Midsize Vs Plus Size

When I first started this blog I named it "Partially Plus," and I tried to get the hashtag to take off as well. No one cared, haha. A couple of years later, the term "Midsize" is all the rage. I first came across it on Tiktok though I'm not exactly sure who created it, and I've really been enjoying the content I've come across. It's nice to find bodies that are similar to yours online, and to watch how they dress, where they shop, and to feel that camaraderie.

When I first joined the plus size community as a model a few years ago, I was met with a lot of resistance. "You're not really plus size." Many in the community were wonderful to me, while others were cold, and sometimes downright degrading. While I understand this feeling entirely, and so you do if you've ever had a friend significantly smaller than you call themselves "fat" in your presence... it can rub you the wrong way. I get it. It's not my intention to "take" a size 30's spot from the community, but rather to support the plus size community, and represent the 14/16s while doing so, because I DO WEAR PLUS SIZES WHEN THEY FIT. Many in the community are sick of seeing 14/16's because they have been the majority represented in the plus community for some time (though I would argue that this has changed A LOT, especially in the last few years). We have lots of work to do and it is incredibly important for all us to see representation in the media, at least sometimes. I'm glad that we're making progress in the right direction, and I completely support the plus size community.

With that said, I would like to know, where DO I fit in then? And where do all of the women my size fit in? There's been some backlash with the usage of the term midsize lately (see above). I don't want to call anyone out specifically, thus why I anonymized the tweet above, but I have to ask... If I don't fit straight size and most plus companies don't care about including me either, where do all of us in the middle go? While we have our privileges and do not need the advocacy in the way larger sizes do, don't we also deserve to find clothes that fit? We are quite literally skipped by the majority of brands, and I don't think that's right either. I believe plus sizes should extend not only in the top of end of the spectrum, but ON THE BOTTOM AS WELL.

I wear a size XL on the top and a 1-2X on the bottom. A huge number of straight size stores do not carry a bottom half size that is large enough for me, while the vast majority of plus size companies do not have a bottom size that is small enough. I really struggle with finding things that fit... all the time. Isn't that relatable?

I like the term midsize. It's a subset of plus size that more accurately describes the size window we're discussing. It helps me find clothes that sell a larger XL or a smaller 2X and I feel seen and heard here. My argument is that this isn't intended to be exclusionary of plus sizes, but to help those who are rejected from both straight and plus sizes to find their home.

That's my two cents. What do you think?