Beauty Comes In All Sizes
Posted by Michelle Moquin on June 12th, 2013
Good morning!
This blog is not a personal blog in the sense that it is not a blog focused on touting my career talents. Hence, I hardly ever speak about my work here. Yet what I do is such a huge and important part of my life, and something that I am very passionate about.
Lately, I have been working with women with fuller figures and I absolutely love it. In my opinion, women are beautiful in all shapes and sizes. It makes doing what I do even more exciting and interesting when the canvas and the challenges change between my varying clients. Plus, I just love the feedback I get when women who don’t have the “runway” and “magazine” style slim body type, that is so not what every woman looks like, are thrilled with the results. No matter if my clients are not their ideal weight, shape or size, I help them to feel beautiful and confident. And because the results are practically instantaneous, compared to so many other things that can take a while to bring about change or make an impact, it makes what I do for women (and men!) one of the most rewarding things I do in any single day.
I bring my work up today as an opening to an article that I recently read about Plus Size models. I thought it would be nice to share with you by giving these lovely ladies some blog time.
Best Plus Size Models: Who Is Dominating The Industry Right Now (PHOTOS)
Sometimes, it seems like everything is about being skinny — juice cleanses will cut calories, yoga will keep you in tip-top shape and there’s always a new diet to try. But all the attention placed on being thin is exhausting, not to mention dangerous. That’s why we are so inspired by the rising profiles and embrace of plus-size models in the fashion industry today.
From penning articles about the public’s severely unhealthy obsession with size to creating model workshops aimed at helping girls of every shape reach their runway dreams, plus-size models are shaking up the fashion game and redefining the rules of modeling. It’s about time.
Here are ten models making a major impact today.
Runk is pretty new to the modeling scene, but she is already making headlines. In April, she modeled for H&M’s swimsuit line and became the company’s first plus-size model to sport its clothing. Pretty impressive, especially considering she was modeling the typically curve-resistant category of swimwear.
H&M’s choice to use Runk created quite a stir, enough that Runk decided to pen a moving essay for BBC about the shoot. She stated in the essay that all the attention the campaign received was an “awkward surprise.” She also offered possibly the best advice we’ve heard yet to young girls struggling with body image issues:
“I feel compelled to show girls who are going through the same thing that it’s acceptable to be different. You will grow out of this awkwardness fabulously. Just focus on being the best possible version of yourself and quit worrying about your thighs, there’s nothing wrong with them.”
2. Saffi Karina
In April, it was announced that British model Karina would be starting the UK’s first-ever plus-size model workshop. Curve Project London features mentoring, hair and makeup sessions, photo shoots, runway lessons, casting tips and experience working with stylists for girls who want to make it in the biz at any size.
We can’t think of anyone more fitting for this role, given that Karina is a former “regular” model who decided to switch to plus-size after her agency dropped her for her changing body. Karina explains her goal wonderfully:
“I want to strive to endorse a positive body image and act as a role model to young women who previously thought ‘thin’ was the only way to get a foot over the fashion threshold.”
We have so much respect for models who switch from “straight-size” to plus-size to improve their health (and their grip on reality). Case in point: Crystal Renn, who said that she switched to the plus-size game after realizing traditional modeling had saddled her with a crippling eating disorder. She’s since spoken out about her experience and the problem with fashion’s challenging standards.
At the “Inside the Modeling Industry: A Conversation About Health and Beauty in Fashion” panel in February, Crystal stated that designers should change the sample size to eight instead of zero:
“By having a size 8 sample, you are giving freedom to a designer. Most of the models are going to be size 6s and 8s, and you could have 10s, and if a really amazing model walked in who was a size 0, you would tailor the dress down to her.”
4. Justine LeGault
Oh, how refreshing it is when major fashion magazines take the plunge and put a beautiful model with a fuller figure on the cover. Elle Quebec did just that when it cast LeGault for its May 2013 cover. The Canadian model expressed her joy at the magazine’s decision on her Facebook:
The fact that I only got positive feedback about my ELLE cover truly makes me happy. It seems people aren’t so shocked anymore to see curves in the medias [sic]. This is great news!
Lawley just might be the supermodel of plus-size models. She has graced numerous magazine covers, including Vogue Italia, Marie Claire and Elle France. Moreover, she is the very first plus-size model to star in a high-end designer campaign: In September 2012, Lawley announced on “Good Morning America” that she had signed on to model in a series of ads for Ralph Lauren.
“There are so many plus-size models in New York doing so well at the moment,” she told “GMA,” “and it’s only going to get better.”
You know you’re doing something right when a major magazine puts you on the cover specifically to positively highlight your curves. In February 2012, Elle France’s cover declared Lynn as “the body,” meaning she represented an ideal all women can look to. We couldn’t be happier. Lynn’s ravishing beauty is cause for celebration for curvy girls everywhere.
7. Ashley Graham
Graham fired back at critics after this Lane Bryant ad was reportedly banned from Fox and ABC airwaves. She said the whole idea of banning the ad was “sad” and went on to denounce the companies:
“The Victoria’s Secret girls can flaunt around their panties all day long. But when there’s a bigger woman with a little bit extra, they snipped it out immediately.”
We’re totally on Graham’s side.
8. Tess Munster
Among the multitude of fashion blogs crowding the web, it’s nice to see one one gain popularity for showcasing plus-size fashion. Munster, the brains behind the blog The Plus Size Life, poses for the site wearing bathing suits, body-con dresses and other enviable styles. Munster proves that you don’t have to be rail-thin to look great in trendy clothing.
HuffPost was so impressed by Munster, we asked her participate in our “One Size Doesn’t Fit All” live segment in November 2012. You can check it out on Munster’s blog here!
Leave it to Huffine to show us how sexy plus-size girls can get! In May 2012, she covered S Moda completely in the nude. Inside the mag, Huffine gave an in-depth interview in which she offered insight on how plus-size models are influencing people’s perceptions of the female body:
“[The Vogue Italia] editorial opened the eyes of the industry and proved that we are beautiful, sexy and good models. Now people want to see more. Past disputes [over Photoshop] have made the industry understand the people what they want to see is real girls.”
10. Velvet d’Amour
d’Amour initially gained fame in 2006 as the plus-size model who walked down Jean Paul Gaultier‘s 2007 Spring/Summer runway show in Paris. However, she has also been an outspoken advocate for the transformation of the fashion industry, pushing for magazines and designers to embrace fuller figures.
She currently runs her own magazine, VOL•UP•2, that allows readers to “revel in their every ‘imperfection’ and celebrate their bodies in their glorious entirety.”
In June 2011, d’Amour gave an inspiring interview with Frockwriter in which she commented on the Vogue Italia spread that featured Lawley, Lynn and Huffine. Here are some choice comments:
“The way I see it is, that we need fashion to catch up to women of size, in order to make a stunning FASHION orientated editorial. If you were to take the average Vogue Italia editorial, and attempt to dress these same models in the clothes, best of luck to the stylist to find their size.”
“The true meaning of FASHION in all likelihood it encompasses and revels in Change, in decadence, in obscurity versus ordinary, in risk-taking. While fashion beckons followers and innovation creates fashion, it’s those who deviate from accepted norms who create so much of our fashion from the get go.”
“I don’t look to fashion magazines for advice on health, I look at them for fashion. We need to start looking beyond the simplistic and dig deeper. If you want to have a health debate, then let’s tackle mental health, which is the stimulus, more often than not, affecting one’s physical health.”
Readers: Although not all of these women featured are technically Plus Size, I do appreciate that these lovelies in varying shapes and sizes are given the spotlight! Beauty comes in all sizes. We need women of all sizes to be an inspiration to girls of all sizes. Thoughts? Blog me.
Peace & Love.
Lastly, greed over a great story is surfacing from my “loyal”(?) readers. With all this back and forth about who owns what, that appears on my blog, let me reiterate that all material posted on my blog becomes the sole property of my blog. If you want to reserve any proprietary rights don’t post it to my blog. I will prominently display this caveat on my blog from now on to remind those who may have forgotten this notice.
Gratefully your blog host,
michelle
Aka BABE: We all know what this means by now :)
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June 12th, 2013 at 11:00 am
Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU! Michelle.
I’m into the big ladies.
June 12th, 2013 at 11:03 am
I love the healthy ladies Michelle.
June 12th, 2013 at 11:30 am
What Women Want in a Man—Low Body Fat
You might think that super-masculine features—strong jaw, bulging biceps, hairy chest—are the kinds of physical traits women typically find most attractive in men. After all, such manly features suggest that a guy has lots of testosterone and so could outcompete lesser males in life (and in love).
But according to a new study, what really turns women on is low (but not too low) body fat! Surprised? Here’s the scoop…
The same testosterone that makes a man look muy macho also has a downside—it can suppress the immune system. A theory called the immunocompetence handicap hypothesis holds that manly-looking men must be extra-strong and fit because they have overcome this handicap, and thus they would be primed to pass on good genes to their kids—which would naturally make them attractive to women. However, the new study pokes holes in this theory.
Researchers measured the body fat of 69 male volunteers ages 19 to 31. About 65% of the men were at a healthy weight…about 30% were overweight or obese…and about 5% were underweight. The men were photographed wearing just underwear.
They also had blood tests to measure their levels of circulating testosterone. And—as a gauge of the strength of their immune system responses—they were vaccinated against hepatitis B and then had their antibody levels measured one month later.
Next, researchers asked 29 young women who were in the fertile phase of their menstrual cycles—a time when their hormones would make them most receptive to sexual cues and most responsive to masculine appeal—to view the photos and rate the men’s bodies and faces for sexual attractiveness.
A different group of raters (women and men) assigned scores to each man’s photo based on perceived levels of masculinity. And a third group of women rated the men’s facial fatness, which is related to body fatness. Then the researchers compared the various ratings to how well the men’s immune systems had responded to the hepatitis B vaccine.
Results:
Contrary to what the immunocompetence theory would predict, the men who had high masculinity ratings were not rated as the most sexually appealing, nor were their immune responses the strongest.
Rather, the physical trait that ranked as most attractive among the women was having just the right amount of body fat—specifically, a relatively low 12% body fat (which would be typical of a man who was fit and slim, but not an elite athlete). Interestingly, the men with that physical trait also had the most robust immune system responses to the vaccine.
Guys, heed this:
To attract women, or to be attractive to your woman, worry less about building massive muscles or cultivating the perfect beard stubble, and focus instead on achieving a slim-but-not-skinny physique through a healthful diet and regular exercise. To see how your current body-fat stats stack up to that 12% ideal, click here.
Source: Markus J. Rantala, PhD, adjunct professor, department of biology, University of Turku, Finland. His article was published in Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences .
June 12th, 2013 at 11:33 am
I love a woman with some meat on her bones.
June 12th, 2013 at 11:42 am
Howie, where are you? Check in, even if it’s just to say Hello, I’m still alive.
June 12th, 2013 at 5:01 pm
Nice post, luv it, Misch! Luv, ZL
June 12th, 2013 at 10:08 pm
Great blog Moq, I will definitely check in more often!
June 12th, 2013 at 11:09 pm
Ym
I miss you. I don’t know if I can take you being away from me for so long. I know you are leaving soon and the thought of not being able to see you distresses me.
I know I shouldn’t be thinking of that since you are still here. But sometimes I can’t help it. I guess it is because we just don’t get to enjoy each other as much as I would like to.
When are our lives going to be different so that we can spend more time together? You promised me it would be soon.
I love you and I can’t wait to be with you again. I have plans tomorrow until the late afternoon. Will I be able to see you afterwards?
June 12th, 2013 at 11:46 pm
Last Tuesday, the Senate Armed Services Committee grilled military leaders on how to reduce sexual assault.1 That same day, Trina McDonald—who survived multiple sexual assaults while serving in the U.S. Navy—delivered more than 215,000 signatures from MoveOn members and other allies demanding that Congress remove military sexual assault prosecutions from the chain of command.
Trina’s story has broken through and caught the attention of CNN, the Washington Post, and other media outlets.2 But today, committee chair Senator Carl Levin has turned his back on survivors by dismissing a bipartisan measure that would remove sexual assault reporting from the chain of command. The measure was sponsored by Senate champion Kirsten Gillibrand.3
We made this powerful video of Trina’s story and experience in Washington to share with other MoveOn members, our friends, and our family members.
If thousands of MoveOn members in every state call on their senators to get on board, we can revive Sen. Gillibrand’s bill to remove prosecution from the chain of command and put it back on track to becoming law.
June 13th, 2013 at 7:15 am
Until the dumb as a box of rocks white women stop supporting the misogynists men, nothing will change about how that party continues to treat women like cattle.
June 13th, 2013 at 7:24 am
These women are beautiful.