As I am on the larger side I have always been thrilled to see slogans and posters like this:

I relished in the fact that some people thought me to be a ‘real woman’ due to the fact that I had ‘curves’…but this feeling of elation didn’t last all too long. Maybe it’s due to the amazing competitions I have partaken in this year that have taught me and shown me so many things. Or the amazing new friends I have made and women I have met who have really demonstrated how gorgeous women are at every size, shape, height and colour. But I have started to feel a little enraged every time I see plus sized women/clothes/models getting described as ‘curvy’ ‘curvy friendly’ and so on and so forth. And to suggest that some women are not ‘real’ because they have a slimmer figure just makes my blood boil.

Here is it as I see it:

ALL women have curves. Even the slimmest smallest women have ‘a line that deviates from straightness’. Some women choose to be slim through dieting and exercise, some do not choose too due to illness or general body shape and none should be judged and told they are not ‘real’. Just like some women are naturally larger with more defined curves and are ‘real women’, sure, but show me a woman who is or wants to be a biological woman who is not ‘real’. Women are generally insecure about their bodies without the added pressure to fit into various categories. Having always been overweight myself I know what it is like to be bullied and taunted and have assumptions made due to my size, yet now it seems that women of all sizes are being labelled and told that they are not the right size or shape to be ‘real’ or ‘curvy’ – and this is utter nonsense. Society is changing and the media seems to be more accepting of larger models which is amazing, but it shouldn’t be at the cost of the very slim models who have graced our catwalks and magazines for so long.

And as for curves – well sure, plus size women will be larger and have more obvious curves but it does not mean that they are the only women who have those sumptuous body parts, it just means they have them in abundance. Women should be proud of their bodies whatever shape and size, they shouldn’t be disheartened by being told they are not ‘curvy’ enough or ‘real’ enough to be accepted. This blog article is just amazing, funny and totally rules the ‘real women’ debate.

These are the kind of posters I want to see in the future, featuring the likes of slim yet curvy Tess Georgia Dimos and the stunning Curvy Kate models as well as the larger ladies who currently grace these kind of posters. No woman should be seen as anything less than just that – woman.