Perfectly Average

I Like Thick Thighs (and I cannot lie)

I like thick thighs and I cannot lie! Which of y’all can’t deny?!  When a girl walks up with any size of waist and thick thighs in your face you get…a feeling of relatability and contentment!

Tis the season of the chub rub, the rashy rash, the chafing. Luckily it’s not the 90’s anymore and we are now aware that women come in (gasp) different shapes! There are even some clothing companies that cater to this very body feature.

Dresses are most womxns go-to in the summer heat, but those rubbing thighs don’t always make it comfortable. Here are my suggestions to have a comfortable, chafe free summer so you can rock whichever dress you’re feelin’:

My personal favorite are the TNA bike shorts (available at Aritzia)  in a 5” or 7” inseam.  They are long enough to cover my rubby parts, and light enough to not set me on fire.  At $40 a piece, they are also the least expensive option. They are stretchy too so their sizing is not too specific. They include mid size, but not plus size…so there’s that.

Spanx (available at the Bay) are another great brand that are also designed to give the bod a little contouring, so it’s a 2 in 1. They are a wee bit more costly than TNA, but offer a bit more in terms of shape wear. And they are considerably more size inclusive than TNA.  I recommend trying them on in person to see what size you are, then ordering online after that. They are designed to fit certain sizes so unlike TNA, it helps to know exactly what size you are.

Knix (available on Robson Street) makes anti thigh-rubbing shorts!  They look like spanx, but without the compressive quality.  They are lightweight and designed exactly for this purpose!  I barely felt anything on me when I tried them on. Pricewise they are a little less than Spanx.  Again, their sizes are designed specifically so it’s best to try on in store for a good fit, then buy online after that.

Lastly, Thigh Society makes the cut. I have friends who swear by them.  At $60 or so per piece, they are priced in between TNA and the higher end brands.  Like Knix, they are designed for the purpose of preventing thigh chafing so they are lightweight and lack the compressive quality that other brands have.  They actually have a model called “cooling.”  They are only an online company for now, so measure well and make sure you read their return policy in detail.

Stay cool out there, thick mamas!

Clubbing at….40?!

Picture this: I’m at the club for my friend’s 23rd birthday, and it’s about 11pm. There are a lot of things wrong with this statement. What am I, at 41, doing in a nightclub? At 11pm? Hanging out with 23 year olds?

Whatever. Stay with me here (laughing face emoji).  

I look amazing.  Since I rarely go out, I really brought it for this party.  Satin, leopard print, mini shirt dress; thigh high, black leather, platform, stiletto heel boots; hair down; all of my gold jewelry.  I killed it.

So, I’m with my 20-something crew, feeling myself, having a drink, fitting in.  And then I start to notice that so many people are wearing white Nike Air Force One’s.  Actually, taking a closer look, I see even the people not wearing white air force ones are still wearing white, low top runners: converse, keds, pumas, etc. 

Wait a minute….EVERYONE is wearing runners.  And everyone is wearing jeans and a t-shirt or tank. Everyone except me.

What’s Your Advice for Young People?

I love the answers I get when I ask people, “If you could go back in time and do it all again, would you?”

Almost without fail, the answer I get is, “If I knew what I know now, and I get to take my ‘now’ brain back to my 20 year old body, then yes.”

We almost unfailingly don’t want to go back to our youth. So what is it about aging that we love? And what, in retrospect, do we feel we could have improved when we were young?

This is the question I’m posing this week. If we can each give young people advice about getting older, what is it? What wisdom can we share that we wish we would have known then?

We may have crested mid life, but the lesson we can get out of this is that even now we don’t know what we don’t know. But there are people who do know, and can help us live our best lives, every step of the way!

I’ll leave you with this: If you were to ask this same question to someone who is 30 years older than you, would you be able to take their advice about the age you are right now?!

Happy thinking!

Your (Easy) Guide to Styling a Thick Body

by Karyn Rudance

You’re standing in the store. You love the dress. You buy the dress. You take the dress home and put it on. You look like a sack of potatoes. “Intimidaaatiooon” (in Lowered Expectations sing-song – Mad TV 1990’s? No? Just me?).

Let’s talk about how to elevate that idea of a garment into a “look.” 

Slimming Doesn’t Mean Flattering

“Flattering” is not synonymous with “slimming.”  I’ll say it again: an outfit doesn’t need to make you look thinner in order to make you look good!

We all know the old marketing gimmick of encouraging woman to strive for “thin” to make her want to buy a product. But what if we started seeing our body’s size as just another feature.  Because let’s get real, if we tend toward the plus sizes, we take up some space.  Are we really making ourselves less visible by dressing to minimize our size?