Australian lingerie model calls for all 'plus size' labels to be dropped

A Melbourne model has called for fashion houses to drop "plus size" labels, as she feels it suggests curvier women aren't normal.

Stefania Ferrario, a successful size 12 lingerie model, says she isn't happy about being labelled as "plus sized".

Last year the 22-year-old was fed up with being tagged a "plus size" model so she stripped down and started the viral hashtag #DropThePlus, which made headlines across the world.

Since then Ferrario has become the front woman in the fight to drop "plus size" ranges across all labels.

She has also called for media outlets to stop reporting on "plus size models" as she felt it implied those tagged with the label were considered "bigger than normal".

"I think certain labels do have a negative impact and it’s easier to completely get rid of a word than to try and change its connotational meaning," Ferrario told Broadly.

"So all those women are then classified as abnormal. All these young girls are looking to the fashion industry for inspiration and seeing models that are their size being labelled as 'plus size'."

Although some people claim the words "plus size" are empowering, Ferrario said its language still has a negative impact in the public eye and is "damaging beauty ideals such language perpetuates".

Instead, Ferrario wants to be referred to as a model. Full stop.

“People have this idea where there is a ‘model' body,” she said.

“There is no ‘model’ body, there are bodies and anyone should be able to model no matter what size they are and shape they are."

Ferrario said that at a very young age she was told there was only one type of beauty, tanned and slim, and she had to unlearn what society imprinted on her so she could learn to love her body.

"I was obsessed with having that body. If my weight fluctuated or went up, it would really get to me. My body changed, and I couldn't change that, so I had to start changing my mindset," she said.

Ferrario has 374,000 followers on Instagram and said her page is used as a platform to bridge the "plus size" gap in the modelling industry.

"I'm representing an audience that hasn't found that representation in the modeling industry, so I do feel a sense of responsibility," she said.

"I try to be as open and honest as I can about my body and the struggles I've been through."