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CULTURE

Rise Of the Real People

The thin and beautiful have had their turn. The hippest models today look more like the rest of us.

By Jennie Yabroff | NEWSWEEK
From the magazine issue dated Feb 4, 2008

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  • Posted By: OnYouthfulCynicism @ 02/14/2008 2:30:57 PM

    Comment: I think that the reason high fashion is what it is is beause it is unrealistic. How many times have we seen a haute couture dress and admired its beauty while being prefectly aware that it's unrealisitic in the strongest sense of the word. We don't go to the art museum to see paintings we could have made, we go to marvel at the masterpieces because they're such anomalies in the grand scheme of things. Unfortunately, or amybe not, the same applies to fashion. The models are meant to be hangers for lothing to marvel at, not something the average woman could toss on. There is a sense of unreality in fashion for the very reason of if it were realistic, it would be boring. The problem is that everyday women, or which I am one, can't see the difference between their world and the fashion world. Again, with the art analogy. Would you be heartbroken is you bought a paint set and couldn't recreate the Last Supper? The sooner we realize that that void between the real world and fashion is there for a reason, the sooner we can get on with our lives and accept the fact that we were not given that "genetic talent" to allow us to be privy to that world, but we can learn to appreciate it from our place in the world.

  • Posted By: Gordon787 @ 02/13/2008 1:20:15 PM

    Comment:
    Ms. Yabroff,

    I applaud your article above and I certainly hope that the fashion and media industries are moving with significant force and subsequent impact toward the rise of real people.

    However, after having formally studied for more than 30 years the topic of physical attractiveness, I believe what you are seeing is a momentary or relatively isolated snapshot into human nature and human behavior.

    Throughout history we (people in all cultures in all parts of the world) have always valued most highly those individuals who clearly display a level of physical attractiveness or so-called good looks that are a notch or two or three above the looks of average or real people. Accordingly, the average or real people then apparently aspire to those higher levels, and in-turn motivating the purchases necessary to move in that direction and accordingly fueling the dynamics and institutions that employ people in all walks of life that allows the employed to experience a reasonable (and sometimes not so reasonable) financial livelihood.

    Gordon Patzer
    author of "Looks: Why They Matter More Than You Ever Imagined"
    http://www.GordonPatzer.com

  • Posted By: jblagonya @ 02/07/2008 10:08:57 PM

    Comment: In the world of high fashion and glamour, yes, people are tired of too thin, unhealthy models, but there are millions of women that are trying to be just like them. That is why we have lots of anorexic/bulimic girls and women. The high fashion of our society has affected their self-image and self-esteem. People hunger for real, healthy fashion. Every woman can be beautiful in her own way, and there is a goddess in everyone. But let???s not get carried away with this. Fat and flab is neither pretty nor healthy. So, if there are women that are overweight and do absolutely nothing about getting healthy or more beautiful, stop whining.


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  • Posted By: EE7011 @ 01/31/2008 2:03:16 PM

    Comment: Last time I had a physical I went to see an MD not Ralph Lauren. Health care professionals go to school for a reason and it isn't to sew dresses.

  • Posted By: trueblue66 @ 01/31/2008 1:03:11 PM

    Comment: NYC Guy's post is ridiculous. The article isn't about diet choices, it's about fashion and wanting to see models that don't look like emaciated giants. We want real, healthy women with muscle tone, curves, and differing heights. Did anyone here say they eat fried food and cookies all day? Even female athletes are far too big to model fashion. Even Marylin Monroe couldn't model fashion (size 12-16), which is crazy.

  • Posted By: trueblue66 @ 01/31/2008 1:02:13 PM

    Comment: NYC Guy's post is ridiculous. The article isn't about diet choices, it's about fashion and wanting to see models that don't look like emaciated giants. We want real, healthy women with muscle tone, curves, and differing heights. Did anyone here say they eat fried food and cookies all day? Even female athletes are far too big to model fashion. Even Marylin Monroe couldn't model fashion (size 12-16), which is crazy.

  • Posted By: E. Starbuck @ 01/31/2008 8:14:55 AM

    Comment: HEALTHY, is what we all want to see in our models. There's nothing wrong with being naturally thin, or having voluptuous curves, but either of those in extremes is not what we should be marketing to people as something to aspire to. But, what I think blog viewers are really responding to is the inspiration that comes from seeing other ordinary people in unique, personalized street wear. While the fashion set loves the seduction of the fantastical behind editorial shoots and runway, the regular fashion consumer cannot relate to or apply those looks to their everyday wardrobe. As much as I'd like to see someone walking down the street in a fuchsia, haute couture ball gown, the practicality of it is just not realistic. I think the blogging community is inspiring the viewers to express themselves with personalized fashion. Blogs give us examples on how to go about doing that. This is a way we can all become fashion stars within our own element and tastes. ???E. Starbuck, www.eyelashers.blogspot.com

  • Posted By: cjruckert @ 01/31/2008 12:49:28 AM

    Comment: I can't rememebr the quote exactly, but it goes like this...... the world has 7 supermodels and 27 miliion women starving themsevles to look like them.. As the mother of a non-skeletal teenager, I'd rather see her eat a bar of real chocolate than a bar of laxative chocolate. Her middle school bathroom has more than its share of anorexic/bulimic girls. Roll on the real women movement. Count me in!

  • Posted By: Diametric @ 01/30/2008 7:33:28 PM

    Comment: The whole point of this article was the use of AVERAGE women and men to show off clothing. On a runway is one thing, on the streets is another. This is meant to lend it a more realistic look, because it IS real.
    However, so many people are convinced that being obese is some sort of contagion and that the hint of something that even borders plus-sized is a taboo. Get over it.
    By making fashion and showing fashion for larger women in no way encourages people to be obese, but to rather embrace who they are. If the same top is offered to people 0-14, why not make the same top for some one larger?
    You're not making people want to be fat to wear that same top, but rather, you're giving a larger person the confidence that she doesn't have to wear a muu muu.
    By the way, by encouraging people to be tolerant of larger people, it's not going to make you fat. It's not contagious. Being friends with a large person won't make you fat, eating with them won't make you fat, having your clothes on the same rack won't make you fat. Your child finding the beauty in some one obese won't make the FAT.
    How hard is it for you to understand this? People are allowed to show off their body, so give them the clothes to do it. I'm not encouraging hot shorts and string bikinis for us larger girls, but clothes that have that same edge of today's fashion. We can be just as passionate about today's fashions as the rest of the world. I'm not fond of wearing out-dated clothes simply because my size doesn't fit conformity.
    It's not an issue of fat v. skinny, but of everyone wanting to dress fashionably.
    There's nothing wrong with the insanely skinny and tall model showing off modern peices of clothes, but their whole purpose is that of a walking mannakin. People want to see what it looks like of the rack too.

  • Posted By: TheRealisticMinded @ 01/30/2008 4:33:13 PM

    Comment: "...that excludes, divied, or creates competition among women"? What the heck is that supposed to mean?? That phrase makes NO sense! If it creates competition, then what is it excluding or diving??
    There IS NO misogynist excercise, and there IS NO sexual control! NoPatience, you're yapping and blabbing a bunch of mumbo-jumbo bullshit! Maybe the "thin" beauty standard is a fabricated excercise, but the real beauty standard of voluptuous and curvaceous women is simply called Nature, something you're obviously too stupid and moronic to even begin to understand, let alone rightfully accept.
    NoPatience is a woman-hater and a body-rejector, and there is nothing more disgusting! There is nothing more sick, more disturbing, and more repulsive than a low life scum of the Earth who hates women, and who deliberately rejects the beauty of the woman's physical naked body. A putrid scum like this can never be functionally intimate with a woman or ever have a successful relationship with any woman.

    To Absynthe: I am strongly IN FAVOR of the pre-teen look of models, because in reality, it does NOT contribute to child pornography in any way whatsoever, so you are clearly wrong right there, Absynthe! That's the stupid sexually oppressive American media advertising sex-negative false information in order to put sex-negative crap into people's heads and limit their sexual choices in society, as well as to rob the awareness and education of sexuality from children growing up, which results in making them wrongfully view sex as something negative and something to be afraid of, again, a sex-negative fabrication of the American media to brainwash adults into believing that a harmless depiction of pre-teen cuteness contributes to child pornography. What a load of bullshit. But of course, the degenerate Puritans always over-react at just the tip of the hat!
    School-girl skirts, lolly-pops in the mouth, and pig tails are NOT child pornography! Child pornography specifically means one thing: Persons under the age of 13 indulging in real sexual activity in front of a camera to be recorded and distributed publicly for viewing. If that is not happening, then it is NOT child ponography.

    • Posted By: metastable @ 02/01/2008 14:25:25

      Comment: wow, realistic minded. I think YOU are clearly the one in need of medication here.

  • Posted By: TheRealisticMinded @ 01/30/2008 4:32:43 PM

    Comment: By Nature, there IS a beauty standard, which is the standard of the voluptuous woman, a standard which YOU, NoPatience, have NO CHOICE but to accept and respect, or else you go *** yourself and bury your dumb half-brained stupid body-phobic head in the gutter! But, NoPatience is too f*#%king stupid to begin to understand this! NoPatience is so stupid to actually think that this kind of rational talk is fascist. This kind of talk is NOT fascist. It's REALISTIC!
    You call yourself "NoPatience"? Yeah, it's actually the rest of the intelligent, mature, and educated people in the world who have NO PATIENCE for idiots like you! What are you, one of those sick crazy degenerate woman-haters that don't respect the physical beauty of the woman's body?? You sound like one of those filthy subversive religious woman-hating idiots who foully disrespect women by rejecting their natural physical bodies and refusing to recognize their physical beauty for some seriously wrong and psychologically disturbing reason, then pretend to be noble by only addressing what's on the inside of the person, a false degrading concept fueled by low crass sleazy non-physical and non-sexual pseudo-spiritual abstract bullshit!! The highest form of showing respect for women and of measuring the true value in women is clearly by looking, acknowledging, admiring, and accepting the natural physical beauty of their bodies, and the more devoted and more passionate the admiration of the woman's body is, the better your sanity, because that is the only thing that is truly REAL, and there is NEVER any "foisting", any fabrication, nor any negative "misogyny" when it comes to passionately admiring a woman's body!
    There is medication for sick demented woman-haters and body-rejectors like you, NoPatience. Go visit a psychiatrist, NoPatience, before you dig yourself a hole you can never get out of.
    Apparently, NoPatience is NOT physically or sexually attracted to women, which is part of where he developed this disturbing psychological disease of hatred against women and rejection of the woman's body, which also points to the fact that he is probably attracted to other men physically and sexually.
    Like I already said, the only problem here is that the models are too goddamn THIN, and not voluptuous and curvaceous enough, the way it should be, the way the REAL beauty standard is measured by! It's not whether they're thin, or plush, or anything else. Being thin or being more plump or otherwise are NOT all the same thing, and one would have to be really goddamn stupid to think so, because there are differences in how people's bodies are designed! There IS a beauty standard, and the industry is finally understanding what the real one is, the one that is beautiful and healthy at the same time!

    • Posted By: Existential Blues @ 01/30/2008 16:52:51

      Comment: So any woman that is skinny is going against nature's beauty standard? If she doesn't have big hips and breasts then she is defying nature? That's delusional.

      And the highest form of respect for a woman is to admire and accept their bodies? Women are more than outside looks. That's incredibly sexist.

      Also, you are all but screaming your insecurites in these comments you keep posting. Deal with them instead of denying they even exist.

  • Posted By: TheRealisticMinded @ 01/30/2008 4:31:02 PM

    Comment: NOTE TO NoPatience: Don't gain weight, so that DOUCHEBAG idiots like this "anti-body" fascist MORON called, "NoPatience", will gain interest in looking your underweight sickly skinny way and won't foul mouth you for having a real normal voluptuous womanly body, because like the low life ignorant, uneducated, woman-hating subhuman scum that he is, he will wrongfully disrespect real educated women who are respectful body lovers like the many who commented below and above him.

    To "NoPatience": Wow, YOU are one serious low life piece of ***, you dirty filthy woman-hating scum of the Earth! Go shove your idiot face into a pile of ***, because your brain is already there. It would suit you well with that dirty foul mouth you have!
    With a name like"NoPatience", it's obvious clear we're dealing with a very stupid and idiotic MORON who actually takes the time to leave such an ignorant half-brained moronic comment like this.
    NoPatience, you are a "DOUCHEBAG", as well as all other idiots in the world who think like a DOUCHEBAG like YOU! "The engine of the industry is driven by greed which is fueled by misogyny"?? What the f*#%?? What are you, a crazy jack-ass moron?? Wow, NoPatience, you truly ARE a DOUCHEBAG!!
    The problem in the fashion industry, because NoPatience is too much of a douchebag and a moron to understand, is NOT greed! The problem is NOT the so-called "misogyny"! The problem is NOT sexual control! The problem is simply that the women in the fashion industry are just too goddamn SKINNY! They're too THIN!! This extremist standard of "thin only" prevents the investment of the real natural beauty of how women are really supposed to look like! THAT is the problem! Women as MODELS are supposed to be more plump and more voluptuous, to emphasize their bodies and curves, which is what NATURALLY defines and TRULY REPRESENTS the REAL beauty of a woman's body! Foisting any "beauty standard", says NoPatience?? There is no "FOISTING" when the beauty standard is accepted and recognized as the RIGHT one, as women who are physically voluptuous, because by NATURE, the beauty standard is and should be voluptuous women! Advertising and promoting a beauty standard is NOT and is NEVER a "foisting" when the beauty standard is the REAL ONE! All this being said, does not mean that we should reject skinny women to work in the industry, but that we should invest in far more voluptuous women for the industry than in skinny women as models.

  • Posted By: virginian @ 01/30/2008 4:17:14 PM

    Comment: Marilyn Monroe Built Like a Woman of Today?

    According to her official website, Marilyn's statistics were:

    Height: 5 feet 5 1/2 inches
    Weight: Varied, 115 - 120 lbs.
    Measurements: 37-23-36 (Studio's Claim); 35-22-35 (Dressmaker's Claim)

    According to several sources sited by snopes.com:

    Height: 5 feet, 5?? inches
    Weight:118-140* pounds
    Bust: 35-37 inches
    Waist: 22-23 inches
    Hips: 35-36 inches
    Bra size: 36D

    *defined in the article as "extreme" estimate

    If a woman of today has these measurements, I don't think anyone is going to define her as overweight. Nor do I think these measurements are typical of the average American woman of 2008.

  • Posted By: writergal8 @ 01/30/2008 4:09:14 PM

    Comment: Marilyn's measurements were 35-22-35 (dressmaker's claim) or 37-22-36 (studios) at about 5'5 1/2". According to 2008 Banana Republic size chart standards, she'd be size 6-10. But since Banana sizes generously, she's more likely to be a 4-8 (I'm "SUPPOSED" to be size 2 at Banana, but I can be as small as 00!)

    • Posted By: Existential Blues @ 01/30/2008 16:19:54

      Comment: That's got to be incorrect. The "perfect" figure is having your bust and hips the same measurement with your waist ten inches smaller. That's pretty difficult to achieve. Marilyn Monroe was gorgeous, but I don't think she could boast a 22 inch waist. She looked too big for that.

  • Posted By: NoElleNo @ 01/30/2008 3:53:07 PM

    Comment: Honestly, I can't figure out the obsession so many have with being skinny or why people hurt themselves to be that way. I am a size 2-6 (depending on the meal or time of month) and all my friends are size 10 and above. We embrace our differences and our beauty. I cringe each time anyone refers to themselves as "overweight" - to me, it's the size they are supposed to be. "Overweight??? means they are over society's "accepted" weight. It's the same when people dub me skinny or say I have a model physique-but by society's "accepted" for a model, I'm too short at 5'7.

    I've been ridiculed all my life about my size so I don't see size when I meet people. Thin women are often viewed as stuck-up or snooty but in reality, most of us feel just as insecure or more so because we are not accepted by larger women and even hated. As long as we are healthy and wear things that are comfortable and flattering to our features we are beautiful as we are.
    I'm jealous because I don't have curves and bumps- others hate themselves because they have them. None of us had a choice our genetic make up so how can anyone be so shallow to dub ???skinny??? model worthy and ???full figured??? not worthy? ALL women wear clothes so no one body type going to represent everyone. I would feel like a fool at 5'7 110 lbs showing a garment to a larger woman. It would be an insult- she wants to see her likeness not mine!! How is that fair or even practical?
    I'm a regular woman, I want to wear regular clothes and I know I don't look like a supermodel (or I'd be one). Why can't we all be on the runway if we are all spending or money? We are not meant to be the same and if "we" are society...this is our wake up call and we REALLY need to wake up!

  • Posted By: Kerz @ 01/30/2008 3:44:27 PM

    Comment: Seeing a certain body type of a model become popular in the industry should not be encouraging. What I mean is that people should not be looking to these pictures and shows for encouragement. That is all it is, really, images. Models do not go out and sell the clothes they wear, they just wear them. They put them on and have their pictures taken, or put them on and walk down a path. A mannequin can do half of that. Although, I think that if mannequins did come to replace models people would still complain. This is a problem with society today: people idolize others so much that they forget that they have themselves. There was a time when almost every kid could tell you who their idol was. They would tell you, "My Mom!" or "My dad!" This is because parents were involved, and families spent time together. Parents were parents, and relied on themselves to teach their kids how to be people. Now you see kids looked to magazines, television, and radio to tell them how to look, how to feel, how to live, or what's good or bad about them. Parents used to be teachers, used to be the biggest constants in their children's lives. Now they have to work, so their kids go to daycare. They have to stay late, so the babysitter needs to stay extra hours. They're off doing errands because this is the only time they have to do it, so the kid has to help themselves with homework. Parents aren't involved anymore, so kids are insecure with themselves. They don't have a constant fixture because their parents aren't there. I'm a high school student; I'm appalled at the behaviors of some of my classmates. They do things that are simply wrong, and when asked "What would your parents think?" or "Didn't your parents teach you better?" They snap back something like, "My parents don't care", "My parents don't know", or "It doesn't matter." This is simply outlandish. I can't imagine saying my parents don't matter or know; I want them to know. They know better than me and I can learn from them. Whatever happened to the expression moms have eyes in the back of their heads. And a parent not caring probably speaks for itself. -Continued-

    • Posted By: Kerz @ 01/30/2008 15:45:59

      Comment: So basically, kids are starting to look to unhealthy places for guidance. I don't live under a rock; MTV is entertaining. But I know the way those people live is frivolous and unrealistic. Girls who are barely women, or perhaps not even so, with twig-lick fingers and knobby knees are showing up as 'stunning' and then others who can???t go up a set of stairs without breathing hard denouncing them. There is a happy medium, there is balance. Parents need to step up to the plate and show their children this. If parents begin their kids on healthy lifestyles and stay with it all through their childhood and teenage years it is likely that these kids will maintain this lifestyle, as they won???t know anything different. It is, of course, important to expose kids to other things so that they aren???t shocked or go crazy with it once they???re out on their own, but kids who never learned to dislike vegetables or themselves probably aren???t going to go to college and decide they no longer enjoy healthy food just because someone else doesn???t. It???s not just about food, though, it???s about discipline, self-esteem, and activity too. Parents should teach their children to have the discipline to know when they are full and shouldn???t eat more cake or even carrots, just like they should have the discipline to say no to getting drunk the night before an exam. Parents should show their kids what it means to be comfortable with themselves, not just tell them. A mother who is telling her daughter she should not care what others think but then starts talking about how she (the mother) feels disgusting and like she needs to lose weight is inconsistent, and not setting an example. Life is about being happy and satisfied; we are our own ideals. And as for activity, it???s like diet (which doesn???t just mean a plan to lose weight, by the way). If a kid is active while they???re young and grow up active, they???re likely to be an active and healthy adult too. My parents were always active with us. There are four of us kids, so we also played soccer games. Both my parents ran and did things like crunches and push-ups to stay fit. When we asked they showed us how to do a push-up, but they didn???t force real exercise on us. They hid it in games and led by example. But now that we???re older we like to run and do crunches and push-ups. Maybe they???re not the best way to stay healthy, but it does work. That???s how our parents taught us, and that???s what works for us. We???re all healthy and fit. It may not work for another person, it may not work for a lot of people, but there are plenty of different ways to stay healthy. I???m positive that there are enough ways in the world to stay healthy to accommodate anyone, no matter their issue. It???s never too late to learn.

      • Posted By: Kerz @ 01/30/2008 15:48:15

        Comment: Oh, and as far as ???real people??? goes, it doesn???t matter the weight or health. Every person is a real person. From models to office workers to the elderly to babies, every human being is real. The ???real people as models??? thing is not new, and the term is rather ignorant in my opinion (which is just an opinion).

  • Posted By: seven_7 @ 01/30/2008 3:35:05 PM

    Comment: Doesn't this make you want to buy that lingerie?

    http://fatgrrl.com/wp-content/2007/04/kaileeosullivan_modelfat.jpg

  • Posted By: KennyF @ 01/30/2008 3:29:48 PM

    Comment: Drangonlady

    I would think that if models that are more real life are contemplated, then as a rational choice they should be real life BUZT with a healthy BMI. That would address both concerns, don't you think?

  • Posted By: rosalove5 @ 01/30/2008 3:15:39 PM

    Comment: *****************************
    I am Rosa , a beautiful woman from Ney York. Internet is a quite good place to meet friends and even find whatever your need. i am just in the beginning of my career and want to find a rich man, maybe to be my sugar daddy. so i uploaded my hot and even naked photos on http://www.sugarmatchmaker.com under the name wantadaddy, maybe you want to check out my photos firstly!

    • Posted By: NoElleNo @ 01/30/2008 15:57:53

      Comment: And you are Lucy a beautiful 19 year old looking for a sugar daddy on Yahoo OMG!!! and Perezhilton.com. This is NOT a DATING SITE and if you are advertising one here....you nor your site is about anything we need to know about here. PLEASE take this crap elsewhere.

  • Posted By: apayne71605 @ 01/30/2008 3:12:17 PM

    Comment: What a relief ... the fashion world has begun to look at Average America! But ... let's not relax and over-indulge in junk food and gluttony. Stay HEALTHY ... BE WISE. The people featured in the article are focusing on those of us who are not size 0. But in the same sense, it's obvious they're not looking for size 16, either.

    • Posted By: beige_glitter @ 01/30/2008 16:46:10

      Comment: oh, it was you that assumed that women are just "looking for an excuse to be fat" or whatever.

      you should stay healthy and learn something new each day.

      • Posted By: dangster @ 01/30/2008 19:28:34

        Comment: beige_glitter, who died and made you moderator of this comment board? You've been posting your decidedly annoying comments ALL OVER THIS board. Just shut up for once, please.

        • Posted By: beige_glitter @ 01/30/2008 20:44:19

          Comment: no thank you

          I think that if people want to be rude and hateful, then most certainly you can stand my opinions

  • Posted By: A Pin-up Queen @ 01/30/2008 3:11:46 PM

    Comment: Well, i don't now what happened to my comment... I had said : The waif model has NEVER been attractive! Calvin is dispiccable and should be sued for the damage he has done to the poor young girls with no self esteem who are addicted to bulemia and worship anorexia, by making his models look like little boys bc he's queer. WOMEN ARE SUPPOSED TO BE CURVY!!! Celebrate your goddess figure! Venus of Waldorf! Rubens! LOOK at the amazing art in our history. I say wear what makes you feel good about yourself and flaunt your confidence and BEAUTY!!! The avg size for women is 12/14, not 3/4. Remember, that's what Marilyn Monroe was(12/14)! And for all of you contributing to the sad obese stats... for crying out loud START LOVING YOURSELF! Did the Greeks, Romans or Natives indulge in processed food and grease? NO! Try wine, fruit, grains, and game. The human body was not designed to hold that much weight. Why do your knees hurt? Hmmm? As for depression, how about exercise? It is THEEEE #1 cure for depression AAAANND it releases the same feel good chemical in your brain as during sexual activity. YES WE LOVE SEROTONIN! So get off yer ass and LOVE YOURSELF! Do something that makes YOU feel awesome about YOU! At least get yourself off and change your own chemistry. Like I said LOVE THYSELF! Don't waste your life following superficial trends or becoming Jabba the Hut. What's hot and fashionable is being healthy, exercising, eating well, feeling good, and being happy. What is your perfect look and weight? I'm 5'3", 31,163 lbs (which is mostly leg muscle, a little chub which I'm proud to say IS finally diminishing) and I LOVE LOVE LOVE my body! I am curvy, sexy, have a gorgeous derrierre, toned arms, elegant shoulders, CUUUUURRRRRVY legs and I have 13 years of ballet to thank for that when I was younger. OH, and ladies, you gotta try belly dancing. You will feel SOOO sexy, get in touch with your inner goddess, develop RIDICULOUS curves and oblique muscles, plus, the more rolls of chub, the hotter. Get off your butts and go DANCE! ENJOY LIFE!!! It is waaaaayyyy too short. GOD BLESS! Be happy. Always put yourself FIRST! YOU, YOU, YOU are the most imortant person in your life! Have a splendid day! ;)

  • Posted By: Absynthe @ 01/30/2008 3:11:24 PM

    Comment: Rosa, you are spam

    • Posted By: beige_glitter @ 01/30/2008 16:47:00

      Comment: yeah, I feel the need to do that too sometimes.

      maybe that's why models like feeling desired.

  • Posted By: writergal8 @ 01/30/2008 3:09:09 PM

    Comment: redragongirl, I don't think the Chinese see fat as a beauty standard anymore. You're about 100 years out of date.

  • Posted By: rosalove5 @ 01/30/2008 3:07:23 PM

    Comment: *****************************
    I am Rosa , a beautiful woman from Ney York. Internet is a quite good place to meet friends and even find whatever your need. i am just in the beginning of my career and want to find a rich man, maybe to be my sugar daddy. so i uploaded my hot and even naked photos on http://www.sugarmatchmaker.com under the name wantadaddy, maybe you want to check out my photos firstly!

  • Posted By: Diametric @ 01/30/2008 3:06:47 PM

    Comment: I've studied fashion, so I know the point of rail-thin models, as well as the obese model. It's all to do with the clothes themselves. Pure and simple. However, people misconstrue that they are selling the clothes and not the model, and people begin to want to have impossible looks that are not meant for them. People also want to take the model and say 'here, this is what women should look like' it's not true. Everyone comes in different shapes and sizes, and some women are curvier than others, as well as more over-weight. There was a time when that was what was considered beautiful, because the wide hips meant the girl was perfect for child-bearing.
    I do not care how people view, I do not desire to follow societie's rather insipid rules. I will be me no matter what the 'norm' is considered. If I fit in with the crowd, okay, if not, oh well. Years of being made fun of has only made me defiant, not compliant. You tell me you think I'm ugly cause I am big, and I don't care, I'm more interested in proving to you that I am amazing and that people love me for me.

    • Posted By: Donthaveoneever @ 01/30/2008 15:13:58

      Comment: I agree once again with you. Besides I think normal is stupid anyway - who determines what's "normal"?

      • Posted By: Diametric @ 01/30/2008 15:21:32

        Comment: Exactly. Afterall, people act like obesity is a contagion. You'll get fat if you let people make me cool clothes. You're kids will get fat if they think that I'm beautiful. Ha! Please.

  • Posted By: tiger_gumby @ 01/30/2008 3:06:06 PM

    Comment: Everyone is going to have their own opinion about what looks good. Haha, and there's obviously a lot of shallow people here. I'm more concerned about what is being sold in the stores than what is on the runway. At a lot of the stores that most of us can afford to shop at, the clothes are made really really small. I think that's what gets to the teens more than the pictures they see. Maybe instead of changing the sizes of the runway models, or in addition to, they maybe need to make changes to the sizes of the mannequins.

    • Posted By: NoElleNo @ 01/30/2008 16:07:54

      Comment: Funny you should say that....every store I go into the clothes are all cut large...even the 0-4 are all larger than they were when fashion was REAL and about women being beautiful and looking sharp; not about rail-thin, unhealthy, waif-like, heroine chic or whatever it is now. Everything looks cheap and drawn-up like it was washed in the wrong temperature, faded or just plain raggedy. Why should a pair of jeans that cost $2.00 to make cost me $80.00 and look like they've been run over by a truck?
      I just want clothes; I do not need to make a statement or be the poster child for a designer. If we are society we need to demand what works for us!!

  • Posted By: reddragongirl @ 01/30/2008 3:05:57 PM

    Comment: I find all this everyone is saying here very funny. We all have our own opinions on what is beautiful. I myself prefer to be thin, but I am an athlete. I am not super thin, I have bulk. I rather not see the super fat people everywhere. Especially the ones that think they should wear the short shorts and mid drift shirts and let all that fat and rolls hang out. That is nasty. A size 14 can be sexy, in the right clothes. A size 20 can be sexy, in the right clothes.

    There are men that rather a little extra. There are men that rather stick thin. It is all in the eye of the beholder. Ever hear of that saying people?

    Take a look at other cultures. In China and other countries, to be fat is a sign of wealth. It shows how can afford all the food. Greece would have food orgies where they sat around for hours and did nothing but eat and have sex. The skinny ones were servants that were not allowed to eat much. The food was reserved for the royalty and wealthy. Take a look at history. My husband reminds me all the time, when I say I think I am fat, about how the skinny women were considered ugly until recently when the model "Twiggy" hit the scenes. She is the one that started the whole thing you must be a stick to be beautiful. Otherwise, Marilyn Monroe was the one women and girls looked up to as the icon of beauty back then.

    In no way am I saying fat is beautiful, and skinny is ugly. I prefer thin, but not boney. I prefer my man not to have a potbelly and the gut hanging over the waist of his jeans. But there are the chubby chasers out there too that like that.

    So, instead of saying there should only be toothpick models on the runways, and in the magazines, how about doing it all. Show regular size runway shows. Show plus size runway shows. Show the regular and plus size women in the clothes in magazines. Do it all, and then that way, whatever size you are, you have someone to see in the clothes you want to see if it may look good on you too. Why does it have to be just one way, one size? We are not ALL blessed to be naturally thin. Some of us have to work for it, and even fight for it. Some people have health problems that no matter how little they eat, or how much they exercise, they still can not be thin, they are fat no matter what.

  • Posted By: afof9fan @ 01/30/2008 3:05:41 PM

    Comment: You don't get it ,What good is it to appeal to people who want to be seen the same as they are? Being thin and good looking is something to strive for not reject as being un-normal.Overweight is not good for you and too thin is not good ,but attracting people to a product is business.Who would buy a product endorsed by Roseann or Rosie Od,if it made made you look like them? If your child is over weight you need to do something about it when I went to school there was a fat girl or boy in class but not a class full of them,where has PE gone in school we went 3 times a week ,no whinning and no excuses for not participating in sports everyone did it.

    • Posted By: NoElleNo @ 01/30/2008 16:22:00

      Comment: Well- if the women are shaped like Rosie O'D what's the problem with that body type advertising the product? People like to see their likeness when they are shopping. I am skinny and a size 2-4 so Rosie O'D is not going to work for me juxt like Mary-Kate Olsen won't work for the larger woman. That's just common sense. Again, if WE are buying the clothes WE should market them.

  • Posted By: rebbalattefatty @ 01/30/2008 3:04:33 PM

    Comment: i just checked out autogiver.com

    what does donating your car have to do with this??

    oh wait.. i seeee, u gotta be curious to find it...

  • Posted By: tiger_gumby @ 01/30/2008 3:03:40 PM

    Comment: Everyone is going to have their own opinion about what looks good. I'm more concerned about what is being sold in the stores than what is on the runway. At a lot of the stores that most of us can afford to shop at, the clothes are made really really small. I think that's what gets to the teens more than the pictures they see. Maybe instead of changing the sizes of the runway models, or in addition to, they also need to make changes to the sizes of the mannequins.

    • Posted By: Existential Blues @ 01/30/2008 15:18:06

      Comment: I do not think they make clothes too small. But I don't think they make pants long enough. I'm tall for a girl and have really long legs, and I can hardly ever find pants that are long enough. And also, at Victoria's Secret, they advertise women with big breasts in very pretty bras, but when you go to the store, they have plain bras for big cup sizes. The A's and B's have designs, lace, and all that loveliness. But screw the anybody over a C cup.

      • Posted By: lilblue4sho @ 01/31/2008 14:38:57

        Comment: i don't know what you are talkin bout i wear a c and i find very pretty bras in victoria secret you just have to know how to look and the reason why u can't find the size maybe is because the the average size so the majority of people would have already bought them

        • Posted By: Existential Blues @ 02/01/2008 02:42:18

          Comment: Well, try finding a DD that isn't a plain, solid color. Even over the net, they don't carry that size in alot of the things I would have liked. I'm just saying, that if the models are wearing DD bras that aren't boring and plain, then they should SELL those bras in that size. And trust me, I know how to shop.

  • Posted By: rebbalattefatty @ 01/30/2008 3:02:42 PM

    Comment: interesting... it's good to be healthy but not too healthy.. i lost 20lbs thans to wonderrx.com

    and i my wife lost 3500 lbs when she donated her car at autogiver.com

  • Posted By: muffins @ 01/30/2008 3:01:49 PM

    Comment: Did the author fail to realize that a lot of the people looking at blogs about street fashion might also have an interest in runway fashion models and gasp! can even identify them by name? For people that are interested in fashion there isn't a brick wall between the runway and what people wear on the street. It's possible to take inspiration from everything. I can appreciate the delicate beauty of a runway model, but I can also enjoy a "normal" person looking fabulous on the street. The two things aren't mutually exclusive.

    Most models are in their teens to early 20s, so I don't find it inconceivable that they can be that thin and lanky. I think it's also strange how on the one hand people condemn thin models but turn around and say it would be okay if she just had "curves". How is it more attainable for the average person to have an ample chest, 22-24 inch waist and perfect hips? It's not. So if people are going to criticize, I think the FHM/Maxim female ideal should be criticized along with everything else.

    Anyways, I think the styling of the show makes them look a lot sicklier than they are. If you see the same models in a candid photo off the street they just look like thin, fresh faced young girls, hardly the scary victims on the verge of death that most are made out to be.

    • Posted By: KennyF @ 01/30/2008 16:06:29

      Comment: Muffins you are right about the unattainability of a young woman to have those unrealistic curves. There is a reason why swimsuit models may be athletic or slim girls who then have breast enlargement surgery (bad idea). Real women can yoke a 38 chest to a 22 inch waist. In real life, do you think that many teens settle for the generous chest that cames with being overweight as a compensation? Never having been a teen girl I don't know!

  • Posted By: rosalove5 @ 01/30/2008 3:00:31 PM

    Comment: *****************************
    I am Rosa , a beautiful woman from Ney York. Internet is a quite good place to meet friends and even find whatever your need. i am just in the beginning of my career and want to find a rich man, maybe to be my sugar daddy. so i uploaded my hot and even naked photos on http://www.sugarmatchmaker.com under the name wantadaddy, maybe you want to check out my photos firstly!

  • Posted By: writergal8 @ 01/30/2008 2:59:56 PM

    Comment: Please tell me how a size 0 or 2 woman isn't "real." I certainly feel real. I certainly feel that I exist. If I'm not real, then what am I? Or do short women not count as "real" women either? I've noticed that height is almost never addressed when it comes to "real" sizes.

  • Posted By: rosalove5 @ 01/30/2008 2:57:16 PM

    Comment: *****************************
    I am Rosa , a beautiful woman from Ney York. Internet is a quite good place to meet friends and even find whatever your need. i am just in the beginning of my career and want to find a rich man, maybe to be my sugar daddy. so i uploaded my hot and even naked photos on http://www.sugarmatchmaker.com under the name wantadaddy, maybe you want to check out my photos firstly!

    • Posted By: Donthaveoneever @ 01/30/2008 15:09:04

      Comment: Are you joking! That is just tacky!

  • Posted By: jlifeman211 @ 01/30/2008 2:56:05 PM

    Comment: whats the difference between Ethiopia and models that dont eat.... ANWSER: nothing

  • Posted By: rosalove5 @ 01/30/2008 2:55:29 PM

    Comment: *****************************
    I am Rosa , a beautiful woman from Ney York. Internet is a quite good place to meet friends and even find whatever your need. i am just in the beginning of my career and want to find a rich man, maybe to be my sugar daddy. so i uploaded my hot and even naked photos on http://www.sugarmatchmaker.com under the name wantadaddy, maybe you want to check out my photos firstly!

  • Posted By: afof9fan @ 01/30/2008 2:53:57 PM

    Comment: Whats wrong with you people? they are trying to sell a product no the woman wearing it.Who would buy a product modeled by Rosie O. or Roseann B. if it made you look like them? If you have a fat kid its your fault,what happened to PE in school,too much work for the parents? We went to PE 3 times a week no excuses and everyone was in a sport,some excelled and some just worked out but we got excercise in a controlled setting and no can say it was not good for us.Parents get off your butt,thin may not be beautiful but fat is reallly not something you want to be,plus its not healthy for you or you kid. You need to go to the YMCA and look at some of the female instructors,Healthy strong and good looking ,not too thin and not Overweight,just healthy.

    • Posted By: dsccfm22 @ 01/30/2008 15:11:27

      Comment: Exactly. People are forgetting this is about MODELS. They are MODELS for a reason. The advertisers /designers know that "normal" people will not sell. Simple fact. They are marketing an ideal. Those of you that think this is going to change because a few fat , oops I mean "curvy", people have low self-esteem are a bit delusional. You want "average" looking models? Go check out the Lane Bryant catalog.

  • Posted By: rosalove5 @ 01/30/2008 2:53:55 PM

    Comment: *****************************
    I am Rosa , a beautiful woman from Ney York. Internet is a quite good place to meet friends and even find whatever your need. i am just in the beginning of my career and want to find a rich man, maybe to be my sugar daddy. so i uploaded my hot and even naked photos on sugarmatchmaker under the name wantadaddy, maybe you want to check out my photos firstly!

  • Posted By: dralafi @ 01/30/2008 2:51:02 PM

    Comment: Has anyone ever read the series Uglies? I think maybe it was a bit prophetic, about at least one of it's themes, if this conversation is any indicator. I think people are just getting tired of only one definition of beauty, or one definition of "family values" etc. I think this is a critical step in the fashion or business world, but it has to go a step further in recognizing that there doesn't have to be a difference between "real" people, and "beautiful" people. It's perceptions of beauty that need to change, and a recognition that reactions to a particular body type do not have to be governed by any real or perceived evolutionary perception of healthy or good.

    RC

  • Posted By: virginian @ 01/30/2008 2:50:54 PM

    Comment: queen. You unintentionally make my point from my previous posts here. You say that you would shoot yourself if you were the size of my wife. Yet you seem to consider YOURSELF the object of unfair and cruel criticism.

  • Posted By: Ornot @ 01/30/2008 2:49:03 PM

    Comment: I can't wait untill the REAL MEN models come out. That will do wonders for the Calvin Klein underwear ads

    • Posted By: beige_glitter @ 01/30/2008 16:48:04

      Comment: true that!

      • Posted By: beige_glitter @ 01/30/2008 20:43:13

        Comment: and I must persist in mentioning that "real" is more than this image most of you have conjured

        real could be short

        people who don't ordinarily model - different ehtnicities

        large feet

        braces

        dreadlocks

        etc.

  • Posted By: dsccfm22 @ 01/30/2008 2:48:46 PM

    Comment: I'm so sick of the whole "Big is Beautiful" mantra constantly shoved down our throats by insecure overweight people (mostly women) trying to change our perception of what is normal. It's this perspective that is turning this country into a bunch of lazy, fast-food eating cows. I am not saying that everyone should be rail thin, but many of you commenting on here are misinterpreting the article to mean we are soon going to be seeing Gigantor strutting down the catwalk. The fact that an average american is now proudly a "size 12 - 16" is truly alarming.

  • Posted By: StyleGuy @ 01/30/2008 2:46:45 PM

    Comment: No doubt The Sartorialist is the breadwinner of this new 'street-style' trend, but he caters to such a high-end NYC-market. And that begs the questions, is that even realistic (to say, middle America, etc)? BET (blogger: sP) has followed this trend for the black community and given it some interesting flavor, making it consumable for all young types. Check it out at : http://blogs.bet.com/lifestyle/swagger/

  • Posted By: arvan @ 01/30/2008 2:46:01 PM

    Comment: obesity (and related problems) is now the #1 killer in the U.S. I don't know if we need to be promoting that big is beautiful if it is so unhealthy!

  • Posted By: PrettyWoman @ 01/30/2008 2:45:46 PM

    Comment: Fashion ' trys' to dictate what women are 'supposed' to look like and wear. Most of us don???t try to look like a twig. Lots out there labeled as fashionable looks terrible on a regular, average woman. There was a time that clothing was really beautiful and wonderful to wear. Fabrics were grand; construction was impeccable, now it is just thrown together for the most part... Bring elegance back!

  • Posted By: StyleGuy @ 01/30/2008 2:45:12 PM

    Comment: No doubt The Sartorialist is the breadwinner of this new 'street-style' trend, but he caters to such a high-end NYC-market. And that begs the questions, is that even realistic (to say, middle America, etc)? BET (blogger: sP) has followed this trend for the black community and given it some interesting flavor, making it consumable for all young types. Check it out at : http://blogs.bet.com/lifestyle/swagger/

  • Posted By: theworldasicit @ 01/30/2008 2:44:57 PM

    Comment: As someone that works in healthcare I agree with you, kbalt, but at the same time I would say that there is a point where it stops being heredity and becomes a problem of depression, laziness, giving up or just plain not knowing the healthy way to eat. I am not saying this is everyone but I have seen a case of each. I am not by any means saying that being to thin is ok nor am I saying being overweight is ok or wrong, I to beleive that you body will only allow you to be a certain size.

  • Posted By: PrettyWoman @ 01/30/2008 2:43:35 PM

    Comment: Fashion ' trys' to dictate what women are 'supposed' to look like and wear. Most of us do not choose to try and look like a twig, thank goodness. Lots out there labeled as fashionable looks terrible on the regular, average woman. There was a time that clothing was really beautiful and wonderful to wear. Fabrics were grand; construction was impeccable, now it is just thrown together for the most part... Bring elegance back!

  • Posted By: queenmoane @ 01/30/2008 2:42:37 PM

    Comment: i agree im a size 7 but i used to be a 14 so i can understand where people r coming from and still today as a size 7 they still considered me too fat. its sad bcuz i am a attractive woman and they turn me down saying i have to be a size 1 or 2. personally ill shoot myself b4 i be that size. technically im trying to get my weight back up to at least a ten so if anyone have any suggestions email me on how to gain weight at queenmonae618@yahoo.com

    • Posted By: virginian @ 01/30/2008 14:49:18

      Comment: queen. You unintentionally made my point from my previous posts here. You say that you would shoot yourself if you were the size of my wife. Yet you seem to consider YOURSELF the object of unfair and cruel criticism.

  • Posted By: afof9fan @ 01/30/2008 2:41:29 PM

    Comment: You don't get it ,What good is it to appeal to people who want to be seen the same as they are? Being thin and good looking is something to strive for not reject as being un-normal.Overweight is not good for you and too thin is not good ,but attracting people to a product is business.Who would buy a product endorsed by Roseann or Rosie Od,if it made made you look like them? If your child is over weight you need to do something about it when I went to school there was a fat girl or boy in class but not a class full of them,where has PE gone in school we went 3 times a week ,no whinning and no excuses for not participating in sports everyone did it.

    • Posted By: beige_glitter @ 01/30/2008 16:50:05

      Comment: if they were so good looking, what's with all the spraypaint, petroleum jelly, makeup, hairspray, and superglue?

  • Posted By: truth_b_told2003 @ 01/30/2008 2:40:54 PM

    Comment: ???Real Woman??? a funny phrase, a phrase that divides women. Real woman come in every shape, size, color and what have you. It???s a shame that woman let a male lead industry rule their lives. I am appalled at some of the comments where self love and pride for however your body looks to be turn into a battle between think and thin. There is nothing wrong being neither a size 2 nor a size 16 for that matter, as long as you are healthy happy and satisfied. It is terrible how we women let over sexed male egos split us. Why do we have to take offense against each other? Do my bigger sisters understand the trauma and stress these ???super models??? deal with on a daily basis? And thin chicks, do you understand the stress bigger woman suffer because there are not meeting the perceived ???standard of beauty???? I am a woman size 10, 5???6??? 165lbs; I fluctuate like any normal woman, putting on water, flexing from 8 to 10 to 12, but I am healthy. I am beautiful, wanted and LOVED. We need to stand together and fight for all body types because we need to create a place where our daughters can grow up with healthy body image regardless if they are a size 2 or 14. The time has got to end on the skinny-fat hate and transform on love for all body types. Its time for a change, for run-way, pageants and dolls alike to sport different images of Beauty. We need to stop the cycle of self hate and heal each other by standing together for the next generations of women to come.

  • Posted By: truth_b_told2003 @ 01/30/2008 2:40:24 PM

    Comment: ???Real Woman??? a funny phrase, a phrase that divides women. Real woman come in every shape, size, color and what have you. It???s a shame that woman let a male lead industry rule their lives. I am appalled at some of the comments where self love and pride for however your body looks to be turn into a battle between think and thin. There is nothing wrong being neither a size 2 nor a size 16 for that matter, as long as you are healthy happy and satisfied. It is terrible how we women let over sexed male egos split us. Why do we have to take offense against each other? Do my bigger sisters understand the trauma and stress these ???super models??? deal with on a daily basis? And thin chicks, do you understand the stress bigger woman suffer because there are not meeting the perceived ???standard of beauty???? I am a woman size 10, 5???6??? 165lbs; I fluctuate like any normal woman, putting on water, flexing from 8 to 10 to 12, but I am healthy. I am beautiful, wanted and LOVED. We need to stand together and fight for all body types because we need to create a place where our daughters can grow up with healthy body image regardless if they are a size 2 or 14. The time has got to end on the skinny-fat hate and transform on love for all body types. Its time for a change, for run-way, pageants and dolls alike to sport different images of Beauty. We need to stop the cycle of self hate and heal each other by standing together for the next generations of women to come.

  • Posted By: queenmoane @ 01/30/2008 2:40:20 PM

    Comment: i agree im a size 7 but i used to be a 14 so i can understand where people r coming from and still today as a size 7 they still considered me too fat. its sad bcuz i am a attractive woman and they turn me down saying i have to be a size 1 or 2. personally ill shoot myself b4 i be that size. technically im trying to get my weight back up to at least a ten so if anyone have any suggestions email me on how to gain weight at queenmonae618@yahoo.com

  • Posted By: phiomalibumalibu @ 01/30/2008 2:39:56 PM

    Comment: Thin is not always in! It used to be that only thin people could be models, and now the field is opening up to all sorts and sizes. A friend of mine makes bank glamourgirlcollection.com and she is a little plump. She models for the likes of target, and other department stores and have even shot some commercials. Glad the world is changing in this respect

  • Posted By: truth_b_told2003 @ 01/30/2008 2:39:48 PM

    Comment: ???Real Woman??? a funny phrase, a phrase that divides women. Real woman come in every shape, size, color and what have you. It???s a shame that woman let a male lead industry rule their lives. I am appalled at some of the comments where self love and pride for however your body looks to be turn into a battle between think and thin. There is nothing wrong being neither a size 2 nor a size 16 for that matter, as long as you are healthy happy and satisfied. It is terrible how we women let over sexed male egos split us. Why do we have to take offense against each other? Do my bigger sisters understand the trauma and stress these ???super models??? deal with on a daily basis? And thin chicks, do you understand the stress bigger woman suffer because there are not meeting the perceived ???standard of beauty???? I am a woman size 10, 5???6??? 165lbs; I fluctuate like any normal woman, putting on water, flexing from 8 to 10 to 12, but I am healthy. I am beautiful, wanted and LOVED. We need to stand together and fight for all body types because we need to create a place where our daughters can grow up with healthy body image regardless if they are a size 2 or 14. The time has got to end on the skinny-fat hate and transform on love for all body types. Its time for a change, for run-way, pageants and dolls alike to sport different images of Beauty. We need to stop the cycle of self hate and heal each other by standing together for the next generations of women to come.

  • Posted By: truth_b_told2003 @ 01/30/2008 2:39:06 PM

    Comment: ???Real Woman??? a funny phrase, a phrase that divides women. Real woman come in every shape, size, color and what have you. It???s a shame that woman let a male lead industry rule their lives. I am appalled at some of the comments where self love and pride for however your body looks to be turn into a battle between think and thin. There is nothing wrong being neither a size 2 nor a size 16 for that matter, as long as you are healthy happy and satisfied. It is terrible how we women let over sexed male egos split us. Why do we have to take offense against each other? Do my bigger sisters understand the trauma and stress these ???super models??? deal with on a daily basis? And thin chicks, do you understand the stress bigger woman suffer because there are not meeting the perceived ???standard of beauty???? I am a woman size 10, 5???6??? 165lbs; I fluctuate like any normal woman, putting on water, flexing from 8 to 10 to 12, but I am healthy. I am beautiful, wanted and LOVED. We need to stand together and fight for all body types because we need to create a place where our daughters can grow up with healthy body image regardless if they are a size 2 or 14. The time has got to end on the skinny-fat hate and transform on love for all body types. Its time for a change, for run-way, pageants and dolls alike to sport different images of Beauty. We need to stop the cycle of self hate and heal each other by standing together for the next generations of women to come.

  • Posted By: rip2632 @ 01/30/2008 2:38:31 PM

    Comment: IT is about time that real people are used in all ads, not just fashion. No real woman looks the way they do on the runways and the use to drugs and starvation to stay that way is not worth the result. Talk about an unhealthy lifestyle. People are tired of being compared to these wafes. For my part I want a real woman, who has personality and compassion. A woman or man is much more than the exterior and it is time the rest of the world realizes it.

  • Posted By: kbalt @ 01/30/2008 2:37:01 PM

    Comment: People are so worried about what other people look like that they forgete that why they are saying rude and damaging cooments, there are people in their family that are overweight. How can we really know whats overweight? Some doctor decided to put together his perfect woman and then present to the world what every person is suppose to weight. Not everyone is meant to be skinny no matter how healthy they live, it just won't happen. I can tell no one on this forum is a doctor because if they were they would agree. You can only be as thin as your body will allow. There are babies that come out chubby and through their lives they stay that way no matter how they live. Healthy can only be measured on how far your heart will take you. Skinny does not mean healthy, nor does fat mean unhealthy. Healthy means your organs, bones, and mind are in an equipped position to function without stress. Get real people how many skinny people or fat people can say they are truly healthy, not because of size but because of the things listed.

  • Posted By: jada3007 @ 01/30/2008 2:36:29 PM

    Comment: To me curvy is a girl who has true curves. A woman like Queen Latiffa, some one that is beautiful and proud of who she is. Curvy is more than an hour glass figure, is a girl who is a size 10, 11, 12 even ,yes, a 16. You can be sexy in any size as long as you are healthy and feel good and proud of who you are. If you wear the right clothes to fit your shape! Our next generation will be of people that are health savy and proud of who they are no matter what size they are!

    • Posted By: writergal8 @ 01/30/2008 14:42:14

      Comment: But that all depends on your height, doesn't it? A woman of 5'4" will look curvier at a smaller size than someone who is 5'9". You may also be interested to know that the larger the size, the smaller the waist-to-hip ratio. Check out my post at Shorty Stories:
      http://blog.shorty-stories.com/2007/06/size-zero-is-curvy.html

    • Posted By: moreu84 @ 01/30/2008 14:41:27

      Comment: Amen, I agree with you 110%!

  • Posted By: mshainraque @ 01/30/2008 2:36:14 PM

    Comment: mcloud12-most of the people posting on here advocating "real woman" aren't healthy average size woman. They are using the word "curvy" when really they mean fat.

  • Posted By: clv1880 @ 01/30/2008 2:35:46 PM

    Comment: Unfortunately, we have been led to believe that if you resmble someone who is anorexic or bulemic that you have a sought after figure, this is the reason that eating disorders have expanded in the last few years. What ever happened to the days of Marilyn Monroe and Betty Page figures, they were not overweight, but healthy. Isn't that what it is all about, being healthy, and having the shape and figure made for your body? I just can't believe that this has become a day to day topic, with all of the other issues that are effecting our country.

  • Posted By: arvan @ 01/30/2008 2:35:30 PM

    Comment: I think in real life there is a reverse bias towards very thin people. I'm pretty thin naturally, without dieting or working out much, and I have people I don't know come up to me and tell me that they hate me because I'm so thin. I also have trouble finding clothes that fit me because in "regular" stores (rather than disigner's stores) sizes sometimes don't go down further than a 4.
    I am from the Netherlands and people are generally thinner and much fitter than people in the U.S. Sometimes I think that the "big is beautiful" campaign is just an excuse for people to not get in shape or think about what they eat. Some people cannot help being overweight, but in some cases it definitely shows some kind of decadence, laziness and overindulgence that is just selfish, in a way.
    I am all for having different shape models, but don't discriminate against people who are naturally thin.

  • Posted By: G1rl_pez @ 01/30/2008 2:35:02 PM

    Comment: good. it is about time that the fashion industry sees that all people now mater what size can and do have fashion sense. maybe this will help make the turn in the store for those of us who are to "big" for normal stores yet to "small" for the plus size stores. (the size 11-14 range is hard for shopping!)

  • Posted By: DZPRINCEZZ @ 01/30/2008 2:34:48 PM

    Comment: There really shouldn't be any reason to bash someone on their opinions. Everyone is different and personally I think the fashion world hasn't done a very good job of relaying that. All we ever see on the runways are very thin models and plus size models. What happened to the in-between sizes that exsist in the everyday market place. I think it would be a great idea to start having models that relate to your everyday average consumer.

  • Posted By: mcloud12 @ 01/30/2008 2:33:40 PM

    Comment: I think the article is very enlightening. I think its a good idea to have your more normal size women as models. As MR. White Collar lives in a fantasy world and clearly cant think with the right head, there are many beautiful women out there that are not stick thin. I believe what they are looking for are down right beautiful people with some weight on them and not over weight and out of shape couch people!

  • Posted By: DZPRINCEZZ @ 01/30/2008 2:33:16 PM

    Comment: There really shouldn't be any reason to bash someone on their opinions. Everyone is different and personally I think the fashion world hasn't done a very good job of relaying that. All we ever see on the runways are very thin models and plus size models. What happened to the in-between sizes that exsist in the everyday market place. I think it would be a great idea to start having models that relate to your everyday average consumer.