What is body positivitiy? And what about body shaming? This is the story of a young blogger who had her redress thanks to…Instagram!
I live in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (USA). I was very ill for a few years (2013-2016) with an autoimmune disorder that affected my white blood cells. I had to spend most of my time in bed. I didn’t have a TV or the energy to read books… I laid there feeling like I had a bad flu for years with just my phone. I wasn’t able to work and was beyond stressed about finances. I discovered Instagram photo contests. I have a background in art and worked briefly as a photographer. I began to win contests using photos that I took that were already stored in my phone. In addition I would occasionally dress up and pretend to be healthy for the camera and have my husband take photos of me. I entered the photos into contests. Some were fashion oriented. I began to win many contests with prizes of money, trips, cameras, clothing and much more. One of the contests was a swimsuit photo competition. I was already body positive… so I wasn’t nervous about posting a photo of myself in a bikini. I wanted to stand out, so I wore a crown and held a homemade staff and wore my bikini in the snow. I won. Through exposure that contest provided, I began to get many people following me on Instagram. Once I became healthier and my autoimmune disorder went into remission, I decided to focus my Instagram on body image and fashion. It grew pretty fast. I was excited because I was feeling better and people were receptive to what I was putting out. Because of the attention of my Instagram, I created a blog to have a place to expand upon ideas and photos.
What means being “body positive”? Body positive means to treat your body and other people’s body with kindness and respect. It’s about understanding that bodies do not have any flaws. All bodies are good bodies.
What kind of message to you try to transmit to your followers? I want people to feel confidence in their own skin. I want people to feel confident enough to express themselves.
Why do you define yourself “nostalgic”? Much of my style inspiration comes from vintage photos, fashion magazines, and television shows. Beyond that my personality is very nostalgic. I have many photo albums and can talk for hours with people about shared memories.
What do you hope for the future of fashion advertising? I hope fashion advertising becomes more inclusive. I want to see more sizes, ages, and races represented front and center.
Have you ever been victim of body shaming? I have many times. It was the worst in grade school and in college. I’ve been shamed by both people close to me and strangers. I get it in many facets of my life, but for the most part I live in my bubble surrounded with body positive people so I am shamed less than I was in the past. I do get some horrible comments on Instagram, but I just delete and move on.
How would you define your (super cool btw) style? I like to mix old with new. I like to mix trends with vintage pieces to create a new look. I play with pattern mixing and silhouettes.
Follow her on Instagram @Jamie_JeTaime ,Twitter @Jamie_JeTaime or Facebook @TheRealJamieJeTaime
