Before Christmas, I started seeing advertisements for a new show on one of the schmaltzy women's channels called How to Look Good Naked. It's hosted by Carson Kressley, who is of former Queer Eye for the Straight Guy fame. I was a bit skeptical because all of the commercials showed overweight women crying and then subsequently dancing around with Carson. The last thing I wanted to tune in to was another Sad Fat Girl show, or a trendy fashion show where gay men make snarkey quips at dowdy straight people.
To my surprise, How to Look Good Naked is fantastic. First of all, the show features women of all sizes who struggle with body image. Carson has toned it down a notch, and he is caring, compassionate, and tough without being insulting. I love the premise of this show. It shows which undergarments to wear to look good underneath clothes. Because Carson has some fabulous connections, all of the clothes are given to the person on the show. I'm talking $1500 couture dresses right off the rack and into the hands of these women. At the end of the show, there's kind of a mini-makeover with hair and makeup, and then Carson actually arranges for a nude photo shoot. And guess what? Afterwards, the women on the show actually think they look good naked.
There was one segment of the program that struck me - and I loved that the creators of the show included this part, because I think it's really crucial to truly feeling good naked. At the beginning of the show, Carson brings out a parade of women dressed in their underwear. These women are probably two sizes smaller and two sizes larger than the woman Carson is dressing. He asks her to first decide who she is closest to in size. From the show I watched, it looks like every woman sees herself as bigger than she truly is. The woman from tonight's episode was shocked when Carson placed her next to one of the smaller models. I love that - I love that the show addresses self-perception. I love that it opens up a conversation about being okay with one's self right now - not 40 pounds from now.
I'm working right now on being okay with the reality of now. This doesn't mean that I want to be complacent and resistant to change. It just means that while I work on my future self, I try to love my current self. Because my friends, self love is the best kind of love.
Stand in the rain
Stand your ground
Stand up when it's all crashing down
You stand through the pain
You won't drown
And one day what's lost will be found
So stand in the rain
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