CREATE YOUR OWN MOLD

In her mid 40’s, Cynthia Christison stepped out of her comfort zone – she became a mature model at Evolved Style and opened a styling business, Article Styling with the goal of empowering women of all ages, shapes, sizes and income levels.

Since launching in fall 2020, Cynthia has worked with a variety of women from different backgrounds helping them to change the way the world perceives them through their stories and styles. Cynthia also wishes to work with teenagers. “They are at their vulnerable stage, where they are trying to navigate the world around them, and figure themselves out. I don’t want them to wait for 30 years before they start feeling good about themselves, because that is essentially what happened to me.”

Cynthia did not wake up one day and realize that she wanted to be a stylist. It has been a journey of looking inward, reconnecting with her inner self and evolving.

I met Cynthia on a Saturday afternoon. She looked minimal yet chic in a black t-shirt, mom jeans, a white jean jacket and a pair of colourful earrings. Contrary to the bold, vibrant and fun outfits on her Instagram, she appeared to be very slender, graceful and a bit shy.

“I NEVER FIT THE MOLD.”

Cynthia is a daughter of an immigrant family from Taiwan. Born and raised in a small town on Vancouver Island, she always felt like the odd one out. Not only did she find it hard to fit in as one of few people of colour at school, but she also found it hard to fit into the so-called “Asian-Chinese beauty standards” – i.e. petite, big ears, fair skin and a small mouth.

Photos of Cynthia and her family when she was a little girl. Photos provided by Cynthia.

“I’m over six feet tall. My eyes are small. My mouth is large. I'm opposite to everything,” Cynthia described herself. She constantly received comments on her appearance. “Whether they were from a place of concern or just commentary, those were things that I held on to and really impacted how I grew up and saw myself.”

One of the hardest things for her was being verbally mistaken for a male time and time again.

“It was hurtful and embarrassing,” Cynthia shared about a passing comment she once overheard about her from a guy in a bar.

To run away from those harsh body-shaming comments, Cynthia would treat clothes as “armour” and hide herself under layers of garments in hopes of not being noticed.

(From left to right) Cynthia at 11, 12 and 14 years old.

Photos from www.articlestyling.ca

“RECONNECTING WITH HER INNER STRENGTH”

Cynthia’s self-confidence hit rock bottom in her mid-20s – that’s when realized she needed to change.

“I didn’t want to keep being judged. I didn't want people to draw conclusions about me just by how I look because I'm Chinese and too tall.”

She started her healing journey by looking inward and reconnecting with her inner strength. Growing up as a competitive swimmer, she knew swimming was something she excelled at and gave her confidence. As it was one of her lifelong goals to do an Ironman, she signed up for her first sprint triathlon in 2004 and finished Ironman Canada in 2007.

“All of the training helped me reset and reclaim who I was in the world,” said Cynthia. “You got to address what’s in here (*touches her heart*) before you can outwardly address things.”

Cynthia riding her bike in Ironman Canada in 2007.

“RECONCILING WITH HERSELF”

Cynthia shares on her website, “I am a proud Chinese-Canadian woman, but that has not always been the case”. Years of comments from people on her appearance made her resent being Chinese and the fact that she looked different from others.

Cynthia with her family in Taiwan. Photo provided by Cynthia.

However, becoming a mother to Jack and William spurred her to explore and connect with her Asian heritage.

“My children are half Caucasian and half-Chinese. I want them to be proud of their identity, proud of being Chinese, and proud of the way they look,” she says. “I knew I needed to find a way to honour my Chinese roots.”

Cynthia with her family. Photos provided by Cynthia

Cynthia works with Indigenous communities through her day job at The City of Calgary.

“Many Indigenous people have been robbed of the opportunity to connect with their culture and family history—the impacts of that have been far-reaching,” she says. “I see how hard they have to work to connect with their culture. I don’t want to take for granted the opportunity to connect with mine.”

For Cynthia, it is a poignant reminder of how important it is for her kids to understand who they are and where they came from. Her proudest moments are when Jack and William ask her to read them Chinese books, sing them Chinese songs, and make Taiwanese beef noodles, Chinese pancakes and dumplings on the weekend.

Cynthia with her sons, Jack and William. Photo provided by Cynthia.

“CREATING MY OWN MOLD”

“I’m still on my journey to heal and discover myself. I still care about what people think about me, but I care less about what they think or say about my appearance,” shared Cynthia.

“I have learned to embrace my story and my differences—owning the fact that I’m not your typical Asian female and creating my own mould.”

When she started to realize her values and true self, her life started to change and opened the door to opportunities that she had never thought of before, especially joining Evolved Style as a mature model in 2019.

Instead of hiding away, Cynthia uses clothes as a tool to express herself and communicate with the world. She loves the 80’s fashion, streetwear and incorporating colours in her look.

“I get my hackles up when people say style doesn’t matter. Style matters. Style isn't like a linear thing. It's all these things that make you who you are and how you want to express yourself. My style reflects my values, my interests, my past, and where I want to go.”