What is Plus Size Boudoir? Vancouver Portrait Photographer
Plus Size Boudoir – what is it?
Well, simply, a woman who is plus size doing a Boudoir Photoshoot. Right? Well, ok. But what exactly does plus size even mean? How do you qualify? I’m a size 12 and definitely curvy and full figured. I’ve got extra bits here and there but I don’t ‘think’ I’m in the plus size category. Or am I? Does it matter? This is me.
Plus Size Clothing Definitions
Ok let’s look into this a bit more. We all know clothing sizing is never the same no matter where you go. I mean, perhaps you’re usually a size XL so you pick up 3 size XL items in a shop and each could fit differently. And a size XL in one store may be completely different than an XL somewhere else. So that’s frustrating.
I googled plus size clothing and here’s the Wikipedia interpretation/explanation:
Plus-size clothing is clothing proportioned specifically for people above the average clothing size. The application of the term varies from country to country, and according to which industry the person is involved in.
Interesting that they acknowledge that the term varies from country to country. They should add from store to store!
Further down my google search, I scroll to the first 4 websites listed and each has a different ‘size’ determining what is plus size. The first site says plus size is ‘16 and beyond‘. The next says ‘size 18 and beyond‘, then ‘size 14 or above‘ and lastly ‘size 12 or 14‘. What?! That’s a pretty big range!
Oh and let me point out that the average clothing size of a woman in the USA is size 16 or XL. AVERAGE. In Canada, the average pant size for women is 33, also considered XL. So when the average clothing size for women is 16 – that means the majority of women are plus size? I wouldn’t have thought this.
This next image is of Ms. R who is admittedly a size 16. According to the above research, she’s the average size of North American women and she’s plus size! It doesn’t really matter though. I see a beautiful curvy woman.
Plus Size Labelling
And then there’s the labelling of clothing sizes that’s confusing too. After XL we get XXL. So is XL the same as 1X and XXL is 2X? Nope. Above we determined that XL is a 16, so XXL is an 18. Those are apparently considered plus size. But then there’s 1X – any idea what size body this would fit? According to google, a 1X is a ‘plus size 14/16’. The difference is that this sizing 1X, 2X, 3X etc is “made wider and with more room in the arms, hips, thighs, butt, and stomach areas. To accommodate larger plus size bodies.” Ok, that makes sense I guess. But then why are we told size 16 is plus size?!? It’s not very straight forward, is it?! LOL
Oh and then there’s the fashion industry. Don’t get me started! But to explain my frustration, let’s agree that size 16 and beyond is considered plus size. One would assume that plus size models would all be a minimum of size 16. Right? Fashion lines certainly would want to show how their plus size clothing fits on plus size bodies. Right? Wrong in most cases!
The average ‘plus size’ model is actually mid-size or anywhere from size 8-14! What?! Obviously this is just wrong. As an actual plus size person (let’s say you wear a 2X) how are you to determine what an outfit would look like on you when a slim size 8 hourglass figure model is wearing it. You can’t! Plus size bodies are different. And equally beautiful I might add!
What Does This Mean?
I’m sharing all of this, all of this frustrating and contradicting info to say that at the end of the day, it really doesn’t matter. It is interesting though. But seriously, I don’t care if you are curvy or thin or tall or short, or plus size or not. You are welcome in my space. You are gorgeous just as you are. Every bit of you. All bodies are good bodies and you are worthy.
I mean look at the images of all of these bodacious babes and there’s more photos in my gallery. We don’t know what size clothing these women wear (except Ms.R and she gave us permission to share). We have no idea if they consider themselves plus size or not. What I do know is that they are all stunning and these photos show exactly that. Beautiful women. Amazing bodies.
I invite you and look forward to having you in my studio to show you your beauty and your magical essence, through my photography.
Let’s Make
Magic Together!
I Look Forward To Having
You In My Vancouver Boudoir
And Portrait Studio!
Michele Mateus is an award winning Vancouver Portrait Photographer specialised in Lifestyle & Intimate Portraiture. Michele works both in her studio and on location serving Coquitlam, Vancouver, Fraser Valley, Langley, Abbotsford, Squamish, Burnaby, Surrey, North Vancouver, West Vancouver, New Westminster and the Great Vancouver area.