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

It’s 2025, 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 Kenista. She told us more about the secret to the project’s longevity and what she and Denise have in mind for the future.

We also reached out to Mallorie Dunn, inclusive fashion designer, owner of SmartGlamour, and professor at the Fashion Institute of Technology, to learn more about the body positivity movement.

#1

Maria Castellanos and Denise Mercedes posing together in matching outfits to promote the Style Not Size body-positivity movement. — denisemmercedes

Maria tells Kenista 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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Denise Mercedes and Maria Castellanos wearing coordinated clothing while discussing the growth and future of the Style Not Size campaign. — denisemmercedes

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 personal 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 individual community and push the #stylenotsize movement through our feeds as we see fit.”

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Inclusive fashion designer Mallorie Dunn posing in her design studio while speaking about the origins of the body positivity movement. — denisemmercedes

We sought some expertise to know more about body positivity. Mallorie Dunn, founder of the clothing brand SmartGlamour, kindly agreed to tell us more about it.

“Firstly, I want to reiterate that body positivity is a concept that was born from fat liberation,” the inclusive fashion designer begins. “And, unfortunately, over the past recent years, has been watered down and over-commercialized to the point where the roots have been lost to many.”

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Mallorie Dunn highlighting the difference between body positivity and self-love during an expert interview. — denisemmercedes

Dunn explains that the true meaning of body positivity sometimes gets misconstrued. “People incorrectly conflate body positivity with self-love. Body positivity – at its origin – was not about simply feeling positive about your body but about detaching our bodies, their size and shape, their abilities from our worthiness. Fat people deserve rights, respect, kindness, opportunity, and equity,” Dunn emphasizes.

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Screenshot of Mallorie Dunn’s 2019 Instagram post explaining the meaning of body positivity versus self-love. — denisemmercedes

The FIT Professor explained the difference between body positivity and self-love in a 2019 post on her brand’s Instagram. “I know being ‘body positive’ sounds like it should equal ‘being positive about my body’ – but that’s not what it means, and is part of a lot of folks’ critique on the phrase.”

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Graphic explaining body positivity as a political and activist movement supporting equality for all body types. — denisemmercedes

“Body positivity is an activist movement. It was created from the fat acceptance movement. It is radical. It’s not personal. It’s the idea that all bodies are worthwhile, worthy, equal, deserving of respect regardless of size, shape, appearance, skin color, ability, class, and identity. It’s political. It’s actionable.”

“Self-love is personal and not necessary for body-positive activism. It’s a bonus. It’s a journey. And it’s different for all folks. Let’s stop conflating the two!”

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Mallorie Dunn emphasizing the importance of body positivity and addressing the harmful effects of fatphobia. — denisemmercedes

Once people understand that, the movement is important for a myriad of reasons, Dunn says. “The main being that all human beings deserve equity and respect. Society is incredibly fatphobic, and it is harmful and dangerous to plus-size folks, beyond just hurtful,” she adds.

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Mallorie Dunn teaching an inclusive fashion class, advocating for equal access to clothing and respect for all body sizes. — denisemmercedes

“My personal realm and skill lives in the fashion world, so that is where I work for equity, but body equity also reaches far past fashion and into justice at work, at school, at the doctor’s office, on the street, and beyond,” the inclusive fashion designer tells Kenista.

“All human beings – regardless of size, shape, height, weight, age, ability, gender, ethnicity, or religion – deserve equal access to clothing, to joy, to respect, to care, to kindness, and to love.”

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Body positivity message addressing misconceptions that the movement encourages unhealthy lifestyles. — denisemmercedes

Body positivity activists often have to fight assumptions that the movement promotes unhealthy lifestyles and eating disorders. “The first thing I remind people of when this topic is broached is that health is not a prerequisite for clothing,” Dunn says. “Everyone wears clothing. Everyone deserves access to it. Health has zero to do with the conversation.”

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Mallorie Dunn discussing the accessibility of health and explaining why health should not be tied to body-positivity activism. — denisemmercedes

“The second thing I remind people of is that health is not equally accessible to all. There are people who will never be ‘healthy.’ Those folks still deserve access and also to be seen. They deserve to be highlighted, held up, and cared for.”

“And lastly – health is between an individual and their personal healthcare providers. It is not up for debate in the comments section. It is no one’s business but your own,” the inclusive fashion designer adds.

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Mallorie Dunn teaching a fashion class at the Fashion Institute of Technology, encouraging students interested in inclusive design. — denisemmercedes

Mallorie Dunn teaches draping, sewing, and even business classes (this spring) at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York. That includes the inclusive fashion patternmaking class that was quite popular last year. This year, the class begins in the middle of March. If you’re passionate about plus-sized fashion design, don’t hesitate to join!