Sometimes The Inspiration We Seek Has Been There All Along
Or, an Instagram account I think you should follow (if you don't already).
I don’t know exactly when, or why, I started to follow Aja Barber on Instagram.
Until this week, I’d never paid too much attention to her feed, at least not above and beyond the attention I pay to anyone else’s. I could have told you she was a writer; I would probably have known that she writes about race and privilege; I might have guessed at something to do with sustainability. Really, I would have been working on vague remembrances, flashes of photographs I’d seen and barely paid attention to.
Today, I spent more than an hour searching for the perfect pair of wide-legged, cropped, black wool trousers – something that is utterly and completely the fault of one Aja Barber.
Aja started to do her #GetDressedWithMe posts quite recently. She has always written about, and posted about, fashion, consumerism and sustainability, so thematically, these short videos are on-brand. But they’re also new and, in very subtle ways, revolutionary.
When was the last time you saw a 40-something woman – not an actor, a model, an influencer or a dancer, in other words, someone whose body is her work – in her underwear? (And no, Celeste Barber doesn’t count.)
When was the last time you saw a woman on Instagram posing for the camera in such an unposed, un-self-conscious way?
When was the last time you saw such a perfectly imperfect body on Instagram with absolutely zero mention of said imperfection? No, “Apologies for the state of my hair…” or specific references to “flattering” one’s body type or shape?
The closest we get to this is when Aja references her “plus size body”, for which she makes no apologies; no exceptions; applies no fashion dos or don’ts. This is her body (and she is giving it up for you).
Aja’s Instagram feed is revolutionary precisely because it is so casual, so normal, so without fanfare or activism.
This is activism. It is not the performative activism of slim white women bending over to display their belly rolls and use the word “brave” to describe their having posted the pic in the first place.
This is authenticity. Again, not the performative authenticity of influencers “letting you in” to the “chaos” of their lives. “Instagram is a highlight reel, you guyzzzzz!” (Well how about you… stop using it as a highlight reel then, Katie?!)
As a woman in a plus size body, who, honestly, struggles every day to get dressed in anything other than leggings and an oversized top – a choice that is totally valid by the way, if those are clothes you like! I hate all of my leggings! – I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything on Instagram that I’ve been so helped and inspired by.
So, in short (LOL!): follow Aja Barber.
Podcast Corner
For those of you who listen to Not Without My Sister, the podcast I present with my sister, Beatrice, we are on an accidental hiatus – thanks to flu and snowstorms – but we will be back ASAP and, in the meantime, please take a listen to our latest episode!
I fell slightly behind on my The Guilty Feminist listening, but I got back into it in order to listen to their post-And Just Like That… digest episodes. They’re so funny and smart and, honestly, made me think about aspects of the show that I hadn’t really considered. (And it’s not all, “this show is shit!”, I swear.)
Total biased recommendation here but my best friend and podcast producer Liam Geraghty presents the Inside Intercom Podcast, and they recently did a fascinating episode on Women in Tech – the concept, not the actual women. It’s a short and very thought-provoking listen. (And there is no lecturing, I promise.)
P.S. I think I… may have found the perfect wide-legged cropped trousers? I will report back.
P.P.S. Aja has a book, and you can buy it. Full disclosure: I haven’t bought it yet. I’m not quite as sustainable as I’d like to be with my fashion choices because, honestly, lately I just buy things out of desperation, whenever I think they might fit me and not look hideous.
You might like Isabella Davis or Emilyinnesstylist. Also, the best leggings I have found are Atir Katie leggings. Always use a discount code though, Daily Diva Diary or SineadsCurvyStyle usually have one.