Body image

I don't like standard beauty - there is no beauty without strangeness.  ~Karl Lagerfeld

We can't all look like super models. Although some people are just born with "it" or has incredibly fast metabolism where they can eat 10 burgers and still manage to stay thin.   I had assume the grass was greener on the other side, I assumed women who are more petite and slim would have an easier time shopping for clothes because everything should fit. But if you are human, there is always something about your body that you may not like and wish you were built differently. (This has yet to be proven by the people's society scientifically or otherwise = )

I have always been very conscious and  hid them as much as possible. It's ironic because I never really wore dresses, yet I wore a lot of athletic and basketball shorts back then.  Wearing basketball shorts gives sort of a "free waiver," free of "judgement"  that you don't have to look "good" in them, versus that of dresses.

A month ago I was at Forever21 and out of the blue decided to try on a dress (since summer is here) and afterwards, I thought, I didn't look too bad.  Even if the calves were huge and I didn't like them, I liked the dress and the way it made me feel, elegant and beautiful.  The experience made me like dresses and so I tried on a couple more recently with the encouragement of a friend, whose's body I envy =) (see what I meant about reaffirmation?)

Nice & Simple dress ( I love the shoes -)

For me, I dislike my legs, specifically my calves.  I really do try to apply to my life what I state on Beyou's website about beauty, I don't want to promote an idea, yet not live by it. I don't want to talk the talk, but not walk the walk.  Beauty comes in all sizes, but  I can't seem to embrace nor get over the fact that my calves have been HUGE ever since college.   

 Most males, their calves are more slim than mine. I'm not embarrassed, maybe a tad bit, but for sure, it's not confidence. I don't know how or why they have become so big over the past.

Through my college years, I only had a total of 5 dresses, 1 for each year for my Vietnamese Language and Culture club's end of the year banquet. Do you feel at times you just want another person or others to reaffirm what you feel about yourself? Or that your legs are not huge? Or that you're a decent person? etc.. Not to fish for compliments, but you just want that positive reaffirmation.  

 

I make sure to notice all the angles around the calves just to make sure they were decent. (the back)

 The side.

I have seen some women with muscular calves and I think they still look beautiful. Not to mention they appeared so confident. I will not let my body define me and how I feel about myself.  =) This dress, I felt is the prettiest one I have tried on in the past because I simply don't try on dresses .  I really liked the pattern, along with the design (my favorite part of the dress).  Do you not wear something or not put your hair in a certain way because you think that it's not the norm? No, you wear the dress because you like the way it makes you feel. You gotta be you.


(I didn't create this blog to put up pictures of myself, but I want to be "real" and connected with my customers, who are also female and may have similar experiences.  Before, I wasn't comfortable letting my insecurities be known or shown, but now, as I grow older, these things become less important as they used to be. )