“Style, Not Size”: Two Friends Wear The Same Outfit To Show There Is No “Ideal” Body Type

It's 2024, and it seems like body positivity and its movements are here to stay. Aside from the Victoria's Secret rebrand failure, the awareness around differently-looking and abled bodies seems to increase each year. What is body positivity, exactly? Philosophy scholar Céline Leboeuf calls it a "movement to accept our bodies, regardless of size, shape, skin tone, gender, and physical abilities."

So we once again bring you the trend started by Dominican model Denise Mercedes and her friend designer Maria Castellanos. The two women continue their "Style Not Size" campaign to demonstrate that there is no "ideal" body type. They both pose wearing the same clothes, although their body types are different.

One half of the duo, Maria Castellanos, spoke with Pictolic. She told us more about the secret to the project's longevity and what she and Denise have in mind for the future. Read our conversation with her below!

Denise: Instagram

Maria: Instagram

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One half of the duo, Maria Castellanos, spoke with Bored Panda. She told us more about the secret to the project's longevity and what she and Denise have in mind for the future. Read our conversation with her below!

Maria tells Bored Panda that she and Denise are super proud of their project Style Not Size. "[It] has been such an opportunity not just for us but for all women and men who feel excluded by the fashion industry," the designer says. "We've been able to change the approach to inclusivity in some of today's [renowned] fashion brands."

The creator is especially happy about the reach that the movement has had. "As you know, the hashtag has become a movement and a rising trend on all social media platforms, giving not just Denise and me a voice but many others as well."

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The success of Style Not Size allows its creators to try out more new things. "Due to it rising as a hot trend, we have allowed the movement to take on a life of its own through others," Maria tells us. "It will continue to be strong, thanks to [those] who keep it alive!"

"#stylenotsize is a continuous form of content on each of our platforms – but in a more organic way. What I mean with this is that Denise and I have given our content and art more [of a] push throughout the last years, making #stylenotsize a 'branch' of what we do and not our entire identity. This allows us to grow as individual creators who continue to have a say in the body positivity movement," Maria explains in more detail.

"As for our future, [we plan to] continue to grow our community and push the #stylenotsize movement through our feeds as we see fit."

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Denise Mercedes is an American plus-sized model and body positivity influencer. We first covered the "Style Not Size" trend that was started by her and her friend, fashion designer Maria Castellanos, in 2020. Back then, Mercedes told Bored Panda the story of how she started out on TikTok. "My friend Maria and I would pose for photos wearing the same bikini. It did so well, and people reacted so positively to it that we continued doing it here and there."

Since then, Denise's follower count has grown to a whopping 3.5 million. The most popular "Style Not Size" videos have well over 37 million views. The message that the women want to pass on is for people to dress however they please and love their bodies. In an interview with Bored Panda in 2020, Denise said: "Stop comparing yourself to others."

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The friends are really happy with the impact that their content has had. "The fact that we can inspire so many women to feel confident and be themselves makes us want to continue this movement," Denise shared with Bored Panda in 2020.

She also told Today how the comments under her videos from young girls and women inspire her as well. "I have girls telling me I'm helping them feel more confident. I wish when I was younger that I had someone to look up to. Back when I was 16 in 2008, it was always just a struggle to be skinny. I'm glad things are changing now," the fashion model said.

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