For years, I’ve had an ongoing discussion with myself about how I look. For a good 9/10ths of my life, I have believed that my size, my weight, the measurement of my waist, etc, etc defines who I am as a person. I grew up in a time period where that is what we were led to believe, told that supermodels were the ideal and that there was no beauty without pain. For many, that pain involved starving themselves, spending hours on a treadmill daily, or whatever other ridiculous practice we put into play to be able to say you bought a single digit sized jeans. When I saw a “skinny” person, I thought they had it all figured out. Their life was perfect. In all honesty, it’s been a long time since I thought that way, but that was most certainly how I spent my formative years thinking about looks and other people around me.
The rise of social media, the media in general really, has shed new light on all of this. So many men and women have come forward and spoken publicly about how they have tortured themselves over the years to fit into this idyllic vision of what we think is beautiful. So many others have stood up and said they feel beautiful just as they are and always have done. Then there are others, like myself, that have really not said much at all. I’ve occasionally touched on the topic of size and danced around how I feel about being larger than the average lady out there. But mainly, I’ve wanted to avoid it.
There’s no secret that I’m not tiny. I’m tall, I have incredibly wide curves about me and I’ve had my issues with that over the years. But, I’ve also felt like drawing attention to one’s differences is drawing attention to the difference itself and I do feel like I see people all too often going – “look at me, I’m different, but I’m just like you.” I believe, and this is a very personal belief, that in calling out the difference, you are creating the difference. I am me, and I don’t need to be singled out into one category or another. I don’t want to be a straight sized blogger, I don’t want to be a plus sized blogger. I just want to be a fashion blogger, end of, with no secondary commentary there. So, in case you were wondering, that’s why I don’t talk about it as much as maybe I should. Being different is beautiful. End of. And I know I’m different, you know I’m different, so I don’t feel compelled to shine a light on that every chance I get. I am here to talk about fashion, I’m here to fight for a cause to have fashion accept as many sizes as possible as the norm, not the exception. And I’m here because I dream of a world where a girl who is a size 18 can be confident, not just about how they look, but about walking into a store and knowing there will be something there that will fit them. It’s a simple dream, I think. But, it requires a lot of work, and it’s something I need to play more of an active role in pursuing.
While I have no plans on talking about size exclusively here, I want you to know I will be addressing it more. But, I will be addressing it more in the way of shouting out retailers that support all sizes in fashion. Like I said before, it’s no secret that I’m not a size zero. I don’t need to remind you at every step we take here together. But, I do want to support the growing community of women that are changing the way retailers make their clothes. THAT, for me, is important and worth fighting for.
And with that little rant, I’ll leave you with all the details of today’s look! Phew, glad I got that off my chest. And watch this space as later this month I’ll be spotlighting women who inspire me in fashion, women of all shapes and sizes who showcase a style that has no size definition….just absolutely swoonworthy sartorial leanings.
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