If you have met me in real life this may not come as a surprise to you but I am what the world has decided to call plus size. I’ve always been a bit bigger, not just weight wise but I’m also tall and just built like an Icelander. What I mean by that is that in general, we are just not as petite as some of our South-European sisters and even though I’d lose half my weight I would still look like a troll next to most of them. I lived in Spain for a while so I have some experience with this. 

So shopping at normal sized Clothing stores has always been a struggle for me. Even at my slimmest, I had problems finding clothes because my shoulders and child-bearing hips were too broad or my boobs too big. Hourglass figure for the win my ass.

For the last 10 years or so, or basically since I met a man who loves to cook and had a car and drove me everywhere (up until then I went everywhere on my bike and mostly ate vegetarian/yogurt because I was too poor to buy meat), I’ve been at war with my body as it piled on enough weight to move me permanently into the plus size category. 

Not loving your body is not good for anyone and for me, it only caused more misery and bigger weight gains. There were no benefits to this whatsoever.

I’m currently trying to bury the hatchet with my body, practicing self-love in the form of a better diet because it’s healthy and exercise for the sake of feeling better and not as a punishment, and I’m getting stronger little by little.  In the process, I  also happen to have gone down two jeans sizes.  

Lesson learned: Love yourself more and tell the toxic diet industry, pardon my French, to stick it where the sun doesn’t shine! 

Even with my slowly receding waistline, I still mostly shop in size inclusive stores and below you can find a few that you might want to check out. 

Before we go any further though, I must put a disclaimer on this post and tell you that I do a lot of my shopping online and abroad. The selection of plus-size clothing in Iceland is still limited although it’s slowly getting better.  

I also should say that I tend to shop more at stores that have extended sizing rather than plus size stores simply because their clothes tend to fit my body better. 

Lindex

Lindex is a Swedish chain that you can find in Kringlan and Smáralind shopping malls but they also have stores in Akureyri, Akranes and Reykjanesbær. 

What I like about Lindex is that instead of having a special plus size department in their store they offer some of their items in what they call “added sizes” that go up to 2 XL or 50/52 in European sizes. Their normal range is also generous with a lot of oversized items like so often with Scandinavian stores. 

What I don’t like about Lindex is the fact that they don’t offer everything in added sizes so they get to choose what you can wear instead of allowing you to choose for yourself. 

Lindex is good for basic stuff like leggings, tank tops and underwear but depending on the season and the day – you can often find cute outfits in there. 

H&M

Two out of the three H&Ms in Iceland (the one in Kringlan and Smáralind) offer the limited H&M+ line. In case you were not sure just how much you should be ashamed of yourself as a bigger-bodied woman, the two HM+ racks can be found way in the back of the store where you won’t bother any of the “normal” customers. 

 Their sizes go up to 4XL but just keep in mind that their sizes run a bit small. On the other hand, they do have a lot of kind of oversized shapeless items so the size on the label doesn’t necessarily say who it’s going to fit. 

One thing they do well is offering good bigger sized parkas and coats that don’t cost a fortune so if you for whatever reason didn’t bring enough warm clothing for your winter trip to Iceland, HM might be a good option. 

A lot of HM’s regular sized clothing comes in sizes and shapes that fit bigger bodies so if you see something you like, try it on instead of discarding it just because it’s not in the plus department. 

Kjólar og Konfekt

If you’re looking for a dress for a special occasion or you’re into vintage pin-up type clothing, Kjólar og Konfekt (Dresses and Chocolates) might have exactly what you’re looking for. 

What I like about them is the friendly service, great selection and inclusive sizes. In fact, I liked them so much when I was looking for my wedding dress that I wrote a whole post about them. 

Kjólar og Konfekt is located on Laugavegur main street so you don’t have to go far to find them. 

Curvy

Curvy is the only plus-size clothing store in Reykjavík that I remember at the top of my head that caters to younger women. We have a few that do well with the 60+ crowd but for those of us that still consider ourselves young(ish) and hip (not really though), we may not want to look like our grandmas, as stylish and fabulous they are. 

I have to admit that I’ve never bought anything from Curvy but I have owned some items from Zizzi and Junarose, both labels they carry, which I bought abroad. I have a jacket from Zizzi that I wear all the time. 

To be fair, I think the only reason I never go there is that they are located in an area called Skeifan which is a nightmare to visit (chaotic traffic and difficult parking) and I avoid if I can. I must just never have needed something bad enough to make the trek. 

Zik Zak

Zik Zak at Kringlan mall is another store that I know is there but never go to. Not because it’s bad, necessarily, just because it’s not my style. 

They have a pretty good selection of basic clothing in bigger sizes and although it’s not my style it may very well be yours so it might be worth looking into. 

Outdoor clothing

Since I spent a big part of the last 5 years outside in all kinds of weather I have a lot of outdoor clothing. Most of my stuff comes from the two most popular Icelandic brands: 66° North and Cintamani. 

66° North’s size charts are all over the place and not really in touch with reality. Their sizes generally run super small and sometimes I feel their clothing is mostly designed for stick figure women – you cannot have a butt if you want to wear their women’s parkas for example. At the same time, I have great waterproof pants and a jacket that fit me perfectly that are not even in their biggest size. The same goes for their merino wool underwear – great sizes and fit and I wear it all the time. 

Because the 66° North women’s parkas tend to be a bit longer, making the big butt more of an issue, I often opt for their unisex items or stuff from their men’s department. I have a great jacket, for example, that’s from the men’s department but fits me very well and I don’t think anybody would ever know it was made for a man.

The sizes at Cintamani are a bit better although they are still on the smaller side. Some of their items go up to 5XL but you probably won’t find those sizes in store and they need to be ordered specially. The same goes for the bigger sizes at 66° North actually.  

66° North has two stores on Laugavegur and one in Kringlan and Smáralind plus more locations around the country. Cintamani also has a store on Laugavegur, in Kringlan and Smáralind. 

For the plus size gentlemen

I have to admit that I don’t have a lot of experience shopping for bigger men. Although my husband is all but petite he’s a jeans-and-t-shirt kind of guy and doesn’t really want me there when he goes shopping. I do know, though,  that Dressman XL in Smáralind carries sizes up to 9XL and you can find everything from underwear to suits there.