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?

Imagine a world where Lizzo didn’t strip down to bodysuits and show us how fabulous a big girl can be?  Imagine Melissa McCarthy shrinking behind Spanx and a black shift.  Now Imagine yourself, taking note from those celebrities, wearing the most fun thing you’ve ever wanted to wear, and how it would feel if everyone complimented you for your adventurous sense of style!

Standardized beauty is boring.  Standardized trends are boring.  Body shame is passe. Most of the population falls within “average” proportions, so why are we saving the best in fashion for the size 2 minority? Let’s represent ourselves!  Horizontal stripes are attention grabbing!  Bold colours make our skin look healthy and vibrant!  Asymmetrical cuts create an interesting silhouette.  So what if those stripes make you look wide, or if bright pink draws attention to your large derriere.  

“What’s wrong with that” is the question we need to examine more closely.  Not, “will this make me look big?” but instead, “what’s wrong with being big?”  Let’s start asking ourselves, “will this make my skin look heathly?” and “do I feel amazing in this color?”

Let’s lean into this movement of self acceptance by actually accepting ourselves.  Let us shop with our best interests in mind rather than hunting for the clothing that will make us shrink to a palatable size, a size that is arbitrary in the first place.  Someone once decided once that exclusively thin is in, so let’s just collectively decide that exclusively thin is out.