Miami-based creator Gianna Pennacchio is a mid-size fashion expert sharing styling tips, products, and her daily routine on TikTok. Her try-on hauls of bodysuits, bathing suits, jeans, and more inspire legions of shopping sprees. While they might’ve previously been unsure if the pieces would work for them, once they see them on her, they’re sold. We spoke to Pennacchio about her favorite styling and confidence tips, and why she’s got a soft spot for Thigh Society.

What are your favorite things to share with your audience? Gianna Pennacchio:

I post on TikTok the most and that’s where I’m truly my authentic self. My favorite thing to post is ‘dressing my mid-size body,’ and I post things that I wear that make me feel comfortable and good. I made a video recently about finding my perfect bathing suit, since I moved to Miami and it can be hard to get the right fit. Another time, I was looking for the best bodysuit that wouldn’t show my belly button. My content ranges from beauty to lifestyle and a lot of fashion-forward content.

You talk about being midsize, but what does that mean exactly?

I started calling myself midsize before I knew exactly what that meant. Everything over a size 10 is mid-size and it’s in the middle before plus size. There are a ton of gorgeous creators out there that are model-thin and lots of girls who are plus size. Then there’s this middle ground where people aren’t really either of those — that’s what mid-size is. What are some of your top style tips for a mid-size body? My size fluctuates often but people always tell me that I look put together. My style tip is to always dress for the size that you are right now — you can’t dress for the size you were two months ago or the one you want to be. You won’t be comfortable. You need to be comfortable and then you will look good. I believe you can pull off anything as long as it’s in your size.

Which of your posts have resonated the most with your viewers and why?

I’ve gotten the most views on videos about bathing suits and bodysuits, and also posts which inspire confidence. Bathing suit videos have done really well because it’s hard to find a bathing suit if you’re in the middle size-wise. A lot of people are insecure about specific things, say their legs or their bellies. I get good responses from bathing suit videos because it looks good on me and then people think, “hey that will look good on me too!”. I have a video where I was trying a Girlfriend Collective bodysuit and it got 3-million views. A lot of the comments were something like, “I didn’t know I could wear this but seeing it on you, I’m going to buy it.” I could tell people loved the bodysuit and bought them — that made me feel really good. Recently, I got Thigh Society shorts when I got a little bigger and had crazy chub rub, and people were like “oh, me too.” I have a dynamic with my audience where we’ll have an issue, and then we come together and fix it by buying things that make us comfortable.

We know you love Thigh Society shorts! How do they play into your style?

I got an Instagram ad about Thigh Society and thought, “wow this is genius.” I had previously worn a few bike short-style shorts and never found what I needed. I moved to Miami in June and I’m sweaty and getting the worst chub rub all the time. I found these on Instagram and they’re so perfect. They’re lightweight and the band doesn’t make me feel like I’m wearing a rubber band around my stomach. I can go out in them under everything.

I have two pairs — the ones that are more sheer [The Cooling] and the ones that are more opaque [The Original], and I don’t get the chub rub at all. Without them I get welts on my legs and it’s so great to have them as an option to wear under anything without changing my look. They’re super comfortable and I wear them with basically anything that isn’t pants. 

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How would you describe your personal style?

I’m edgy and daring with some of my fashion items. I’ve been building a capsule wardrobe with basics that I can just throw on, but I do love leather jackets and big stomping boots like Doc Martens to give my look a little edge. When do you feel the most confident? Honestly, making my videos and being on camera! I grew up with my dad with a camcorder and I was vlogging before it was even a thing. I like talking to a community of people that care about the same things I do. Also, wearing something that makes me feel really good makes me really confident. You post a lot of workout videos.

What are some of your favorite ways to move your body?

I’ve been super into HIIT classes — I do those right when I wake up at F45. I also love Pilates classes, especially because you can just pull them up on YouTube. My goal is always to be healthy and do sports. I'm at a pickleball court right now with friends. I want to be able to run around with friends and also be strong physically. Have you seen a change in how we look at body-size diversity over the years? Yes, totally. It’s so wild, when you watch movies from the ‘90s they’ll be like, “this girl is so fat” and it’s the thinnest girl you’ve ever seen. It’s cool we’ve had such a shift in terms of inclusivity with fashion companies and celebrities being all different sizes now. Before it was definitely not like that. Recently, the low-rise jean has been coming back and people were so stressed about it, but today not everyone needs to wear them unlike in the ‘90s. Every body type is widely accepted now, which is super cool and we make people feel included.

Who is your body positive role model?

I love Remi Bader — she just is who she is. She’s never really positioned herself as body positive, rather she’s just been like, “this is me in these clothes, some of the clothes for thin girls look wild on me but a lot of stuff looks great because I’m totally hot.” I love that about her.