as requested- my zine about fat and plus size body types from instagram!💖 happy drawing everyone!
hi folks! just spent a few hours transcribing this. please reblog this version for our visually impaired friends!!
(this is my first time transcribing something so i really hope i got everything...!)
Image 1 ID [Title picture of the op standing, grinning with her arms out on a pink background, with one word on each shoulder with one just above the knee. The whole zine is colored with soft reddish-pinks and other pastels.]
Written Image 1 ID: "Let's Talk Tum!"
Image 2 ID [The first page focuses on anatomy and shapes. There is a floating head in the top right, followed by a figure in the bottom left where various body parts are indicated by colorful shapes. The last sentence of the page is overlaid with a background of a red circle, a warm-teal triangle, and a golden square.]
Written Image 2 ID: "First off* (before stepping too deep into body types, you should have a grasp on basic anatomy. it's helped me a whole bunch!) Let's talk about basic shapes. The human body can be broken up into many of these! simplifying it this way is essential to understanding body types and can help with anatomy. For example, shapes give us a good look at important intersections on the body. i.e. the bend in your arms. [arrow pointing to the intersection in the lower left hand figure's arms.] *A good reference I often use is how the tips of the fingers usually rest in this section of the thighs. [a red circle pointing out the area where the tips of the fingers would lie, about a quarter of the way down the thigh.]tl;dr: shapes help you build the body.
Image 3 ID [The next page displays the title at the top, followed by two graphics. one displays a common video game slider of left to right, with the left being thin and the right being fat. The second graphic displays the fat body to the left of a circular stat chart, with a branching hexagonal shape inside indicating where weight falls. It is labeled (going clockwise) belly, hips, legs, head, arms, chest.]
Written Image 3 ID: "Now you're getting it! Let's talk weight distribution! most older character creators do things this way. But instead of thinking of weight on a slider like this one... [arrow pointing to the first diagram.] think of one like this. [arrow pointing to the second diagram.] This lends itself to a much wider variety of body types.
Image 4 ID [Title is once again displayed at the top of the page. This segment is split into two pages, with the format carrying through. on the left of the first image, there are three pictures of belly references laid out horizontally. The top is a dark-skinned pregnant person holding their stomach- image is from the breast down and cuts off at the hips. There is a red line drawing a circle around the shape of the belly. The second picture is a light-skinned person pinching their belly fat, the image cuts off at the hips and breasts again, highlighting the midsection. There is a red curved line following the bottom of the belly. The third example is a picture of a brown skinned person with their hand on the left side of their stomach- picture cuts off just after the breasts and hips. There is a bumped red line following the indent of the belly. Each picture is immediately followed to the right by a drawing of the body type from the picture, each at a different angle than the picture.]
Written Image 4 ID: "So, what now? Let's peek at how that weight distribution can look! (as a reminder, none of these are inherently 'better' than the others.) [following the first image and drawing.] tummies like this are often seen in bloating or pregnancy. Note how stiff and round it is. Most of this is not fat.**that doesn't mean it never can be, though! [following the second image and drawing.] just your average, everyday tummy! This is totally normal. I'd say most people have a little bit of this belly fat. [following the third image and drawing.] This is about where I fall. notice how things start to come in twos. A lot of these bellies have really beautiful stretch marks! [page cuts off, CONT> written in the lower right hand corner.]
Image 5 ID [continuation of the last page's layout. Three more bellies followed by drawings are layed out from left to right, stacked horizontally. The first image is of a light-skinned person with the image sectioning off just the belly. There are two distinct folds in the belly fat, with a red line outlining the curve on the outside, and one marking the fold on the inside. Next two images display scars on both of the models- with the first having had it's appendix removed. {op note- i've been told that appendix scars usually don't appear as pronounced as this image's nowadays. Medical advancement yadda yadda. Older characters may still have this indentation, however. It's up to you.} The picture following that is of a pregnant person having given birth, with stretch marks on either side of their navel followed by a c-section scar just above the pelvis. Each image is followed by a drawing of said picture with a different angle.]
Written Image 5 ID: "[following the first image and drawing.] This is where a lot of people stop drawing tummies. This is a "B belly," also known as a double belly. Contrary to popular belief, this is purely genetic. A lot of people wrongly think bellies like this are the result of tight clothing, which is just not true. [before the next two images, centered on page] But wait, there's more! [following second image and drawing.] This lovely tummy has had it's appendix removed! [following third image and drawing.] This belly has a c-section scar and cool stretch marks. [separated at the bottom of the page.] There are other places that weight can be distributed, though. And speaking of stretch marks...
Image 6 ID [The next section highlights stretch marks and cellulite. There is a collage on the left of stretch marks present on a variety of skin tones, in both light and darker colors. These images are followed at the bottom by a diagram of places where stretch marks are commonly present, front and back. The figures have the left side of their bodies circled from the neck and outstretched arms down to the butt and thighs, while the right side displays the patterns where stretch marks are commonly seen. In the middle of the page there is a guide on coloring stretch marks, with a lighter skin tone on the left followed by a darker one. Both have drawings of light and dark stretch marks, preceded by the filters used on each. (multiply and screen.)]
Written Image 6 ID: Stretch marks! I love stretch marks, and not enoughpeople draw them. They can show up almost anywhere, and it's a huge myth they're only found on pregnant people or people who have been pregnant. [arrow pointing to color guide.] I commonly use the same skin color I'm working with, but put a filter over it. [indentation (no longer following arrow)] also, they aren't exclusively light or dark! I have both types. They come in all different patterns and lengths, but avoid symmetry. [arrow pointing to bottom diagrams.] Common cellulite and stretch mark spots: i mean, look at all these! I couldn't even fit legs on here. Sometimes I get them on the back of my legs or knees.
Image 7 ID [Title is displayed at the top of the page followed by two drawings of people showing off stretch marks/cellulite. The left picture shows someone in a binder with tattoos on their left forearm and right shoulder, a hand on their hip. There are stretchmarks on the side of their belly, front, underneath, and on the outer sides of their thighs. Right picture shows someone with a hand on their butt, showing cellulite underneath. Flowery patterns surround both figures.]
Written image 7 ID: "'wait, stretch marks or cellulite?' [following the two figures.] The main difference is that cellulite is genetic. however, the terms are basically interchangeable, at this point. Who knew body types and genetics had so much in common?? (Geneticists, duh.) [graphic of text taken from Livestrong.com.] 'Your skin is attached to your muscles with cords of connective tissue. Between your skin and muscle lies a layer of fat. [highlighted text for the rest of the graphic.] Cellulite develops when fat cells accumulate underneath the skin and push against the skin while the connective cords pull down. This causes a bulging that creates the characteristic dimpling of cellulite. As the name implies, stretch marks develop as a result of rapid stretching of the skin. [End graphic. citation follows.] (I learned the difference from these studies, too! The point is, both are completely natural.
Image 8 ID [The drawings on this page show other common places where fat can rest including breasts, of which there are two drawings of, followed by an outstretched arm, followed by a pelvis cutting off just above the knees. At the very bottom right there is a small image of a leg.]
Written Image 8 ID: Other common places where fat can rest: [above the first two drawings.] Breasts [arrow pointing to a circle drawn just underneath the breasts and stomach.] Notice this area here! Sometimes there's a slight fold between the breasts and stomach. This is, again, often mistaken as the result of tight bras or binders, but is also completely genetic. [arrow pointing to the fingers on the outstretched arm graphic.] (fat can also affect the shape of the hands and fingers.) [arrow pointing to a circle drawn around the underneath of the bicep on the same graphic.] (also a hot spot for stretch marks!) 'bingo wings' are not exclusive to elderly characters. Personally, my arms are very soft, since I have a decent amount of muscle as well as fat concentrated here. [two circles describing the graphics, one labeled "arms" while the one underneath says "butt and thighs." following a red circle pointing out the fold between hip fat and thigh fat where undergarments usually squeeze.] There are sometimes folds here, again, purely genetic. [arrow pointing to the small leg in the lower right hand corner.] Make sure the lower leg tapers proportionately to the upper leg! {op note- discrepancy here- some legs and arms don't taper so nicely. "stubby" looking arms and legs can and are just as beautiful as ones that are "proportionately accurate."} [arrows pointing to the side of the thigh and the inner thigh, where there is a circle right under the pelvis.] (more stretch mark spots.)
Image 9 ID [Tile of the page appears at the top once again. This is followed by two drawings, one of a profile shot of the op facing to the left side of the page, gesturing to her neck and looking back at it. The one to the right is a much more cartoony doodle of the op's face, smiling facing the reader. flowery scribbles surround the smaller head. Underneath there are several body types lined up at the bottom of the page with colorful graphics filling in shapes behind the figures. They include: apple, a red circle, pear, a lime green pear shape, hourglass, two connected golden triangles stacked facing each other, triangle, a warm-teal triangle with a point facing the head of the figure, and inverted triangle, a gentle purple triangle facing the pelvis of the figure.]
Written image 9 ID: Last but not least: don't forget spots like the neck that can be easily forgotten! Double chins are very common, and folds on the back of the neck are, too. [two circles pointing these spots out on the first figure.] And remember the chubby face! Some general shapes to remember: [graphic of body types follows.]
Image 10 ID [the page is covered in soft translucent purple stars, with more body types dancing and interacting on it. The first, separated from the others, is a figure with one arm in the air and another on their chest, the diamond body type. They are a light blue diamond with points facing the pelvis and head. This is followed by another array of figures at the bottom: the bottom hourglass, a light tan hourglass shape with a smaller triangle being on top and the bigger one on the bottom, who is locking hands with the top hourglass, a darker tan hourglass with the larger triangle being on top and the smaller on the bottom. The spoon, a yellowish-lime green spoon shape with the handle sticking up into the torso, is talking to the round body type, a pink oval in the center of the figure. The rectangle body type is dancing off to the right, lost in the moment as the diamond seems to be. They are a seafoam rectangle following the torso.] Image
Written image 10 ID: "But there are so many others!
Experiment, have fun, and remember that:
[a list following the flow of the page.]
-Fat is not a dirty word
-Being fat is not inherently unhealthy
-Gaining or losing weight does not devalue you as a person
-Weight can change rapidly and over time
-Weight should not be a joke or subject to mockery
-You can be beautiful at any size!
[End ID.]
