Dear Mr. Gunn,

         First off, let me be honest, I have never watched either of your shows. I didn't even know who you were until recently. But since you have two reality shows about clothing I assume you're a rather high-up in the fashion world.

  So let me ask you something? Who are the morons who keep making women's clothing that is sleeveless or capped sleeves? Capri and low rider pants? Middrift tops or tops that are cut short in the front and long in the back? How come so many clothes now adays have huge patterns or horizontial stripes? Has the fashion world been taken over by blind nudists? Because it's obvious to me that no one designing clothing actually wears or sees clothes.

  These things look bad enough on skinny to normal sized women, but I'm both short and fat. I'm what people keep insisting is "diva" or "goddess" sized, but I don't see myself as either. I just see myself as gross. And today's clothing for fat women doesn't help the situation. If it's not the above mentioned clothing, it's clothing that looks like it was made for a man with breasts. So I'm stuck with either something that makes me look like a transvestite hooker, or something that makes me look like a fat enfeminate man.

  I'm a woman. I want people to know that when they look at me. I want a little bit of lace and ruffles. I want clothing that shows off my cleavage without being skanky. That hides my gut roll (and any possible camel toe) and doesn't cling to any fat rolls. I want stuff that doesn't make me look fifty pounds heavier then I am. I want clothing with sleeves that at the very least fall halfway between my shoulders and elbows. I want clothing that's casual-dressy and dressy-dressy. Why can't anyone make anything like this?

  And let's not forget, I'm not just fat, I'm short. I'm only 5' 3" tall. It seems like all plus size clothing is made for women 5' 6" or taller. For some clothing lines the crotch of the pants comes to my knees while the waistband is almost over my breasts. I've heard of this "petite-plus" line of clothes but have not seen any.

  The clothing I see, I don't know why women wear them. It looks rancid. Even the clothes claimed to be made special just for fat women like myself is so ugly I'm surprised the models aren't wearing bags over their heads.

  They say Americans are getting fatter, Mr. Gunn. So how come the fashion world can't keep up? Are they just hoping we'll all kill ourselves out of shame for not fitting in society's acceptable standard of beauty?

  If you have any pull like I think you do, Mr. Gunn, could you please tell the fashion designers to wake up? To stop making shirts out of material that clings to every roll of flab, to stop making things that show off fat arms and guts? No more big patterns or horizontial stripes. No more middrift tops and low rider pants. No more capri pants. No more shirts cut to expose gut rolls and camel toes. Please, for the love of all that's good and decent, make them make clothing for fat women that looks good and looks romantic and feminine. PLEASE!

  Oh, and on the subject of anything sleeveless, could you also tell the women who insist on wearing these things to use some anti-perseperant? Even if it leaves white streaks. BO is not beautiful. I really hate having to smell rotten armpits.

  Thank you, Mr. Gunn. I know that you'll never read this, but I feel better by writing it.

                                              Sincerely,

                                            Jami JoAnne Russell