It's 2024, and it seems like body positivity and its movements are here to stay. Aside from the Victoria's Secret rebrand failure, the awareness around differently-looking and abled bodies seems to increase each year. What is body positivity, exactly? Philosophy scholar Céline Leboeuf calls it a "movement to accept our bodies, regardless of size, shape, skin tone, gender, and physical abilities."
So we once again bring you the trend started by Dominican model Denise Mercedes and her friend designer Maria Castellanos. The two women continue their "Style Not Size" campaign to demonstrate that there is no "ideal" body type. They both pose wearing the same clothes, although their body types are different.
One half of the duo, Maria Castellanos, spoke with Bored Panda. She told us more about the secret to the project's longevity and what she and Denise have in mind for the future. Read our conversation with her below!
Denise: TikTok | Instagram | Facebook | Twitter
Maria: Instagram | TikTok | YouTube
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One half of the duo, Maria Castellanos, spoke with Bored Panda. She told us more about the secret to the project's longevity and what she and Denise have in mind for the future. Read our conversation with her below!
Maria tells Bored Panda that she and Denise are super proud of their project Style Not Size. "[It] has been such an opportunity not just for us but for all women and men who feel excluded by the fashion industry," the designer says. "We've been able to change the approach to inclusivity in some of today's [renowned] fashion brands."
The creator is especially happy about the reach that the movement has had. "As you know, the hashtag has become a movement and a rising trend on all social media platforms, giving not just Denise and me a voice but many others as well."
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The success of Style Not Size allows its creators to try out more new things. "Due to it rising as a hot trend, we have allowed the movement to take on a life of its own through others," Maria tells us. "It will continue to be strong, thanks to [those] who keep it alive!"
"#stylenotsize is a continuous form of content on each of our platforms – but in a more organic way. What I mean with this is that Denise and I have given our personal content and art more [of a] push throughout the last years, making #stylenotsize a 'branch' of what we do and not our entire identity. This allows us to grow as individual creators who continue to have a say in the body positivity movement," Maria explains in more detail.
"As for our future, [we plan to] continue to grow our individual community and push the #stylenotsize movement through our feeds as we see fit."
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Denise Mercedes is an American plus-sized model and body positivity influencer. We first covered the "Style Not Size" trend that was started by her and her friend, fashion designer Maria Castellanos, in 2020. Back then, Mercedes told Bored Panda the story of how she started out on TikTok. "My friend Maria and I would pose for photos wearing the same bikini. It did so well, and people reacted so positively to it that we continued doing it here and there."
Since then, Denise's follower count has grown to a whopping 3.5 million. The most popular "Style Not Size" videos have well over 37 million views. The message that the women want to pass on is for people to dress however they please and love their bodies. In an interview with Bored Panda in 2020, Denise said: "Stop comparing yourself to others."
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The friends are really happy with the impact that their content has had. "The fact that we can inspire so many women to feel confident and be themselves makes us want to continue this movement," Denise shared with Bored Panda in 2020.
She also told Today how the comments under her videos from young girls and women inspire her as well. "I have girls telling me I'm helping them feel more confident. I wish when I was younger that I had someone to look up to. Back when I was 16 in 2008, it was always just a struggle to be skinny. I'm glad things are changing now," the fashion model said.
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What first started as a fun hobby has turned into a career. Maria told Bored Panda in a previous interview that she hopes their movement has an educational purpose. "We loved the public's response, and so I believe now, we treat it as a job! A job to educate and open people's eyes to the endless possibilities in fashion. And so we post more frequently, and we cater to every style so that there’s content to be enjoyed by everyone."
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Maria also wants to challenge the current fashion industry standards that mostly cater to smaller-sized people. "We really want the industry to hear and understand that they must be inclusive. Plus size, petite, tall, standard sizes should be available to the public because we all have bodies, and they are all equally important, and they should be treated as such," the designer told Bored Panda back in 2021.
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Both women feel like the fashion industry is catching up to the current body positivity trends. "Lately, it's been so easy for me to find clothes that fit both Maria and me great," Denise told us in an interview in 2021. "Even sustainable clothing, which is amazing! The industry is progressing, and even though there are still some improvements to be made, we are heading in the right direction!"
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Academic studies show that social media can help shift people's opinions about body positivity. A team of psychology researchers found that people who looked at less slim body types online started to consider these body types as the best-looking. They were able to prove that "viewing body-positive online content alters women's concept of an ideal body to encompass a broader range of body shapes."
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What's more, the participants even started to view their own bodies in a more positive way. In her review of this study, lecturer of psychology at Harvard University, Holly Parker, emphasized the potential of social media. "If people have the opportunity to come across more images that affirm the beauty of a variety of body types, perhaps this can help cultural messages about bodily attractiveness evolve."
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So, is the body positivity movement all flowers and rainbows? Well, not exactly. There are some dangers, too. There's a thin line between healthy and toxic positivity. Nutritionist Susan McQuillan writes that the constant need for positive thinking can be tiring.
"Continuously forcing yourself to try to feel good about yourself when the world at large has groomed you to believe something is wrong with your size, your weight, your natural shape, or your physical traits can sometimes be as stressful as living with the stereotypes that made you feel different and uncomfortable to begin with."
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The nutritionist writes that it's okay to not always feel your best. And you don't always have to "fake it 'till you make it," contrary to popular belief. "It's actually up to you whether or not you want to accept or feel positive about your body at any given time or under any circumstances," McQuillan claims. "If you do, keep in mind that it just might backfire and ultimately make you feel worse."
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