Hello lovelies! I have a bit of a different post for you all today and this is in no way supposed to come across as moany, negative, attention seeking blah blah blah, but it is something I've wanted to address for quite a while. I don't know about the rest of you, but I've recently seen a lot of nasty or bitchy comments on twitter, facebook, magazines, tv and sometimes even blogs (don't get me started on tumblr) about body image. It's coming up to bikini season and I see so many people stressing about diets, quick fixes and insane exercise routines etc etc etc.
However, the negative comments I've seen aren't always about bigger girls, though I have seen a lot of that, celeb magazines anyone? I'm not a Kardashian fan, but I think the hate Kim's been getting is disgusting, she's pregnant for god's sake! But in this case, I'm talking about skinny hate. Maybe hate is too strong a word in some cases, however I do feel slimmer girls are getting judged way more than we ever used to be. 'Skinny' or 'Slim' used to be something women strived to be, and often still is, but it seems now, it's something that's frowned upon or considered 'unhealthy' or not 'womanly'. The latter being the one that frustrates me the most.
I personally have a naturally small frame as in I've got a naturally flat stomach and not much going on in the boobie area. I have a small waist and I have hips and while I'm small, I've always considered myself 'curvy', maybe not in the Kelly Brook way, but I still think I have curves, despite being small. Recently though, I saw a picture on instagram of a girl around my size (UK six, small chest etc) but with curves, so small waist, hips, the norm, and another woman around a UK ten/ twelve with a similar shape, however the caption under the smaller girl said 'this isn't a real woman' then under the other woman 'this is'. Now I unfollowed the account as it annoyed me a little and can't find the bloody photo anywhere, but I so wish I could because I'd like to think a lot of you would agree with me that it's a little ridiculous! I'm small and don't have a huge chest, so am I not a real woman?
I've also seen a lot of 'bad boobs' articles in magazines, small boobs, saggy boobs, no boobs, if they're not melons, they seem to be hated on and it's horrible! My Mum and Sister are both a little more blessed in the chest department and while it used to bother me, I actually quite like having smaller boobs now - my boyfriend isn't a big boob person and likes my 'cute' boobs (I quote, wasn't sure about that one to be honest!!), which has made me a lot more confident about them, but it's absolutely impossible for me to get a bra in the right size (you may have seen my twitter rant!), it's as though us smaller girls get forgotten! Not everyone is a 32+ back and I hate having to spend a fortune to find my actual size, which is a 28 back. It's sometimes as though smaller girls don't exist! Does anyone else feel this way - let me know if you do! But what I'm trying to say, is that it's okay not to have a size 32 DD chest, you don't need huge boobs to look fab in a bikini. Equally though, I find it ridiculous that ladies with bigger chests have to pay so much more for the 'specialist' companies. Some people get boob jobs yes, but most of the time, the size of our chests are not our choice and it's such a struggle to get it right if you're not 'average' sized! I'm aware this one blog post isn't going to make companies change their ways and start making smaller/ larger bras but if by any chance you are from an underwear company - it's just a thought ;)
There's a stupid amount of controversy about the 'thigh gap' too and it's really getting to me. So many girls strive to have one, while others hate on it and say it makes you look 'anorexic' or 'like a skeleton'. I exercise and I eat well, because I like to stay slim and this means I do have a gap between my thighs, It doesn't mean I only eat lettuce all day and work out in every spare hour of my life, it's just how my body is. I recently got an email from a girl asking how to 'get' a thigh gap, I won't name her in case she doesn't want to be named and while the email didn't bother me as such as I know she was just asking a question, I just didn't know how to respond, I just naturally do have a thigh gap. It's the way I'm built, yes, I work out to keep my legs toned and as slim as I can, but I have hips, so I just do have a thigh gap. Some girls just aren't built that way and that's okay. You could be tiny with narrow hips and still not have one, I just cannot understand the big deal about it - who cares!
So, what I'm trying to get across is, no matter how hard it may be, try try try not to get hung up on the little things. I have small boobs, but hey, it means I can go braless in backless dresses (nipples stickers are my friend, no shame) - you may have a straigher 'boyish' figure, but you probably look fab in skinny jeans, you may be top heavy, but I bet you don't have to worry about skater skirts making your hips look wide! No matter what shape or size you are, LOVE your body and be confident. We are all real women - sod what the magazines say!
You're beautiful.
