Just another way to feel bad about ourselves.

So lately, I have been seeing a lot more plus size models (and by plus size I mean over a size twelve) which great. I love that women like Christina Hendricks who is about a size 12/14 being celebrated. But does anyone find it annoying how ridiculously proportional these women are?

To me this isn't really celebrating different shapes so much as different sizes. I mean if I was a perfectly proportional size 12 I probably would be solely focused on health rather than health and weight loss.

I just don't see how celebrating these women who don't fit fit most people's reality is really any different than celebrating the stick thin image that was shoved down our throats.

Sorry, weird day and needed to rant.

I often find myself looking at these plus-sized models thinking, wow, okay if I had that flat of a stomach and was a size 12 I would be okay with it too! But I guess that's why they are models... they are extra ordinary.

That really isn't my issue. I just dislike this weird celebration of the plus-size model as though it is any different than the celebration of the skinny size model.

To me Kate Moss and Christina Hendricks are two sides of the same coin. And honestly, 50 years ago Christina Hendricks was the ideal. I just see so many of my plus-size friends who are very involved in the fat acceptance movement who are so happy because now they have someone representing them but are they really?

I don't look at a plus size model and see myself represented anymore than my skinny friends look at a skinny model and see themselves represented.

The truth is none of us, no matter our size, really being represented. I just have a hard time with hearing people say they are "changing" things for the better and I guess I just don't see it.

Recently I was looking at a catalog and there was a model with a big gap between her front teeth. Her face was beautiful, but the gap was... well, it was just weird. Distracting, even. I felt really judgmental, but it's exactly as you say above.

I think models should represent the average woman's proportions but with better hair and make up

This is probably a bit OT but what really annoys me is photoshop. Just show the person as they really are. What the heck is wrong with that? It frankly pisses me off that they take a beautiful woman and nip her waist in even more, or slim her thighs or rub out a freckle.
Most of the time (excessive) PS looks WORSE, anyway.

Christina Hendricks is an actress and not a model...and she is absolutley stunning! Yes, she seems to have a chest that defies gravity, but I'm happy seeing actual normal sized women in adds as well. Nothing ticks me off more than getting a plus size catalog in the mail and having a size 6 model swimming in a size 12 outfit - not a huge self esteem booster.

And yes, of course, they are more beautiful than the average Jane, but they are actresses and models - they are paid to be pretty. I do get the proportions, but everyone is shaped differently - I think it would be impossible for the clothing industry to represent every single body type. If I was hot...I'd take the paycheck.

I used Christina Hendricks because most people know who she is and she is sort of the best example of someone who falls into the plus size category while not really representing the the average plus size person. (And like most actresses she has done some modeling.)

Again, this isn't about industry. More about plus size people claiming they are now being represented when I just think that is totally bull crap. I don't think the average thin person is represented either.


Sorry,, in a weird mood! hehe

I think I get it - the industry considers a size 10-12 woman plus size. You'll be hard pressed to find a 5'2 apple shaped woman who is a size 20 in any ads. I'm 5'9 and I would probably be the average height for a model, and that's completely unrealistic as I think the average height for women is I think somewhere around 5'4-5'5. The industry doesn't just descriminate against fat people, it discriminates against short people, people with less than perfect teeth, people that have blemishes and scars, really people that considered less than the ideal.

And it does stink, especially for teenage girls and women who strive for that kind of unrealistic perfection.

I get a little sensitive about Christina Hendricks...she's my girl crush!

I agree with punkrocksong, I feel more upset about the height of these models than the weight. Weight can be controlled, I can strive to look like a plus size model in terms of weight and fitness. There's nothing I can do about my unfortunate height.

And remember, the fashion industry thrives on causing anxiety. It is supposed to make you feel bad about yourself because that's what gives you incentive to buy their clothes and beauty products!

OP - I think I get your point. But honestly, as I've progressed into actually liking my body (despite wearing size 10 pants at 5'2"), it really doesn't bother me that my body type is not "represented" in the media.

What actually does bother me is that young girls and teenagers are exposed to said media and because they're so impressionable at that age they compare their bodies to those of the models and actresses and feel inadequate. That's what makes me sad.

ETA: Regarding plus sized models and flat tummies - shape wear!

That is a very interesting point, PatLib!

It might sounds stupid, but the plus size models, even if I am more than happy that they are now broadcast, were a bit frustrating to me, when I was wearing plus size clothing.

Seeing ads with this gorgeous plus size models who was rocking this shirt or sweater? In my mind, I was all OH YEAH, that means I can pull it off too!! But when you go to the store with your stomach sticking out while the models had a freaking flat stomach, the results were far from the same. It was frequently disappointing.

It is a bit OT but I think it can relate a bit too to this topic : I was reading a post on Tumblr the other day about someone criticizing the ''men don't prefer skinny women, they prefer woman with curves. It was shown in a survey that between Kate Moss and Kate Upton, a huge majority of men will prefer Kate Upton. So, see, women, don't panic with all being skinny and stuff, men prefer curves!'' (... it was not written that way, but you get the point).

Well, the girl who posted that on her Tumblr was P*SSED OUT. She was saying that getting a body like Kate Upton after losing weight is probably has hard as getting a body like Kate Moss and that it probably does not help any woman to state that this kind of body is a new standard of ''hotness'.

Well, I think at some point we need to own that it's the normal/average women who are buying the magazines, watching the shows, and supporting the fashioin. People just don't want to buy "average". If they did, that's what companies would market. They don't care how people feel about themselves, they sell what will be sold. All of this stuff is carefully planned.

I actually admire fitness models more than anything, I mean true fitness models liek (for example, if you wish to google), Myriam Capes or Adela Garcia. Those women are gifted but they also put in the hard hard work to look that way, and display their fitness/talents.

I don't think it's OT at all. I take all photos in magazines/catalogs with a grain of salt. There is a lot of air brushing and image editing going on. I'm not saying that the body proportions are impossible, but they are a rarity.

"To me Kate Moss and Christina Hendricks are two sides of the same coin."
A-friggin'-men to that, I get fed up with people saying, oh well, look at so-and-so , she's not rail thin and the media represents her! SO WHAT?! All these women have pretty close to the same features/faces. Give me a gap tooth, short model with a tummy pooch ANY day! I will make a SPECIAL effort to buy your products because of it! I know just what you mean, there is no real diversity...It's pathetic, and not at ALL representative of what this consumer wants! Plus size models are a small step in the right direction, but let's have more diversity in shape, height, and facial features please!