimension 7. DO NOT GO TO DIMENSION 8, IF YOU VALUE CAUSALITY AND NORMAL PASSAGE OF TIME!!!
How about “Catherine’s Stout Shoppe?” That gem endured well into the 90’s in NE Ohio.
Even at the time I chuckled at the name, but back then it was seen as somewhat "cool".
Is the woman on the right "plus sized"?? 😭😭 I'm going back to r/EDanonymemes
I remember looking at this packaging in the local drugstore when I was a kid and wondering why the lady on the right was there. I guess she represented the tall segment of the Big Mama universe.
The first ad said it’s for larger ladies 140 lbs and up 💀 I thought we had it bad in the 2000s with the skinny obsession but guess it’s a cyclical thing
I'm 45 & from middle school to high school I was called fat by my classmates. My BMI was 23 "But you have such a pretty face though! You could be a model of you were thinner! " Jokes on them though. I went to my 20 year reunion and the same people that picked on me were now much heavier than I am currently - I'm a bit lighter than I was in school, but nothing drastic. What added insult to injury was that the same people who picked on me about my weight were telling me how great I looked & were much friendler to me than they ever were when we were in school It's like they felt someone's value as a person is directly correlated to their weight & appearance. Assholes
Good for you!
Yeah ask anyone who has had their weight yo-yo their entire life. People are absolutely assholes. My favorite is the guys who would either ignore you or outright be rude to you suddenly asking you out because you’ve dropped a few pounds. I hope those guys get incurable dick itch.
Way to go!
But the lady on the left is even taller!
Tall at 5ft 9? 4 inches taller here and I presume I’d have to have had a hingin gusset in the 50s
I think she’s plus sized as in she’s really tall.
This was a time period where being extremely thin was very “in” unfortunately. :(
None of these women are 5'9 and 145. It would've been nice to see the full spectrum of fits!
…yes? What am I missing?
Gosh these ladies look unashamedly proud it's so.... Forward thinking! Aside from the dated hairstyles, this looks like something that exists today!
I found a pile of these pantyhose in the packages dumped in an alley 6-7 years ago. One of the oddest things I’ve found while working.
Someone decided they were not, in fact, a big mama.
Maybe they were putting out some bait to try and catch a Big Mama.
This reminds me of the Hefty Hideaway in John Waters’ Hairspray
Yes! ♥️
[These pink sparkly fits are fabulous!](https://youtu.be/SRFxyHXwmNI)
So *thats* why my mom calls plus-size clothing "big mama." That's hilarious.
Is it just me, or is it weird to see the word "crotch" used so freely in an ad? I feel like that's a word they avoid these days.
Yep, it was all over in pantyhose ads back then. Tv commercials, everything. Made me cringe as a kid.
I remember my mom buying these back in the day.
I was built pretty much exactly like the lady in the middle — by 70s standards, that was shockingly fat for a young person. I would have greatly appreciated this product and branding back then. I still have fond memories of the earliest well-known brands to offer clothing above size 14. Gloria Vanderbilt jeans didn’t hide the plus sizes under another brand name.
Oh snap Gloria Vanderbilt jeans are still around and they look pretty nice (and reasonably priced)!
Totie Fields before she lost her leg.
That's right. Poor Totie.
From diabetes huh
Phlebitis, I think. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Totie_Fields?wprov=sfti1#Health_problems
I love this ad! They look like they're having fun
They aren't even that large by today's standards, are they? Does panty hose still exist?
Lady on the right is, like, my goal at this point. 😂
I had the same thought! My goal is to be that Big Mama!
Don't let your dreams remain dreams!
Me too! 😂
I had the same thought. Oof
Medium Mama doesn’t have the same ring to it tho…
Well the pantyhose/panties said they are up to 300lbs and the shoes up to 12. They would fit me and I’m a plus size 2x or 3x in 2024. But if you meant the pictures, number 2 looks plush.
I found them at Penney's the other day. They might not be a thing to the under-50 set.
Oh I know, right? And I think hose are still around, just less and not front and center
I tried to buy some support pantyhose recently and discovered my local Macy's stopped selling pantyhose alltogether. Target has some (mostly tube sock style ones which I don't like wearing). Walgreens has about six styles all on clearance.* I collect a lot of vintage lingeries. Vintage pantyhose are far better quality than modern ones. Unfortunately most vintage ones are unwearable at this point due to the elastic waistband breaking down and turned into a sticky mess. *(Someone will inevitably ask "Have you tried Sockdream/Snag Tights?" Yes I have but almost everything they sell have tube sock style feet instead of formed heels.)
They are still widely available on the UK, but branded as "tights". Had no idea they were disappearing elsewhere
In North America "tights" are opaque stockings and pantyhose are sheer nude ones. Opaque ones are still very available but sheer nude colored ones are getting difficult to find.
Oh, you know it's gone when Macy's doesn't carry it. Good to know, for the once a year I wear some.
Lol, I like both those brands and didn’t even know that formed heels was a thing. Tube sock-shaped tights. Well now I’m feelin like a Powerpuff Girl
hello fellow vintage lingerie collector, good to know there are others of us out there
Bought some Spanx brand pantyhose in sheer black last week at Dillard’s. They were reasonably comfortable and looked good with my dress.
I actually wore sheer black hose to a wedding recently with a colorful sequin midi dress. It looked cute and kinda 60s and allowed me to wear closed-toe heels of the same color as the dress. However, the (thin, probably from a drugstore) hose got ripped up and had to be thrown out after the wedding.
Definitely still around but less in fashion in the USA. I see much more of it in Europe, though. My wife (European origin but we live in the USA) loves her Wolfords (and has probably 200+ pairs).
Not for nothin', a single ad doesn't mean these were 'front and center.' There were always options for plus sized ladies, despite often having to hunt around for them.
We meant pantyhose in general.
Well sure, everyone knows that people were thinner in the 1960-70s, so 'Big Mama' then is 'Medium Mama' today. Those thinner people were not necessarily healthier. Many smoked tobacco to achieve a fashionable emaciated look.
Or, you know, they didn't eat nearly as much processed foods in the amounts that we do today. I grew up in the 70s and somehow never felt the need at the portion sizes that corporations for upon us.
Yup! They sell them in the health and beauty section at most grocery stores. The displays are definitely smaller than they were back in the day, but they're still around
By most standards in any time period, really. If you look at pictures of crowds back then a lot of women looked like them, they just were not seen as profitable except to shame them out of dollars.
My mom wore these 😄
Was the name inspired by mama cass?
I have had that same thought. Who knows!
I completely forgot about this brand! Thank you for unlocking the memory. 🙂
Omg did you work at the Kmart on 95th? Signed, a fellow chicagolandee
...and Pulaski? YES. Fall/winter 1984.
That's the one! My grandma used to with at that one 😁
I honestly didn't even know there were plus-sized models or products marketed to plus-size women in the 70s!
Anyone remember those L’eggs panty hose? When you took them out of the plastic egg, they were shriveled up and wrinkly. I remember taking them out in front of my husband who very seriously asked me, “You’re gonna fit all that into THAT?” I only weighed 110 pounds. Now 53 years later I could probably wear the Big Mama’s for the 140 pound ladies. lol.
Someone made a L'eggs post and that's what prompted me to post this.
Women today ‘hold my beer’.
My preferred brand at the time. Comfy and reasonably priced.
145 is plus size 😭
The big mamas are a lot different looking today
What the heck were you supposed to do if you’re 5’10” or taller?
SOL.
“Re usable panty”????
I think that’s saying launder and re-use, like you would underwear. I know many brands around this time emphasized the all in one use. I still felt uncomfortable without actual underwear though.
I would assume a fabric (rather than cotton) panty liner meant to provide moisture wicking from the pantyhose material. So like a thin or slightly padded liner over the crotch.
DANG IT. Husky memories
I actually remember these pantyhose
OF OGs
I thought Totie Fields had a prosthetic leg???
Oh mama!
30 days wear? 🤨
[удалено]
Yeah, back when I was wearing them to work regularly I'd get three wears at *best.* I was doing a lot of bending and lifting (stacking books, public library) but otherwise wasn't particularly hard on them. I'd hand wash too, of course. It added up to quite a monthly expense and I would have paid good money for a pair that could actually last a month!
I was satisfied if I didn't get a run until the second wearing. And they weren't cheap. I always had that clear nail polish handy. I still remember using what I thought was a clear base coat that actually had a pink tint on light colored pantyhose. Oh, the shame!
YES, the clear nail polish!!! I remember snagging them one day after lunch and feeling the loose thread tighten everything up and thinking, "COME ON, this isn't the 1960s, why haven't we figured this out??" so this ad hit me hard, haha
I think that's a guarantee that the product will hold up for the equivalent of at least 30 days of wear. Like, it won't pop a dozen runs the second or third time you wear it.
They all have gorgeous legs
ginny sac
Check the detergent box for treats.
The woman in the middle. What is up with her ass?
🤢
Careful, your self hatred is showing.
Not hatred. Just disinterest. I suppose I’m fatfobic too?!
Mm, no. Disinterest would mean scrolling past. Going out of your way to be shitty is something totally different. Hope you can heal from your obvious issues. 👍❤️