Your eyes don’t deceive you, my shirt definitely says 200+ club, as in I weigh more than 200 pounds. That’s not something I’ve been particularly fond of sharing in the past, even though I love my curves, but after modeling for my friend’s new clothing line I warmed up to the notion.
If you follow me on Instagram and Facebook you’ve probably seen me posting more and more pictures of me myself in crop tops and even short shorts, but I haven’t always been this confident. In fact, I was the girl who used to wear two shirts to look skinnier than I was, not realizing that it had the opposite effect. I was the girl who used to wear really dowdy looking clothes because I wasn’t confident in the skin that I’m in, but that has changed.
There’s definitely been a strong body positivity movement going on recently in this nation. We have women like Lizzo who is beyond phenomenal, talented as all get out and is proudly showing off her curves and while there are a few trolls who come for her (who quickly get shut down because we don’t play that shit in Houston), majority of the people in her comment section rave about how they love her confidence. The fact that she loves herself, loves her curves, and isn’t afraid to wear the same kinds of outfits her musical peers are wearing astounds them. They’re so used to seeing plus-sized women covering themselves up and feeling ashamed of their bodies that Lizzo’s acceptance and self-love throws them off.
And like I said before, I’m still fairly new to that. I didn’t buy my first pair of short shorts until 2018 because I was afraid to show my legs like that. I’m still fairly modest at work (when I was actually working in the office prior to this quarantine period) because I have to be, but I’ve told friends at work that they shouldn’t be shocked if they see me in crop tops and leggings or shorts if they run into me on a weekend. Those are literally what’s on-trend now, and not only that they’re extremely comfortable. Why should deny myself of that kind of comfort because my clothes require a bit more material than someone else’s? Why should I not love my body and embrace my curves?
Speaking of quarantine, I’ve been seeing a lot of people post about wanting to lose their quarantine fluff, and while I see nothing wrong with keeping your body moving while you’re at home I don’t agree with the whole “I need to come out of this quarantine smaller than when I went in”. In fact, there’s a tweet from Tracy Clayton, the host of one of my favorite podcasts Netflix’s ‘Strong Black Lead’ and she hit the nail right on the head.
We have to be kind to ourselves and to our bodies.
What’s really sad is that often times we as women are our worst critics. I hated my curves FOR YEARS, but the guys I dated LOVED them! And I’ve dated all kinds of guys! Yeah, there were a few a**holes who would make rude and snide comments, but for every one of them, there were at least 3 who loved every inch of my skin. I’ve dated all kinds of guys and they’ve loved all of my curves. So be kind to yourself, and stop being your worst critic. I’ve said this before on Instagram, but I feel like it should be repeated here: Love yourself and be confident in your skin. And while you’re at it go ahead and check out the new line from ‘When Life Gives You Curves’! They have all of the shirts, totes, mugs, hair accessories, and more that will keep you confident in all of your curves!
