Ooooh beautiful site on modest dress all over the world!

[pimpom]

DROOL!

http://plaindress.tumblr.com/

enjoy!

[longskirts]

Thanks for posting! Interesting photos.

[ilovetchotchkes]

Love the picture of the amish woman breastfeeding, midstride, giving the camera a death glare.... :)

Gorgeous photos!

[emmiedahl]

I don't know why her pictures of beautiful modest women are all from extremist sects. The Amish clothes strike me as everything that is wrong with the modesty movement: no individuality, harsh male control of feminine beauty, Western ethnocentrism, etc.

What about this:

or this:

or this:

[ophelia]

wow. the amish girl on the first site is REALLY pretty!

[Lily]

Or heck, even this: http://www.etsy.com/listing/59669624/long-dress

I've gotten a few of these from t28 and they're sooooo amazing. Plain, long, definitely in the modest category, but flattering and modern. Last forever, and I beat my clothes up. I'm not a purposefully modest dresser, I just love long dresses.

Plain does NOT have to be unflattering and frumpy! I'm not sure why that blog, if it's trying to promote modesty and get people interested in it, has only chosen things that are for the most part baggy and shapeless and tend to erase the person wearing them.

On second thought, the much of intentional modesty movement's aim seems to be erasing the person, so I don't know why that surprises me. The modern Muslim women have it goin' on, but the rest of the blog seems bent on the frumptastic. But if they're trying to market modesty, they get an F. They should at least pull from some of the fantastic modesty fashion blogs out there, written by real women wearing modern modest clothing.

[pimpom]

As far as I can tell this blog is not promoting modesty at all, it's simply observing it. I feel that the worst you can say about it is that it is voyeuristic and 'look at the monkeys'. From what I can see the owner loves sumissions from the public, so emmiedahl's pictures could be very welcome.

[longskirtlotsakids]

Thank you for sharing this! Love the photography.

[Guest Anonymous]

I wore a similar dress to the ones in the pics of all the little girls in white for my first communion when I was 7. Complete with the little veil and everything. I loved wearing it!

[lizzy]

The cigarette smoking Jewish boy and the arm-wrestling nuns are hilarious!

Oooh...and they show a pic from Lydia of Purple's site on Nov. 7!. So much to snark on there...

[UmmSqueakster]

While it seems the tumblr is majority plaint/amish/mennonite, there are others mixed in if you dig back further. Quite a few of druze, sabian, muslim and sikh women, as well as a good dose of happy looking nuns. Including my favorite, the pink nuns!

And of course, when I consult google to find a picture as an example, I find pink buddhist nuns in south korea!

And in Burma!

[Goyangi]

Eh...what's up with the pics of Jewish kids smoking?

http://plaindress.tumblr.com/post/12736 ... in-shearim

The tumblr is actually pretty interesting but she (assuming it's a she) does seem pretty selective. I'm nine pages in and I've seen a lot of nuns, Orthodox Jews, Amish-types and Muslim women--all people of "Western" faiths.

[Grania]

I think some children in orthodox circles are allowed to smoke on Purim, I once read it in a newspaper because other (more sane) people want to forbid it in Israel. Surprisingly there seem to be quite a few who allow children to smoke on special occasions:

But back to the blog: Some dresses are pretty and the women all look beautiful but yeah, as it's mostly used to supress them one way or the other I don't really like it. *steppingoffmyuglyfeministsoapbox"

*Edited because I hit "submit" too early.

[Terrie]

I feel that the worst you can say about it is that it is voyeuristic and 'look at the monkeys'.

This aspect of it bothers me. There's one picture of some Mennonite girls in Mexico with all the girls covering their faces. The idea that someone took the picture without their permission and then posted it makes me uncomfortable.

I disagree that this is all about the control of women. While there certainly is that aspect to it, it is not the whole of it. There are some very nice pictures of trendy clothes paired with the hijab, and as well as many picture of men, mainly ultra-Orthodox Jewish, but I saw at least one Russian Orthodox monk.

[clibbyjo]

Or heck, even this: http://www.etsy.com/listing/59669624/long-dress

I've gotten a few of these from t28 and they're sooooo amazing. Plain, long, definitely in the modest category, but flattering and modern. Last forever, and I beat my clothes up. I'm not a purposefully modest dresser, I just love long dresses.

Plain does NOT have to be unflattering and frumpy! I'm not sure why that blog, if it's trying to promote modesty and get people interested in it, has only chosen things that are for the most part baggy and shapeless and tend to erase the person wearing them.

On second thought, the much of intentional modesty movement's aim seems to be erasing the person, so I don't know why that surprises me. The modern Muslim women have it goin' on, but the rest of the blog seems bent on the frumptastic. But if they're trying to market modesty, they get an F. They should at least pull from some of the fantastic modesty fashion blogs out there, written by real women wearing modern modest clothing.

I love these and will be getting some, thanks for the link!

[Miss M]

wow. the amish girl on the first site is REALLY pretty!

That young lady is without question Mennonite! She is wearing a pink dress and makeup, no way she is Amish! Even the Menno young ladies around here would not be so bold!

[Goyangi]

I guess the woman who runs the tumblr has a superficial interest in plain dress (She just likes the way it looks.) Which, I find, frankly odd. She also runs a tumblr called *ahem* Polygamy Chic (http://mormonhair.tumblr.com/) which I find not only odd but kind of gross. I mean, I personally have a hard time imagining looking at pictures of FLDS women and, knowing about the child brides/sex abuse, etc., and just thinking, "Gee, I like her big hair!" Basically, these tumblrs are fashion blogs.

I don't have a problem with "plain dress," to be honest, but I think finding it aesthetically pleasing is a bit of a stretch. I don't think it's even meant to be aesthetically pleasing...I mean, it's called "plain" dress. Also, I don't think most of the Muslim woman she featured were in "plain dress." Some of them were probably in the opposite of plain dress.

[terranova]

I love the fact that the Sevensisters pic is sent in by a Harry Potter slash fan :D

[terranova]

I guess the woman who runs the tumblr has a superficial interest in plain dress (She just likes the way it looks.) Which, I find, frankly odd. She also runs a tumblr called *ahem* Polygamy Chic (http://mormonhair.tumblr.com/) which I find not only odd but kind of gross. I mean, I personally have a hard time imagining looking at pictures of FLDS women and, knowing about the child brides/sex abuse, etc., and just thinking, "Gee, I like her big hair!" Basically, these tumblrs are fashion blogs.

I don't have a problem with "plain dress," to be honest, but I think finding it aesthetically pleasing is a bit of a stretch. I don't think it's even meant to be aesthetically pleasing...I mean, it's called "plain" dress. Also, I don't think most of the Muslim woman she featured were in "plain dress." Some of them were probably in the opposite of plain dress.

I find modest dress (and the people behind it) fascinating, which is one of the reasons I'm here on FJ. I like the idea that simplicity in dress can still be beautiful, and if I didn't like shorts and jeans so much I'd probably dress a lot simpler and more feminine myself.

However, I do understand that fundimental religions can use dress to undermine the rights of women, so I don't gloss over that aspect when I'm ooohing over a pretty plain dress.

[O Latin]

My favorite is the picture of some Amish people who are mostly out of focus in the background, while the main focus of the picture is a lady wearing really unflattering sweatpants and I giant purse (she looks modest, too, but not really in the way the site is going for).

[Kitten]

I am particularly bothered by the photos of Amish/Mennonites because their religious beliefs strictly forbid photography. If these photos were taken without their permission, it was beyond rude in the first place, but then to post them on a website is beyond comprehension.

As for the rest, if these pictures were taken (as many appear to have been) either for fashion/style pubs or as general tourism pictures, and then just "scooped up" by this website, I am less concerned with them being the "look at the curiosities" type of photos. When traveling, I often take pictures that include local folks, not because they might "dress funny," but as a general "sense of place" or a snapshot of a culture that is simply different from my own. And I always ask for permission to photograph an individual, or a small group or recognizable individuals.

[gustava]

I guess the woman who runs the tumblr has a superficial interest in plain dress (She just likes the way it looks.) Which, I find, frankly odd. She also runs a tumblr called *ahem* Polygamy Chic (http://mormonhair.tumblr.com/) which I find not only odd but kind of gross. I mean, I personally have a hard time imagining looking at pictures of FLDS women and, knowing about the child brides/sex abuse, etc., and just thinking, "Gee, I like her big hair!" Basically, these tumblrs are fashion blogs.

I don't have a problem with "plain dress," to be honest, but I think finding it aesthetically pleasing is a bit of a stretch. I don't think it's even meant to be aesthetically pleasing...I mean, it's called "plain" dress. Also, I don't think most of the Muslim woman she featured were in "plain dress." Some of them were probably in the opposite of plain dress.

The photos on the mormonhair site are intriguing because those from the 1940s show women wearing clothes that other farm women would have worn in those days; they showed some leg and arms! The dress of today's FLDS women is much, much more conservative than that of their grandmothers and great-grandmothers.

[Sola]

I don't know why her pictures of beautiful modest women are all from extremist sects. The Amish clothes strike me as everything that is wrong with the modesty movement: no individuality, harsh male control of feminine beauty, Western ethnocentrism, etc.

What about this:

or this:

or this:

That top one is very similar to a dress I have and wear regularly. I would love a salwar kameez.

[Kitty]

The cigarette smoking Jewish boy and the arm-wrestling nuns are hilarious!

Oooh...and they show a pic from Lydia of Purple's site on Nov. 7!. So much to snark on there...

Is the Lydia of Purple site still functional? I'm willing to go back for the snark. Hooooo boy.

[bananacat]

Meh, I still don't understand why skirts are considered more modest than pants.