Plus-Size Models Launch YouTube Series to Share Body Positivity

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Australian model Jessica Vander Leahy has advocated dropping the term "plus-size" for "curvy," and now Mashable reports that she's enlisting fellow models for a new YouTube series devoted to helping women overcome body insecurities. ProjectWomanKIND is described on its Facebook page as a "web series that encourages women to be KIND to themselves and each other because women are more than what they see in the mirror." The black and white photos for the series have a lot in common with Lane Bryant's incredibly successful #ImNoAngel campaign.

In the series, Aussie models Sophie Sheppard, Stefania Ferrario, Margaret Macpherson, Olivia Langdon, and Leahy talk about their insecurities, how they see themselves now, and their advice for other women dealing with body issues. "I would tell my 16-year-old self that your sense of self-worth is not relevant, not proportional to your shape or your size or of anyone else’s. I think that would make my childhood much easier to take," Langdon says in her interview. The launch of the YouTube series comes on the heels of an announcement about an upcoming documentary devoted to plus-size models and plus-size fashion.

"Women don't feel 100% in their bodies all the time, if ever," Leahy told Mashable, saying that she got the idea for the series after women asked her for help with self esteem advice. "The project is about trying to get women to recognize that everyone experiences those natural highs and lows and you just have to try and shift your focus on those bad days to what you are grateful for. Often that means turning away from the mirror and looking inside yourself, because that's where the real good stuff is."