CELEBRATING AMAZING WOMEN // Sabrina's Important Message

Our Dream Fulfilment Specialist Sabrina is incredibly passionate about body positivity and highlighting REAL women in advertising. Sabrina organised a photoshoot with a few gorgeous members of the #ReviewGirl community to help convey this message, and has written the beautiful letter below to accompany the photos. P.S. There are sneak peeks galore of gorgeous new jewels to come, watch this space.

Over to you, Sabrina! 


"My message is not new; it is just one we all forget. Easily. Often. Very often.

All my life I have struggled with my body, my shape, my weight and my style. I used to live in black and grey clothes and cry, literally sob, every single day. The tears started each day, with getting dressed. I wasn't the size of the models I saw in the catalogues and marketing and my life always existed in "one day".

One day, when I lose weight I will wear that (an outfit from a catalogue). One day, when I lose weight, I will do that (a posed picture of someone hiking). One day, one day, one day. The fashion changed and I constantly beat myself up for missing out on the latest fashion trend for being too "fat". I was missing out on life, one day at a time. My sadness overflowed into my attitude and my mum/wife-life, it honestly affected my family.

Sabrina wears the Bloom Ribbon Stud Earrings (Pink),  Petunia Brooches (Hot Pink) and Everyday Single Bangles.

I have heard people say that their jewels or their clothes are their armour and I really resonate with that statement. I invested in myself, I did some self care. I found a style that suited me and I bought a Review dress for my interview with the owner of the incredibly colourful Ruby Olive. I really felt like myself, wearing clothes that I felt confident in styled with colourful accessories.

I felt like the happy, bubbly, silly, fun person I always knew I was. It became a cycle that kept on evolving, walking down the street people would smile (due to the colour I was wearing) and then I got more confidence. I WAS that happy, bubbly person and people could tell before they even spoke to me. I was treated more kindly and people would actually come to me for a chat, which I absolutely adore.

I didn't have anyone to inspire me or to look up to, so I became a role model for myself. I tried more colour, more dresses, more bangles, more rainbows. I did it for me. I did it for my daughters. Now that I have found my happy again, I am doing this for all women who are not feeling quite right in black/jeans or the latest fashion trends, for other 40 something year olds still finding their way, for size 16 (and above) women not fitting into what we are told to wear.

Shop the jewels seen in this photo: Everyday Oval Disc Drop Earrings and Betty Butterfly Brooches (on Sammie), Bloom Petunia Brooches (on Helen and Sabrina), Everyday Bangles (worn by most).

With the incredible support of Ruby Olive, I asked a few girls from the Review community to help with my friendly reminder, my message and passion, to represent their "tag size", their age and their ethnicity. Albeit a tiny snippet of the incredibly diverse range of the community, I had to stick to locality, thanks COVID.

I wanted these photos of us Review Girls dressed the same, to pack a punch, to really hit home about the size difference in marketing and our individuality with our styling.

But as I look at us, do you know what I see?

I see beautiful, confident, happy, smiling women.

I don't see anything confrontational or anything out of place, and isn't that what we should all see? 

I want to see a world where women see themselves reflected in advertising, a world where children see themselves AND their mothers/female role models in advertising. A world where advertising is inclusive of all ages, shapes, sizes, abilities and ethnicities. A world where women don't cry every day when they get dressed (I am sure I wasn't alone).

I am incredibly grateful to have this chance to share my message, to reach so many women who may be feeling like I did just a few short years ago. I am so grateful to work here at Ruby Olive, who have always used real women and customers in their advertising and to Review for including me in the Real Review Girl Campaign earlier this year. Ruby Olive and Review has given me the confidence to use my voice, to scream: "You are beautiful, you are amazing, you are you - I want to see more!!" 

Shop the jewels seen in this photo: Everyday Oval Disc Drop Earrings and Betty Butterfly Brooches (on Sammie), Bloom Petunia Brooches (on Helen and Sabrina), Everyday Bangles (worn by all).

Body positivity is about accepting every size and shape, every single detail of each other. Body Positivity is listening to a woman talking about her goals of wanting to lose a kilo or two or more and not shaming her because she is a size 6. You can be Body Positive and have had work done, your lips, your ears pinned back or a tummy tuck, we should see this more and it should be normal. You can work out every day and eat right and still be a size 16, Body Positivity is accepting this and not labelling that person fat or unhealthy. Body Positivity is being proud and accepting. Body Positivity is about loving your body and wanting to be the best version of yourself there is. Body Positivity is about not beating yourself up because you don't fit it with the marketing ideals, about changing what you don't like, styling your body to show what you love. You are still Body Positive, if you work out, change your hair etc. Body Positivity is realising we are all different, we are all unique, we are all human. Body Positivity should be celebrated and not judged. Body Positivity is rejecting those who tell me what to wear and how I will feel wearing it.  

Most of all body positivity is about health – physical and mental health. It is about not giving up on either; it is about fighting for the best health we can achieve.

My passion is spreading and spotlighting body positivity."