What Shape is Plus Size?

ne thing you learn very quickly when making plus size lingerie (as we do at Certain Style) is that women come in all shapes and sizes from tiny and fragile to statuesque. Those who fall into the plus – size bracket – and the definition of that changes regularly – are not simply one part of the market. There is no such thing as the ‘plus size body type’ – there are many many body types many of which are plus size. I myself am a petite plus. No, that isn’t a contradiction in terms. I’m plus, but short. It happens, despite the ridiculous belief amongst clothing manufacturers that all plus size women are amazons! There again there are many astoundingly beautiful women, among them many plus size models, who are five feet eleven and over. You cannot say that what looks good on a woman who is five foot eleven looks as good on a woman who is five feet tall, yet both can be plus size. You can’t say ‘emphasise your neckline’ to woman with a very large bust and expect things to look the same on her as they do on someone who may be technically the same size, but carries her weight primarily around her hips.