FabUplus Magazine: Review

 

I haven't been shy about sharing my disdain for fashion magazines.  I think they are absurd.  Besides showcasing haute couture that, to me, is ridiculous (there is a point where art should not be worn on the body), and elitest (how many people can afford this stuff, really?), they also portray a very narrow standard of beauty for women.  Tall. Skinny. Mostly Caucasian. Oh, and young, as most of the models are like 14!

I do buy health/fitness magazines on occasion and have several subscriptions to Canadian lifestyle magazines.  But even these ones, despite articles about how to boost your health and self-esteem, tend to be extremely hypocritical because all the advertisements and fashion/beauty spreads contain all the same models as the fashion mags. 

It enrages me, however, I can't imagine how much it must enrage plus sized women who are almost non-existent in these magazines.  Nor are their needs often considered.  Many of the clothing lines may not have their size, nor, I would imagine, is it fun to see articles about exercise and weight-loss which use already impossibly skinny models. 

So when I was asked to review a new magazine specifically for plus-sized women, I was more than happy to look at it.

FabUplus Magazine is available digitally and in print across Canada and the U.S.

Like the lifestyle magazines I enjoy, it features articles on various special interests, notable people, fashion, beauty, nutrition, cooking and fitness.  It isn't all about weight-loss, in fact, in the issue I read, there was just one feature on hunger busting healthy foods.  Recipes were not diet recipes.  Many of the articles were about confidence and body image written by plus-sized women.  On one hand I wonder if some folks will find that condescending, but then again, you can find articles such as these in any magazine geared towards women because the truth is, regardless of a woman's weight or BMI, there is a good chance she suffers from body shame.

What was even more impressive, is that all the advertisements were for products and services aimed at plus-sized women.  This included fashion, fitness programs, etc.  No emaciated 14 year olds!!

To be honest, I'd be more comfortable having this magazine around my young daughters than any conventional fashion magazine!

If opening fashion magazines leaves you feeling down in the dumps because you (like 99% of women) don't fit their idea of beauty, than you may want to check out FabUplus!

Disclosure: I was asked to review this magazine but all opinions on this blog are my own and I was not compensated.