Quotes of All Topics . Occasions . Authors
Growing up I didn't have curvy role models, mainly because I didn't see enough curvy women represented in major ads.
The sense of pride I take away from doing something I know will be inspire women to feel confident about their bodies.
I had so many agents tell me that at size 18, I would never work or work again. I heard, 'Go home and lose some weight.'
It doesn't matter what size your hips are when you measure them. It's about, 'Do you feel good and healthy in those hips?'
We're seeing more inclusivity in fashion when it comes to size, and we have to continue featuring more and more diversity.
We are lucky to live in a world made up of so many different kinds of people and I am confident in the direction we are going.
Words have power, and if you are going to use your words negatively, then that is exactly what is going to happen in your life.
I believe that we're all here for a purpose and that one of my biggest ones is to help people understand that they're beautiful.
The biggest misconception is that the purpose of going to the gym is to change your body. We should be working out to be healthy.
I am just like any other woman, and I think I am the 'fattest woman alive' - but it is really about how you handle your situation.
My fans are incredible. Don't you dare talk bad about me on my Instagram, because my fans will come out and they will eat you alive.
My fans are incredible. Don't you dare talk bad about me on my Instagram, because my fans will come out, and they will eat you alive.
To some, I'm too curvy. To others, I'm too tall, too busty, too loud, and, now, too small - too much, but at the same time not enough.
Basketball really is a metaphor for life - the intangible skills I have learned on the court, have helped shape the person I am today.
Too fat, too thin, too loud, too quiet - I was never going to fit the standards others created for me. Instead of complying, I protested.
Do I sometimes wish I were thinner? God, in the old days, absolutely I did, but now I feel that to lose weight would be disloyal to myself.
Eventually, I joined a church. I didn't go there to find a boyfriend; I truly wasn't looking for anyone other than the person I wanted to be.
I work out not to lose weight but to maintain my good health. And anyway, if I did want to lose weight, it would be no one's decision but my own.
Honestly, at the end of the day, what I want women to know is that beauty comes in all shapes and sizes. And that it should not define who you are.
Social media has truly helped my career because it has given models a voice. And a voice is something that we want to see a change in the industry.
College basketball was one of the hardest, most rewarding experiences of my life. Every single day on the court was a mental and physical challenge.
I've always been a girl's girl, and I've always enjoyed my girl friends' relationships, so I want the girls who follow me to feel like we're besties.
Basketball has taught me that no matter how unlikely something is, if you set a goal, and follow after that goal with all your heart, anything is possible.
When you're given an 'SI' cover, and you take advantage of it, you can conquer the world. Look at Chrissy Teigen. Look at Tyra Banks. Look at Kathy Ireland.
I have been so blessed not only to talk about things that I want to talk about in my industry, but also to have a platform - and people want to hear about it.
I'm giving curvy women a seat at a table that we've never been invited to before - a table with high-end fashion people who have never considered us beautiful.
I've lived the torment of the names. I've lived the torment of boyfriends breaking up with me because they were afraid I was going to be too fat later in life.
For 10 years, I'd been told I was always going to be a catalogue girl, never a cover girl. Well, I got with IMG and did five covers in a year, boom, boom, boom.
I wasn't put on the cover of 'Sports Illustrated' as a plus-size model; I was put on the cover of 'Sports Illustrated' as a model, as a rookie, as Ashley Graham.
I'm a woman of faith. And I really believe that if I say, 'God, this is what I want,' He says, 'I'll give you your desires, as long as they line up with My will.'
For so long, I have been an outsider because of my size. And I think that fashion has always, in some way, catered to celebrities or to a thinner idealistic model.
I hit the beauty jackpot, I get it, but that's not enough: you've got to have more to have longevity in this business. It's always been, 'OK, so what can I do now?'
I don't think guys judge curvy women as much as women do. It shocks me how catty some women can be. In my whole life, I only had one guy break up with me over weight.
I don't want women to hold themselves back. I think there are too many women who are self-conscious about the way they look - the way they see themselves in the mirror.
As a model, I'm used to having my body scrutinized, and I have a tough skin so I can shake it off. I know I'm the only person that gets to decide how my body should look.
Growing up, I had my mom to look up to; J. Lo and Marilyn Monroe were notable curvy women. But I didn't have anyone with cellulite or back fat telling me they didn't care.
I'm going to be pulling my pants up all day, and I'm just going to have a terrible day. Because if your clothes don't fit, just like bras or anything, it's not a good day.
I am always being asked to gain or lose weight, but I am at a point now where I don't care anymore. I love my body, I love my super-hourglass shape and I love showing it off.
The runway isn't just about showing fashion, it's about gaining confidence. And I really believe that once you've got your confidence, you can wear anything, you can do anything.
People will run up to me with tears in their eyes and say, 'You're Ashley Graham?' and I match their enthusiasm and respond, 'Yes, I am!' and all they say is, 'Thank you so much.'
Curvy models are becoming more and more vocal about the isolating nature of the term 'plus-size.' We are calling ourselves what we want to be called - women, with shapes that are our own.
As women gain weight, they start judging themselves. But who cares! Embrace what you have. Say, 'Belly, you might be poking out today, but I'm going to choose to love you and nurture you.'
'Sports Illustrated' decided to have curvy women not only in their magazine but on the cover of their magazine. Now, that means size diversity is here, and it's real, and it's not a trend.
My mom's parents were farmers, so every summer, my sisters and I would help out, hauling pipe and pulling maggots off the corn. We hated it, but it taught me the meaning of good hard work.
Basketball, and the people I have met through the game have far and away had the largest impact on my life. Almost every positive role model I have ever had was a coach, mentor, or teammate.
That's really truly what my message is - finding self love within yourself and not comparing yourself to others - because there's no such thing as perfection, because perfection doesn't exist.
Does any woman really just come in and say, 'I'm a plus-size woman?' Maybe as a defense mechanism or maybe as a way to kind of cope with fitting into society but... I just think it's divisive.
I always say, 'Be anxious for nothing,' because if this is my social media, if this is a platform for me to really get the word out and get my brand out, then why am I gonna be anxious about it?
As a professional selfie taker, I know my angles. And I know how to look 20 lbs. heavier and 20 lbs. lighter. If Instagram wants to tell me I've lost 60 lbs. in one week, then damn, I look good.
My mom is the most positive person. She has always had a smile on her face no matter what came her way. After seeing that, I'm not going to let a little cellulite get in the way of my happiness!