by Philippa, Founder of Hank & Hera
I’ve been big for as long as I can remember. And for most of my life, that has meant one thing: limited options.
Not just limited sizes.
Limited styles.
Limited fabrics.
Limited opportunities to express who I actually am.
I don’t think people realise what it does to a woman to walk into store after store and find nothing made for her. Or worse, things that technically fit but are made from synthetic fibres, boxy silhouettes, and the assumption that you want to hide.
It sends a message:
“You don’t get softness.”
“You don’t get silk.”
“You don’t get romance, or elegance, or beauty.”
“You get coverage.”
That message—whether whispered or screamed—lands hard. And for many of us, it’s landed over and over again, until we started believing it.
The quiet grief of exclusion
For years, I couldn’t articulate it. I just felt… disconnected. From myself. From how I wanted to dress. From the kind of woman I thought I was supposed to be.
It’s only now, with some space and some softness, that I can name it:
grief. A kind of sorrow for what I never had access to.
The gowns I dreamed of.
The silk slips that didn’t come in my size.
The linen robes I only saw on other women.
The ability to express myself fully, without compromise.
That kind of loss stays with you.
It robs you of more than a shopping experience.
It robs you of self-expression. Of femininity. Of play.
It delays your journey home to yourself.
Late to my own feminine era
I often feel like I’m late to my own feminine awakening. Like I’m only now, in my late 30s, getting to know the side of me that craves beauty and texture and flow. And the truth is, I’ve always had that in me. But the fashion industry didn’t offer me the mirror I needed to see her.
That’s why I created Hank & Hera.
Because I wanted to design what I couldn’t find: plus-size sleepwear that feels luxurious, soft, sensual, and worthy. Pieces that honour your body rather than shrink it. Natural fibres that feel like a love letter to your skin.
Because femininity isn’t a size.
It’s a feeling.
And every woman deserves the chance to find her own version of it.
If this is your story too…
If you’ve ever looked in the mirror and felt like your softness, your curves, your longing for beauty didn’t belong in the world—
I want you to know: it does.
And it’s not too late to start again.
You get to choose linen.
You get to wear the silk.
You get to take up space.
You get to be feminine on your own terms.
This brand is my reclamation—and it can be yours too.
With love,
Philippa x
