by Reena Daruwalla, guest writer for Nancy Hayssen.com

While Nancy keeps everyone informed about the plus size modeling industry in the US, I was reading about the plus size modeling industry in Australia, and it seems that when it comes to plus size models down under demand outweighs supply!

According to one article, Melbourne has a shortage of plus-size models, according to specialist modeling agencies and the fashion companies who use them. Abby Valdez is one of the most well known and popular plus size models in Australia and it seems that they want more like her around!

There seems to be quite a swing in favor of plus size models in Oz recently; there was even a study conducted there which explored (and exploded) the myth that models need to be thin in order to effectively sell products. The study concluded that people’s response to thin models does not translate into buying behavior. Add to this the fact that the study found that women felt better about themselves when they saw plus size models!

The average size Australian woman is a size 14-16 and to there is the attempt being made to show models who have a realistic build and size. Dream diva is a retail brand that caters to Australian women who are a size 16 and above. Maria Muratore is the general manager of Dream Diva and she said that while there were lots of size-12 models around she considered a plus-size model to be a size 16. According to her “I’ve got the best one and she’s on contract,” Ms Muratore said. “I don’t know whether they don’t have confidence in Melbourne . . . I don’t think there’s less talent.” So there is an indication that perhaps there is a requirement for more plus size models.

Australia’s leading modeling agency for fuller figured models, Bella, says that they are constantly on the lookout for fresh faces for their catwalk and photographic model gigs. After all plus size models sell well!

by Reena Daruwalla, guest writer for Nancy Hayssen.com

If you are looking for some good gifts for plus size (or any size really) friends over the holidays, or just looking for some good reading material for yourself, then I may have a couple of good suggestions for you.

In The Diet Myth: Why America’s Obsessions with Weight is Hazardous to Your Health, author Paul Campos leads the backlash against weight hysteria and how we should be trying to achieve good health rather than obsessing about numbers on a scale or the measure tape. He also explodes the attempt of the weight loss industry (which incidentally is a 50 billion dollar one) to try and brainwash us into constantly trying to lose weight by one expensive means or another. In this book, Professor Campos “challenges the conventional wisdom regarding the medical, political, and cultural meaning of weight and brings a rational and compelling new voice to America’s increasingly irrational weight debate.”

A great sounding book is Spin Sisters: How the Women of the Media Sell Unhappiness — and Liberalism — to the Women of America which one reader termed as ‘juicy, pithy, fun and infuriating all at the same time.’ According to writer Myrna Blyth who has had an insider view of the media that she was part of for 21 years as editor in chief of the Ladies Home Journal, says “The story that began as an exciting movement for equal rights and morphed into a wonderful celebration of opportunity today has become a depressing, discouraging gains-means-pain tale of woe sold to women readers as the grim new reality of their lives,” She claims that the media directed towards women is out of touch with middle class American women and that there is an (erroneous) assumption by much of the media that all women think alike and are interested only in diet, fashion, sex appeal or stress relief.

These books may be just the thing for a likeminded friend, sister, mother, daughter or indeed brother, father, son!

by Reena Daruwalla, guest writer for Nancy Hayssen.com

The Miss World Pageant 2008 is just a few days away, so there is a lot of discussion / speculation in the media about this right now. I was just reading some articles related to the topic and one dated last year caught my eye. In this article, last year’s winner of the Miss England title Georgia Horsley was mentioned as being told to put on weight before going on to the Miss World competition.

The Miss England and Miss World aspirant was told last year that she must pack on the pounds if she wanted to have a shot at winning the World title. It seems that the organisers of the Miss World competition were looking for a contestant with more curves to win. So Ms Horsley was put on a high fat diet to plump up in time for the beauty pageant. She said: “Miss World judges like naturally curvy girls and don’t like the stick-thin women you see on the catwalks. They promote healthy eating and I want to help them get that message across, so I’m giving it my all.”

Miss England director Angie Beasley was the one who advised her to do so and said that, “Beauty pageants are meant to appeal to women everywhere and Miss World has always championed real women.”

Great so far, that we should see REAL WOMEN, in beauty pageants as well as catwalks. However is a kind of reverse discrimination as well. As some of us are naturally curvy or extra curvy, some of us are just naturally thin (I most certainly am not, never have been).

Now if this girl is naturally thin, why should be asked to go on a high fat diet (a high fat diet is not good for any of us at any time) just so that she conforms to any particular set ideal? If she is thin, then she and her beauty should be appreciated just as she is!

I mean if a pageant aspirant was plus size and was asked to lose weight, we would be up in arms against that wouldn’t we? Well this is the same thing, only in reverse!

We women need to learn to love and appreciate ourselves no matter what size we are; be it thin or thick! The thing is not to feel pressured to conform to some mythical ‘ideal’! Let’s just all celebrate the fact we can all the SEXY AT ANY SIZE!!!!!!!!

by Reena Daruwalla, guest writer for Nancy Hayssen.com

The market for Plus Size clothing and lingerie is an ever expanding one. With large women no longer being apologetic for their curves or their size are boldly demanding to be a demographic to be catered to. Stores and designers supplying plus size merchandise are not considered niche any more, plus size is now main stream, with more and more retailers realizing that they have to provide for the plus sizes if they are to remain competitive. Continue Reading…