Since I was in Iowa this weekend, I decided to take a peek at some plus size stores I spied that are not available in the Twin Cities Metro. The first I visited, CatoPlus, was reminiscent of Fashion Bug, with more “middle aged professional” tendencies than the “old lady tendencies” that Fashion Bug has been exhibiting lately. (Seriously, every time I go in there I see MORE of those horrid turtlenecks with the tiny floral prints. Who wears that before senility sets in??)  If I had any questions about the demographic, it was confirmed when chatting with a woman who was also poring through the racks.

“I’m just visiting, we don’t have a Cato Plus where I live.”

“Where do you live?”

 ”Minneapolis.”

 ”But you have Fashion Bug up there!”

If I hadn’t found the perfect pair of jeans at Fashion Bug just two weeks back after a long and questionable dig at the back of the racks, I would have offered to trade.

As it was, I found a few things I’d love to wear, if I had the budget:

First, this general shot - Cato undersells the potential of its outfit, going for a lot of long-layered body-covering looks. Most of the pieces can be put together in a much hotter manner, but I’m guessing Cato is operating on how it thinks Iowa fatshionistas see themselves.

I have entirely too much red in my wardrobe. Still, this paired with a tulip skirt or a pencil skirt and black pumps would look really good, very…strong.

This shot doesn’t do this jacket justice. I was working with a rough hang and iffy lighting, so you do what you can. But in person, behold, the one jacket that has ever overcome my resistance to pleather. I think it was the angled cut across the body and the zip pockets that won me over.

Now will someone explain why a shop like Cato has yet to set itself up for ecommerce? Seriously, you could even do a small operation on a store-by-store basis!