Quotes from Ashley Graham

I think that no woman has to defend her body, and she should just live her truth. It should never be about the number size of her pants, and it should be about what you're doing in the world. What does her brain look like and not her hip size.

The really hard moment was when my dad said, 'Honey, if an agent is telling you to lose weight, then maybe you should lose weight.' I was 15, standing in our living room, having a moment I will never forget. I never had a parent tell me to lose weight, and it hurt.

I want to be a better parent than I had. Even though my mom was absolutely amazing. Her and I are still best friends to this day. I think that the next generation should always be better and better.

Curvy models are becoming more and more vocal about the isolating nature of the term 'plus-size.' We are calling ourselves what we want to be called - women, with shapes that are our own.

Social media has truly helped my career because it has given models a voice. And a voice is something that we want to see a change in the industry.

I just don't live my life in a world where I am not feeling my best, and feeling my best is feeling sexy.

I really believe that parents need to know they are shaping the future of their children.

That's really truly what my message is - finding self love within yourself and not comparing yourself to others - because there's no such thing as perfection, because perfection doesn't exist.

The fashion industry may persist to label me as 'plus-size,' but I like to think of it as 'my size.'

The fashion industry might persist to label me as plus-sized, but I like to think of it as my-sized.

There's something to be said about just being vulnerable. Every woman has gone through something in her life that has been an image issue, or it has been something where somebody told her she's not good enough. And every woman can relate to that.

I love blocking people. I'm not afraid to block anybody.

There are reasons to set boundaries for yourself, but there are also reasons to keep doors open.

I always felt second best. I was never the prettiest, never the skinniest, never the fastest in my sports. Never the smartest, because I have dyslexia. Then, all of a sudden, people were like, 'You're gorgeous.' And I was like, 'What?'

Back in Nebraska, I was known as the fat model - the girl who was pretty for a big girl. My body, like my confidence, has been picked apart, manipulated, and controlled by others who didn't necessarily understand it.

We can't create change until we recognize and check our own actions.

I also need to honor myself for working so hard, and that means treating the money I earn with respect.

I'm going to be pulling my pants up all day, and I'm just going to have a terrible day. Because if your clothes don't fit, just like bras or anything, it's not a good day.

I really hope that the fashion community will not accept anything that does not represent everyone.

I used to be bound by people who placed limits on what they thought I could do. Through that, I learned that if you want something, you have to be the one to go out and do it. If you don't ask for something, you're not going to get it.

I have been so blessed not only to talk about things that I want to talk about in my industry, but also to have a platform - and people want to hear about it.

A lot of who I am is connected to my size, and I am so happy with who I am.

The runway isn't just about showing fashion, it's about gaining confidence. And I really believe that once you've got your confidence, you can wear anything, you can do anything.

For 10 years, I'd been told I was always going to be a catalogue girl, never a cover girl. Well, I got with IMG and did five covers in a year, boom, boom, boom.