Fashion has a fat problem. Not only is it hard to find your favorite high-end designer looks in a range of sizes—the runways of fashion week tend to stick to one body type: thin, tall and sample size. While inclusion has become a buzzword the last few years and some designers commit to walking a few curve models, the industry is still not as inclusive as it should be.
It’s been hard to trace exactly what it is that stops the industry from catering to a broader segment of the population. Fat girls love fashion as much as the next person. And for fashion to thrive as a segment of the economy, it behooves the industry to consider all customer opportunities. After all, the average American woman wears a size 16-18.
This year, we decided to document the moments we believe are getting it right—the brands that recognize the fact that bodies come in a range of sizes, people trying to create inclusive spaces, and the people that are working to change representation at Fashion Week.
Some may still think fat is unfashionable, un-sexy, un-chic. These shows and parties suggest otherwise.
1. 11 Honoré and Candice Huffine hosted Fashion Week kickoff dinner.
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Patrick Herning, the founder and CEO of 11 Honoré has been committed to curating inclusive spaces since the launch of the luxury retailer. After their newsworthy 2018 fashion show (that included greats like Laverne Cox), he returned to fashion week this year with a smaller, more intimate gathering of influencers, creative directors, stylists, and editors who are all committed to size inclusivity and plus fashion in their work. Hosted with runway model Candice Huffine, the event was an inclusive and elevated experience that kicked off this year's New York Fashion Week.
2. Christian Siriano's F/W 2020 New York Fashion Week show.
Christian Siriano has been a pioneer in dressing curve and plus women since the launch of his formidable career as a designer. His runway is a who’s who of curve model “it girls” like Precious Lee, Candace Huffine, Ashley Graham among others. It’s probably also why he’s a go-to red carpet favorite designer for celebrities such as Leslie Jones, Crissy Metz, and Whoopi Goldberg. Siriano proves that you can have an elevated, red carpet look irrespective of the size of your body. This year's F/W collection at New York Fashion Week was no exception.
3. Universal Standard hosted size-inclusive brands Chromat, Henning, and Coyan for panel and 3-day pop-up shop.
On Thursday, February 6, Universal Standard opened up their downtown space to host a panel discussion about what it takes to launch a plus size fashion brand. Topics included barriers to funding, overcoming exclusion in the industry, and why and how they started their businesses. The event was followed by a 3-day pop-up shopping experience where you could shop from Chromat's collection of fun swim and active-wear, Henning's tailored basics and Coyan's luxurious rich dresses.
4. Collina Strada’s “Garden Ho” F/W 2020 presentation.
Collina Strada skipped the traditional runway show this season for an immersive experience in the basement of a dive bar in the East Village. The audience crowded in for the show around a runway covered in actual grass and a full garden at the back of the stage. The show was diverse in all ways: race, gender, age, and size. There was someone expecting a child, another carrying their toddler. Collina Strada’s founder Hillary Taymour found a way to tie together many themes like nature, sustainability, inclusion, tie-dye, and fresh kicks into a cohesive experience that felt like it was redefining what fashion means. Clothes are not just something you wear, but part of a bigger ecosystem from how you source and make clothes to who has the right to wear them. In Taymour’s world, it should be everybody.
5. Chromat’s F/W 2020 presentation.
Chromat did it again: they created one of the most inclusive experiences at NYFW. In fact, inclusion feels like the wrong word for Becca Mccharen-Tran’s vision for her brand of swim and workout wear. It’s more like a necessary intervention or a redefining of the rules that make up fashion. This year, the brand skipped the runway show, and instead occupied a gym in lower Manhattan. Bodies of all sizes, shapes, genders, and abilities engaged in different activities from working out to choreographed dancing. This year didn’t feel like it was just about the clothes, and more about what our bodies can do: irrelevant of size, all bodies should have access to the same activities, especially if those activities include being joyful, expressing yourself or feeling free.
6. Lydia Hudgens's street style photography.
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Photographer and artist Lydia Hudgens has long since been a advocate for body diversity and has been photographing curve and plus people outside of NYFW's favorite shows since 2017. Not only is there a lack of inclusive representation on runways, but street style is also often confined to thin show attendees. Hudgens is rewriting those rules—she goes to shows looking for exactly the looks that have been historically excluded from those much sought after round-ups. In fact, some of us maybe are guilty of dressing up just with the hopes we’ll catch her sartorial eye. This year's pics are no different.
7. The Nordstrom launch of SKIMS, Kim Kardashian’s shapewear line.
SKIMS launched at Nordstrom the day before fashion week started with 40 models of all different shades and sizes modeling the original influencer's new shapewear line. Kim Kardashian’s eye for diverse shapes was on full display in this inclusive and beautiful presentation with a product that will be both accessible and useful.
8. And then there was this very cute TikTok made outside the Chromat show — with your fave plus influencers.
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Want more from Teen Vogue? Check this out: The Best #FatAtFashionWeek Style From NYFW
