I've Worn Your Size: Why I Dress for Comfort, at Any Size

Let's be real for a second.

At 18, I weighed 240 pounds. I lost 100 of them the old-fashioned way, with no shortcuts. Just food, sweat and a lot of stubbornness. Since then I've worked retail, done hair for almost 20 years, become a certified personal trainer, earned my holistic nutrition license, and become a mom.

Here's what never changed, at any size: I dressed for comfort. I always have.

Clothes were how I talked

When I was a big girl, I wanted to feel good in what I wore. Now that my body is smaller, I still want exactly the same thing. Clothes were never about the number on the tag for me. They were how I expressed myself when I didn't have the words. The colors, the graphics, the little details I loved. That was me talking.

Why I size up

Today I fit in a small, and I resent the confinement. The suffocation. The feeling like you got too close without an invite in. Soooo I choose the medium and fall in love. You become something I grab vs. avoid.

So if you're wondering whether some fit girl gets it, I do. I've worn your size. I've felt the waistband cut in. I've stood in a fitting room wishing I could disappear.

Back to the fitting room

On the sales floor, if someone walked out of the fitting room looking uncomfortable, I'd send her right back in and say, "Hang on, I'm going to grab something your body is going to love." Then I'd watch her see herself in the mirror and light up. That's why I had repeat customers. I found clothes that fit them. I didn't make them fit into the clothes.

What that means for you

That's what Cool-it, girl is. Pieces that feel good on your body, at any size, and let you say who you are without saying a word. If you're between sizes, or you just want room to breathe, size up. Comfort is never the wrong call.

What anyone else thinks of how you dress is none of your business. How you feel in it is.

Welcome in. I'm Cari.