A few weeks ago, I was at an event for a traditional fashion brand and, as usual, I met some familiar faces there. Well, actually, not that familiar. I noticed a new pattern: they were all much thinner than the last time I saw them. An effect that had already impacted me on Instagram, but was much more shocking in real life. The reason was obvious: the famous and popular slimming pens.
Between one side chat and another, I comment on my astonishment at the understand the new standard with one of the guests and she promptly answers me: “Good thing everyone is thin again!” A little in shock, I realize: by ending the sentence with “again”, she demonstrates that she is returning to a place of comfort, in which, in fact, fashion has spent most of its history.
The talk about acceptance, body positive and diversity started recently, but it seems to have reached its final days. This entire discussion came from a larger movement: the decentralization of communication channels and the rise of parallel communicators, who took the standard of beauty from magazine covers and TV screens to bring it to a much more realistic context.
Seeing real bodies being shared was not only liberating for many people, it made a real impact on the industry. Plus size models and clothes of all sizes have become a basic requirement.
Model Ashley Graham was one of the first to promote discussion about bodies on social media │Photo: Reproduction/Instagram
But, over time, the influencers have also achieved celebrity status. They also began to represent the unattainable, even when the unattainable became the body itself. It seems that seeing so many real people got tired and is already on the “out” list for 2026.
The arrival of slimming pens was another crucial component in the drastic reduction in the numbers on the scale. And more than that: they represent a desire for aesthetic as well as monetary status. If you’re not thin, it means you don’t have money to buy them either. – and having money is as important as being thin in the fashion world.
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A post shared by Jéssica Lopes (@jessicalopes)
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