Celebrating Equality and Diversity on International Women’s Day

Happy International Women’s Day, ladies!

If you follow me on social, you may have noticed Martinis and Mascara has been in the news recently. I’m very proud of this coverage in particular because of the message behind it.

Early last week, I ended up in this Seventeen mag article celebrating Target’s #NoFOMO campaign. This campaign is all about banishing body shame and not being afraid of missing out on life’s awesome activities because of our insecurities. I was immediately sold on the idea when I was first approached to partner with Target on this. I posed in my bathing suit (it’s this one, btw!) in the snow to show girls of all shapes and sizes that they shouldn’t be afraid of showing off their bodies!

The Daily Mail also covered the #NoFOMO campaign, continuing to spread awareness of this awesome trend. I’m thrilled to be part of this movement and I have heard so many positive comments from those who have been inspired to embrace their bodies because of this conversation. I think it’s an important one for women to embrace who they are (inside and out) and not apologize for being a certain size. I’ve embraced who I am – and let me tell you – it feels awesome.

With that, I want to make something very clear. Being pro “curve” or “plus” or “voluptuous” or whatever we want to call it, does not mean that I am anti-thin. (Just like being a feminist does not mean you’re anti-men, it means you believe women deserve equal treatment. No more, no less.)

When I say I’m celebrating all bodies – I mean all bodies. ALL WOMEN should be free to feel comfortable in their own skin and experience life to the fullest without fear of judgement from others. And just because I’m a busty size 12, that doesn’t mean I can’t celebrate my smaller chested skinny friends. Skinny shaming is just as bad as fat shaming. We are all beautiful and we need to lift each other up.

Speaking of which, if you’re in need of a confidence boost, I encourage you to read this recent Huffington Post piece on what real women say gives them confidence. In it, I share some of my tips for keeping my self-esteem levels in check. (Spoiler alert: My strategy involves talking to myself. I promise it works.)

Lastly, on this International Women’s Day, I encourage everyone to take a good long look in the mirror and tell yourself you’re fucking beautiful. Because you are.