The fashion dictators call this "plus sized?"

[Archae]

I call her, "normal."





http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/entertainment/2012/10/plus-size-model-robyn-lawleys-sexy-swimwear-shoot/

[applegrove]

1. You are right. She's probably within the healthy range of weight for her height.

[elehhhhna]

35. Yep - size 8 to 10 is PLUS, lol

[NOLALady]

2. It seems to me

that the fashion dictators prefer women with figures like young girls.

[liberal_at_heart]

5. that is kind of sick isn't it?

I remember when my daughter was about 14 I told her she was not done growing yet but that the size she was the perfect size for what grown men considered sexy. I told her there was something wrong with that. She is now 17 and is built like I was at 17. Women in our family have Jennifer Lopez and Beyonce butts. Unfortunately we are caucasion so we're not allowed to have Jenner Lopez or Beyonce butts. No, we're suppose to have Cameron Diaz or Mila Kunis butts.

[left on green only]

15. As a connoisseur of posterior.....

please allow me to say that any woman who is glutinously endowed to the extent of Jessica Biel can sit on my face any day of the year. Just say'in. The sad part is I imagine that Justin Driftwoodswamp has no idea what he has been blessed with.









Upon edit to add link.

[2ndAmForComputers]

16. I like it when I make the difference.

And no, I'm not telling which juror I was.

At Sun Oct 28, 2012, 12:16 AM an alert was sent on the following post:

As a connoisseur of posterior.....
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=1649527

REASON FOR ALERT:

This post is disruptive, hurtful, rude, insensitive, over-the-top, or otherwise inappropriate. (See <a href="http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=aboutus#communitystandards" target="_blank">Community Standards</a>.)

ALERTER'S COMMENTS:

Inappropriate - "Jessica Biel can sit on my face any day of the year."

You served on a randomly-selected Jury of DU members which reviewed this post. The review was completed at Sun Oct 28, 2012, 12:23 AM, and the Jury voted 3-3 to LEAVE IT.

Juror #1 voted to LEAVE IT ALONE and said: No explanation given
Juror #2 voted to LEAVE IT ALONE and said: Prudes make DU suck, but not as much as they themselves suck.
Juror #3 voted to HIDE IT and said: No explanation given
Juror #4 voted to HIDE IT and said: No explanation given
Juror #5 voted to HIDE IT and said: No explanation given
Juror #6 voted to LEAVE IT ALONE and said: It's not like it's nudity. Leave It Alone. What's with the hysteria? We're not Republicans, people.

Thank you very much for participating in our Jury system, and we hope you will be able to participate again in the future.

[msanthrope]

38. My money is on #2. nt

[cpamomfromtexas]

65. I've got one too, good thing hubby's a butt man

[Archae]

80. I am too, but it gets worded differently.

I get told "You're an ass, man!"

[LadyHawkAZ]

66. I've always had a J.Lo too

you know who actually cares about that? Fashion designers and modeling agencies.

Actual men (and women) love them. Doesn't matter what color you are.

[LiberalAndProud]

74. Lucky you.

I mean that seriously. It's not comfortable sitting on one's own bones.

[JDPriestly]

7. You mean, adolescent boys.

[liberal_at_heart]

11. Mila Kunis is the sexiest woman alive according to Esquire

I'd say there are lots of men out there right now thinking her very, very thin body is sexy.

[sendero]

22. Yeah I heard that..

... WHAT PLANET ARE THEY LIVING ON?

She's not even in the top 100. And that is not based just on looks but on charm, charisma, allure, those intangible things that make a person sexy. She's got about zero of any of it.

[Lightbulb_on]

78. Terrible choice...

Last edited Sun Oct 28, 2012, 10:27 PM - Edit history (1)

She loses points off the bat for being associated with Ashton Kutcher...

Obvious choice was Kate Upton. Amazing...

Edit for badass .gif

[kestrel91316]

13. dingdingdingdingding!

[theHandpuppet]

24. Bingo!

You nailed it.

[NOLALady]

86. That too.

I considered adding that too my original comment.

[uponit7771]

43. +1! No curves at all

[NickB79]

68. Indeed. No hips, no buttocks, very small breasts, shaved EVERYWHERE

Sorry, but I prefer women who actually LOOK like women.

[Evergreen Emerald]

73. No....like young boys

No curves, no ass, no breasts

[sakabatou]

90. Or skeletons

[alp227]

105. I blame the punk ass MBA holders in the boardroom who lack a CLUE about basic physiology.

Or empathy OR any humanity.

[liberal_at_heart]

3. I better not let my husband see this

He loves women with curves including me. She is beautiful. I love how many women are standing up and saying they like their bodies.

[Arctic Dave]

4. Fiiiiiiiinnnnnnnneeeeee

Hello beautiful, are you new here?

[kentauros]

6. Typical

[liberal_at_heart]

8. Between the republican politicians and societal demands to look anorexic

I think society's disrespect for women as a whole is beginning to show big time. Every where we turn we are told by someone what to do and how to be. I say screw them all.

[kentauros]

14. I don't know if this little observation speaks of political persuasions

or not, but I recall reading how just after September 11th, women wanting to learn belly dance went way up. It's still gaining in popularity, and yet those in fashion continue to determine styles that discourage having a figure.

I don't know what it will take to change their minds, either. It's as if they're in collusion with the fashion and teen magazines, where it all starts. People have been protesting the fashion industry for a very long time, and yet, they continue to think and market this way. How do you change that?

[hobbit709]

30. One of my best friends is in a belly dance group.

Last edited Sun Oct 28, 2012, 10:35 AM - Edit history (1)

Most of the dancers I've seen at their shows are definitely what you would call "plus" sized. Several are quite Rubenesque.

[Tree-Hugger]

39. I am a belly dancer

I am slender, but curvy. Many belly dancers are curvy, many are very heavy. You especially see it in tribal belly dance .... we have a lot of women who are technically obese, but who are comfortable with their bodies and have no worries about exposing their big bellies and curves while performing. It's a beautiful thing. More women should learn to belly dance because it fosters a good relationship with your body image.

[kentauros]

48. It's also good exercise

and you can buy DVDs to learn even if all you want to do is get some exercise Any dancing, really, is a good workout. Belly dance seems more like a moving yoga at times.

We have a local belly dance meet-up group here that also includes Flamenco. The two dancers I've watched perform that are also heavy. They are quite good at it, and have no problem performing in front of an audience.

As I'm a guy, I don't participate in the performances (although there is a form of male belly dance) but I do love to watch and listen to Middle Eastern music. I've also made some lifelong friends. It's a great community

[Tree-Hugger]

89. Definitely

I have really bad abdominal muscle separation from having babies and belly dancing has been helping me heal.

We have a few male dancers around here. One very well known guy is Omar. He is amazing to watch.

I'm in tribal style and there are quite a few male dancers in this style, too. They are beautiful.

[kentauros]

93. If Omar has any videos up, I may have seen them

I like tribal, too. Well, I like it all

And I guess you're not healed enough yet to do this:

[Tree-Hugger]

100. Wow!

That is amazing! Maybe I will practice doing that while the hurricane passes over us tonight. That takes some serious muscle control.

I don't know how to embed videos, but here is a link to one:

[link:

|

Check out his zills - he has one on every finger!

[kentauros]

102. Well, that's one way to pass the time!

Do you have an audience?

The link didn't show up, but all you have to do is post the page url for the video. It should work for Vimeo as well as YouTube

[Tree-Hugger]

103. Just the the hubby, kids and cats

Haha.

Let's try this again:

[kentauros]

104. That worked!

He does look a little familiar, and I like how he uses all those zils.

Good luck learning how to roll quarters on your belly

I'm off to vote now.

[nadinbrzezinski]

42. Well, one way is to refuse to participate

The other is how do you stop things like nooz bunnies? I will be honest, no way I could get before a tv camera.

I don't have the figure. And that is a serious problem.

[kentauros]

44. Some women just love to dance,

no matter what their figure is or isn't. I know one woman that is large, and she's quite the flirt when she dances

You're right about one way to change the fashion industry. Even so, we have to inspire them to challenge the industry that way, Perhaps introducing articles into the teen magazines first, not only about the horrors of a dangerously skinny body, but the benefits overall of having a figure, especially how it benefits self-esteem.

I'm no scientist in this, so I hope I'm making sense

[nadinbrzezinski]

46. There is a teen that asked Seventeen to do that

Brave kid

[kentauros]

49. Cool!

Well, there ya go then
I hope that inspires more to do the same thing. It's a good start.

[Risen Demon]

9. Who's to say what sets the standard for beauty

It's all an individual preference, IMO.

And it messes some women up in the head. I dated a girl about 6 months ago who was, IMO, gorgeous beyond my league. She called me out one day for staring at her exposed torso while she was stretching. But no, it wasn't for being a normal male in the sexist sense: she said to me "Don't look at me like that." to which i responded "Sorry, I'll try to be a little more respectful", to which she responded "No, it's not that. I just don't want you see my fat gut"

[Dark n Stormy Knight]

19. Individual preference that is influenced strongly, in most cases, by the culture and media that tell

in subtle and unsubtle ways what we should find attractive. The more rigid those standards are the more people are conditioned to reject the appearance of a large percentage of other humans. Your girlfriend has been indoctrinated with the idea that her "gut" is fat.

[Hippo_Tron]

10. You can see her collarbone, I certainly wouldn't call her overweight

Bottom line is that people are different. Some people are size 12, some people are size 6, some people are size 2. This woman is in good shape and obviously has natural curves.

[Canuckistanian]

12. Hmmm. Healthy bodies....

[hobbit709]

29. The one on the right looks more attractive

the one one the left looks uptight.

[GoneOffShore]

36. Gillian McKeith - known as the poo doctor or,

more appropriately, quack.

She is uptight and a really annoying person.

Nigella is one of my culinary heroines.

[me b zola]

56. I love how she ends her shows

by eating leftovers by the light of her refrigerator

[RedSpartan]

51. LOVE Nigella!!!

[Deep13]

17. Certainly not by American standards.

I would be very happy to be merely as fat as that woman and there is certainly nothing unattractive about her. Still, what seems normal to Americans is still appreciably fatter than ones ideal weight. Most people in this world eat a lot less and walk a lot more than even seemingly normal weight Americans.

[Iggo]

18. mmm-Woof!

[Scuba]

20. She's a little too much on the skinny side for me.

[alphafemale]

21. For the fashiom industry? Yes there is a hint of a muffin top.

They are aghast at anything with curves softer than a plastic hanger.

But she's gorgeous. I doubt she's lonely/

[SoCalDem]

23. Size resets in the 70's & 80's did it..

All that needs to happen is for a reed-thin size ZERO to order some vintage size 10's on ebay.. hahahahaha.

I worked in fashion back then and the measurements for a size 8 were 32-24-32

http://www.glamamor.com/p/size-and-silhouette.html

Haute Couture dresses were cut "generously", so women-of-means could buy that lovely dress (for much much more money) that had a size 6 on the neck label, but if she shopped at JCPenney, she would be buying a size 10.

Vanity sizing made the norm obsolete, and that's how we got size 0..

When I was 18 (1967), I wore a size 3 petite..measured 31-23-32.. a more fitted dress would have bumped me up to a 5 or 7 (not much stretchy material back then, and everything had fitted waistbands & darts..


At our boutique, "plus sizes" started at 18, and we special ordered them for a few pet customers, but most of our stuff stopped at 16...

[Jennicut]

25. She is very beautiful.

She is also size 12 but quite tall. I wish I that tall. 6'2.

[blueamy66]

34. You really wish that you were 6'2"?

Cause I'm 6" and as a younger woman, I freaking hated it!

I still don't wear heels very often.

Sick of being asked if I played basketball.

But I've come to terms with my height and really don't care anymore what anybody thinks!

And actually, lately, I've been getting alot of compliments on my legs (36 - 38" inseam). At least clothing designers are finally making longer length jeans/pants.

I'm babbling now......

[Jennicut]

37. I'm barely 5'4. I would rather be 6'2 then 5'4 any day!

I hate being short. I guess I am rather lucky, as my mother is 5 feet and her sister and aunt are 4'11. But I would love to be tall.

[blueamy66]

41. I'd rather be 5'7"

I think that would be the perfect height for me.

But it's not gonna happen!

I guess that it's human nature to want what we cannot have.

[dawg]

67. I always wanted to be 5'11".

I didn't want to be tall, but I didn't want to be short either. And since there are some women superficial enough to say they would never date a man under 6', I wanted to be just small enough not to qualify for them.

[blueamy66]

94. my guy is 5'9"....

and that is why I usually don't wear heels...as I'm already 2 or 3 inches taller than him

he doesn't seem to care and I don't anymore either

I was never superficial enough to not date a guy shorter than me.

[SammyWinstonJack]

106. At 4'11 and 3/4", 5'4 would be awesome!

[1-Old-Man]

26. She's got fat hanging over the suite bottom

[msanthrope]

40. So? nt

[Honeycombe8]

58. I think you mean "suit." Normal, healthy fat % for women is 20-30%. If you wear something tight,

there will be a slight bulge in the "female" areas of the body. You can always wear a size larger and have no bulge, but you still have the same fat %. So that's not an indication of being overweight.

You have to have a low fat % (underweight, or body builder or athlete with extremely low fat %) not to have bulge somewhere if you wear something tight.

Take me...I'm not overweight, but my fat % is a little over 30%, I think. If I wear something tight, I would have a bulge over the top of suit bottoms. But I would not have bulges in the thigh area (the legs of a bathing suit bottom)...I don't have much fat in that area. Neither of those things is an indication of whether I'm overweight or not. No one who sees me would call me overweight.

Sigh....most men don't understand a woman's body.

[KansDem]

27. Rubens

The Three Graces by Paul Paul Rubens, circa 1635

Rubens was a prolific artist. His commissioned works were mostly religious subjects, "history" paintings, which included mythological subjects, and hunt scenes. He painted portraits, especially of friends, and self-portraits, and in later life painted several landscapes. Rubens designed tapestries and prints, as well as his own house. He also oversaw the ephemeral decorations of the Joyous Entry into Antwerp by the Cardinal-Infante Ferdinand in 1635.

His drawings are mostly extremely forceful but not detailed; he also made great use of oil sketches as preparatory studies. He was one of the last major artists to make consistent use of wooden panels as a support medium, even for very large works, but he used canvas as well, especially when the work needed to be sent a long distance. For altarpieces he sometimes painted on slate to reduce reflection problems.

His fondness of painting full-figured women gave rise to the terms 'Rubensian' or 'Rubenesque' for plus-sized women. The term 'Rubensiaans' is also commonly used in Dutch to denote such women.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Paul_Rubens

I'm no European art historian but perhaps the women Rubens painted some 400 years ago weren't considered "full-figured women" at the time but rather just "women," or, as you observed, "normal."

[hobbit709]

28. Looks like a very healthy young woman to me.

I never cared for the concentration camp look. I like to see curves.

[kentauros]

54. I like to see curves, too.

And I recall a study that was done in recent years that determined that men (of all cultures, interestingly) are hard-wired to want curvy women. That "hour-glass" look is more attractive to us than anything else.

[uponit7771]

60. +1!

[sarcasmo]

31. If she is plus size then many of us are super size.

My wife has to order through the big girl catalogs. We always comment on how the big girl catalogs use skinny models.

[LittlestStar]

32. I guess Marilyn Monroe and Jane Russell were plus sized too.

My husband is 40 but he has a thing for Jane Russell. I personally think women are supposed to have curves.

[Odin2005]

33. I call her fucking HOT!

[Liberal_in_LA]

45. typical model is half her weight. unfortunately.

[RomneyLies]

47. Even she could stand to eat a sammich or two. n/t

[johnt_1956_55]

50. I'd have to agree

not sure what they're talking about..

[RedSpartan]

52. She looks head-turningly fabulous.

And, if I may brag a bit, bears quite a strong resemblance to Mrs. RedSpartan.

[Honeycombe8]

59. I wish I looked like that! She's very hourglass, shapely, but not fat or bulky. Boobs too large, tho

I'm one of those who thinks that large boobs make me look fatter.

[bluestate10]

53. I call that hot. A perfect woman by my standards. nt

[RebelOne]

55. At 6-foot, 2, I think she would be fairly skinny to wear a size 12. n/t

[TexasBushwhacker]

75. Designer clothes are vanity sized, especially in the higher sizes

They found out they'll sell more of a dress that's labeled Size 12, even if it's really a size 16. If she were wearing clothes from JC Penneys she would wear a 14 or 16. Her measurements are 40-32-42. That's NOT a regular size 12.

I think she looks great. I remember when I looked like this, although I'm only 5'6". I thought I was fat. I sure would like to look like that now.

[liberalhistorian]

57. Incredible and infuriating, isn't it?

I've said it many times before, and I'll say it again: the two most useless, worthless, and damaging professions, after debt collectors, of course, are fashion and advertising. Screw them all.

[Butterbean]

61. She is beautiful, and I think her body is gorgeous, but let's be mindful

that there are some women (I am friends with them) who are naturally very slim, and who are sensitive to the "skinny is gross" comments as well. One of my friends is very very slim naturally, and she gets asked to her face all the time if she has an eating disorder.

Neither end of the spectrum of body hatred (too fat, too thin) should be acceptable. The common goal should be that women celebrate their bodies as they are, for what they are, regardless of size and shape.

Love yourselves, ladies.

[Odin2005]

62. Naturally skinny people look attractive skinny.

People starving themselves because of unhealthy expectations do not.

[K8-EEE]

63. She is gorgeous, and she is plus sized

"Plus sized" models are basically sized 10, more or less. I don't think of plus-sized as fat, just not thin.

[Iris]

64. From my experience, most men aren't really dictated by fashion.

They like it or they don't.

[Texasgal]

69. What a fattie!

[Terra Alta]

70. It's really sad what is considered "plus-sized" in the fashion industry.

If you aren't a stick figure, then you would be considered "plus-sized". I'm 4'11 and a size 4, I would be considered "plus sized" by some of these people. It's sad because young girls are literally starving themselves because they think they're overweight when they're really just average. They need to focus on REAL plus-sized models -- I'm talking size 20 and up. It would give a lot of confidence and self-esteem to young girls who happen to be overweight.

[Egalitarian Thug]

71. Sure. Keep in mind that nearly all of the fashion dictators are gay men, and that

profits are generated by making you believe you are inadequate, and therefore need what they are selling to overcome that inadequacy.

I live in Las Vegas and before that lived in Hollywood and worked in The Business (peripherally, but in it nonetheless), so I have a perspective that is quite different from that of most Americans. The entertainment/fashion/celebrity industry is first, last, and always about making money and the best way to make money is to convince you that by giving them yours, you can be like them (the people they show you, not the real people that do this for a living). As horrible, cynical, depraved, craven, egomaniacal, corrupt, etc., as can imagine them to be, they are much, much worse.

"Fashion is merely a form of ugliness so unbearable that we are compelled to alter it ever six months." - Oscar Wilde

[hifiguy]

98. I have always been sort of baffled that

so many straight women let gay men tell them how to dress. That factoid just hits the brain at an odd, oblique angle.

[titaniumsalute]

72. Aint nothing wrong with her

[mythology]

76. I wouldn't call her fat, but I don't think she's great physical condition either

Granted I have a general preference for skinnier women, but that is also partially a sample bias as most of the women I'm around outside of work are athletes in sports that favor smaller size so more of the women I'd know enough to be attracted to, tend to be smaller.

Plus as a sufferer of back pain, breasts that large just makes me think of the strain that must put on the back.

[BainsBane]

88. So you think we should mutilate our bodies?

because our breasts are what you consider too large? The models breasts are natural. That is how she was born.

[LadyHawkAZ]

92. As one who has had friends "mutilate themselves"

because the back pain from their breasts was unbearable: 1) I don't think that's what he was saying and 2) don't judge women who have reduction surgery, those "mutilations" had some serious medical reasons behind them.

[BainsBane]

101. I'm not judging any women who make such choices

but it does irritate me that a man would publicly proclaim a woman's breasts too large or too small. Some of us are genetically disposed to have larger breasts than others, and there is nothing wrong with that. One need not have breasts at all to suffer from back pain. Besides, the model's appear quite average in size, hardly anything to cause physical discomfort.

[Yul A]

77. the Lolita Fixation

Any woman who doesn't conform to it is labeled "plus-sized." Personally, I think the lady in the photo is hot!

[nolabear]

82. Personally, I like the fact you call her a "lady".

Really. It's sweet. Welcome to DU.

[GObamaGO]

85. She does!

[dionysus]

81. in the world of modeling, yes, in the world of being healthy, no...

[TexasBushwhacker]

83. Wouldn't it be wonderful if Sports Illustrated included her in its swimsuit issue?

Seriously. Men like women in different shapes and sizes.

[backscatter712]

84. B-b-b-but the Dachau look is tres chic! n/t

[BainsBane]

87. size 8 is plus sized now

in terms of models.

[Comrade_McKenzie]

91. Barely, but you'd have to suspend reality to believe you'd sell a bikini with an obese model... nt

[hfojvt]

95. she looks good

but at 6'2" and perhaps 200 pounds, she is not exactly normal.

[Marr]

96. The camera sees things differently.

A person might look healthy in person and overweight on film. It's just something about the way the image comes to our eyes-- I have no idea why.

I've been on some photo shoots where the models looked anorexic and sickly in person, but *great* on film. Most of the people you see on tv are a lot thinner than you'd expect, too. Thinner than I would've expected, anyway. I was on the set of Dexter last year, and if the title character weighs more than 150 lbs., I'd be shocked. He's incredibly slim, but on tv he looks about... I don't know, 175 or so.

[hifiguy]

99. Cameras do odd things to some people.

I am 6'1" and about 215 lbs. In most pictures I look like I weigh 350 pounds.

[Blue_Tires]

107. i've never understood it, either...