Y2K and, Why Too Big?
Being Big does NOT equate to beauty nor style.
Can you think of a 2000s movie or TV show where a feminine lead(s) in the overall ambitions of their goals and/or pursuit of an objective has, at some point in said media, focus shift on her appearance? (This, also mentioning that the classic makeover becomes a SOLUTION, btw).
Ugly Betty, Legally Blonde, Mean Girls, Lizzie McGuire, Devil Wears Prada, Miss Congeniality, Princess Diaries, Sisterhood Of The Traveling Pants, America’s Next Top Model…White Chicks?
What do most Girlhood 2000s pieces of media involve as a hook of interest? Fashion. Now, considering the theming and the era itself, you can bet there will be at least one joke about not eating bread. NEW DRINKING GAME: take a shot while watching 2000s media every time you see discourse about bread! Which, if anyone cares, you actually shouldn’t be afraid of carbs, but more so of overindulging your recommended proportions and ignoring your other food groups.
If you know me personally, I LOVE the 2000s. The culture, the music, the movies- (Fun Fact: Spider-Man 2 with Tobey Maguire is one of the first movies I can actually remember going to see in theaters). But, most of all, despite the different aesthetics of fashion I go looking into, Y2K, I believe, is my domain. I mean, I grew up with the coolest, most beautiful mother, who wore Bebe, rocked those chunky blonde highlights, and had an absolutely lethal face card. Looking back at those photos of her and looking at the style I gravitate to, it’s no wonder I am obsessed with the era. The hair, nails, makeup, the wardrobe- I mean, come on. I try to implement it in the majority of my fits.
Trust me, though, we can unpack multiple subjects on why something was trending or more commonly mentioned in the media, such as the harmful standards that may influence how girls growing into young women behave, but we aren’t here to talk about that. (Not yet).
With the comeback of the fashion I loved in my girlhood, in tow follows fatphobia. ED culture, surgery, Ozempic… in simple terms, answers to a “problem”. Because even if we are not talking about the time itself, there’s definitely something to talk about in the topic of being big, and that somehow being synonymous with some as ugly. Fashion evolves, but to some people, “body shaming” is still thought to be actual criteria policing what someone wears, and even who they are.
[Anne Hathaway as “Andy” in “The Devil Wears Prada”]
Rewatching these movies inspires me and reminds me what fashion really is to me. It’s not my exact forte, but I know a thing or two. But it also throws me back to a not-as-prominent, but still normalized culture.
Models starved themselves, followed strict routines- just women doing the absolute most to at least look beautiful on a page. “Devil Wears Prada“, Anne Hathaway was insinuated to be fat in that film by the way! Huge! America Ferrera’s character in “Ugly Betty” went through CONSISTENT emphasis on their body size, and was bullied for what they ate, along with what they looked like. And sure, we can blame the evolution of what is considered a certain size, but looking back? My neck hurts from doing a double-take at what is considered big.
Britney Spears at the 2007 VMAs was called a “whale”. Drew Barrymore in Charlie’s Angels was considered the “curviest” angel. Kate Winslet in “TITANIC” was a huge example of the commentary instilled with fatphobia. RAVEN-SYMONE? GET behind me. RIGHT NOW. And do not even get me started on actual big women who got undermined simply because of their weight (Queen Latifah, the legend you are).
[Britney Spears in the 2007 VMAs during their performance]
You grow up with this media, you grow up above a size 8, and everywhere you go, you are essentially given the finger for just existing. Diving back into Y2K fashion is realizing the reality of its accessibility of the aesthetic for someone of my stature (For reference, I am 6 feet, and weigh over 200 lbs)
I have been big in some capacity for a majority of my life, and despite my weight fluctuating back and forth, I just know that right now and for the majority of my being, I am a big girl and a BIG girl. (Body dysmorphia is beating me up as I type this…)
It’s noted that by society’s standards, I don’t fit the beauty standard for women/femme presenting (excluding my skin tone, indigenous features, etc.) And this is me acknowledging that because of weight distribution and the fabric I throw on, I am more “digestible.” Are you REALLY plus-size positive, or do you like that I have a rack and thighs? Y’all don’t even want me to talk about what I think about the utilization in a sentence of the word “THICK”.
[Shoutout to my homegirl @avariellaaahhh on IG who styled my outfit and did my hair here btw]
“You are not fat, you’re beautiful!”
Being big doesn't equate to beauty nor style?
And if you know, you KNOW. They lose their mind at the implication. It’s unfathomable! You? Be FAT?! NO! And don’t think twice about what their reaction implies about how they see big people.
The normalization of different body shapes doesn’t erase the treatment endured.
People forget that it was not that long ago we didn’t start getting bigger sizes for ACTUAL good clothing within our age demographic. And what sucks is, where did you find those pieces? They are currently getting recalled for anything above XL. Here’s to fingers crossed that Juicy Couture at least got me, right guys? If it’s not on sale in retail anyway.
I JUST ran an event too where the theme (ofc) was Y2K. Guess who had to make the lookbook? And guess what everybody's size was on the Pinterest board? I’m not gonna sit here and say I’m in love with my body 24/7, but I also don’t assess the shape and every detail until I see a flat-stomached model who can wear low-rise jeans, hanging off their hips. Or better yet? God FORBID, I see someone who can wear a top without needing any support for their chest.
AND YES, we know skinny people (focusing on those who grew up as women/femme-presenting), definitely get their fair share of judgment and critique. But that being said, pretty privilege IS real. If you weren’t fat, you're never gonna get it.
You bringing up how hard it is to be smaller than me doesn’t do JACK when you will always find sustainable, good quality, and fashionable clothing no matter where you shop. You can shop in PERSON for a majority of that.
No, you're telling me you’re “so fat” when you can eat a whole pizza and people find that cute or hot, but if someone who actually was fat did, they are told to hit the treadmill.
And no, frankly, I don’t think you suffer because you are skinny when society caters to you and is made for you. We grew up with bashing of being overweight OR praise for losing weight. Even if the cost of that was a sickness, heartbreak, or addiction, you will be congratulated for losing some pounds. You never had your diagnosis at the doctor be voided to “lose weight” when your body was shutting down.
Let’s be real: everyone wants to say we are more inclusive now, and there’s nothing wrong with being plus-sized, but while I’d kill to at least have a flatter stomach, many would kill themselves cause they look like me.
Read it again.
[Clip, three years ago]
And this doesn’t discredit that YES, we need to take care of ourselves and what we consume in any capacity! It just interesting that even if someone was plus sized on a treadmill, eating a salad, or living a very abundant healthy life STILL get “criticism”. It’s never about “our health”. They just don’t like how we look. When I went to the gym daily, meal prepped, and adapted healthier behaviors, I was still being told I didn’t care about my health. Can you guess why?
Unfortunately, It’s also knowing that as humans, we will ALWAYS find something wrong with us. It’s to each our own how we wanna navigate our own bodies. We fall short occasionally but overall it’s not letting anybody put me down over something so trivial. And although I am working on my personal journey with weight, for now, I’m gonna eat this cheeseburger, drink my water, and remember that if there’s another thing the 2000s taught with a lesson at the end: Looks will never ever EVER sumize the whole of who you are. Maybe I’d be TOO powerful if I had that privelege.
My two cents here don’t even cover a fraction the iceberg that ties into what the analysis of weight has done to women, let alone BLACK, Indegenious, or People of Color.
SO, that being said, I’m throwing on this size small Ed Hardy-like shirt I thrifted that fits, and I’m going to dance to “Hey Ya” for the millionth time. Y’all might not hear what I’m saying but…what Outkast said, you know?
[Me, at a Y2K themed event, hair done once again by @avariellaaahhh on IG. I love you Ava!]