On the occasion of her groundbreaking recent cover of Vogue Italia, alongside two other plus-sized models, we mentioned that Australia’s Robyn Lawley had another high fashion coup up her sleeve, just shot in Australia with Max Doyle. Frockwriter can reveal that that shoot is in fact a 10-page designer fashion editorial called 'Belle Curve' in the September edition of Vogue Australia, which is out on August 3rd. Subscriber copies landed today (thanks to our tipster who emailed the shots in). The editorial is accompanied by a double-page interview with Lawley. According to Kirstie Clements' editor's letter, this is the first time in Vogue Australia's 52-year history that the magazine has shot a plus-sized model for a fashion editorial. Hot on the heels of Lawley’s Vogue Italia cover and herElle France cover in April, 2011 is turning out to be a banner year for Lawley, Bonner and the plus size-specialist modelling industry.
One of the strengths of the Australian modelling industry, say industry insiders in New York, is its extraordinary versatility. "You cross every section - you have sexy, you have edgy, you have androgynous, you have it all” Elite Model Management's Doll Wright tells frockwriter. Add curvy to that list. Twenty-one year-old Robyn Lawley has just pulled off what no other plus-size Australian model has thus far managed to do: score the cover of an international fashion title. Here is Lawley on the cover of French ELLE’s ‘Spécial Rondes’ issue, which has just hit the newsstands. She also appears on 10 other pages inside the issue. Even more exciting: on Monday and Tuesday this week in New York, we can reveal that Lawley, an Australian size 14, shot an editorial and cover try for the June issue of far more prestigious European fashion title, with one of fashion's biggest photographic names. Yes, the shoot was for a plus-size story. But give her time.
Karl Lagerfeld severed ties with H&M in part because the company wanted to produce his collection in large sizes, while he was reportedly only interested in designing “fashion for slender and slim people”. But it seems the Swedish fast fashion behemoth hasn’t let this rain on its plus size parade. From early March, H&M will offer a 20-unit capsule collection called, simply, Inclusive, which will be available in sizes 32-54 and sold exclusively online (these would appear to be Swedish sizes, which equate to an Australian 6-28). Many thanks to Runway Revolution for the headsup. Why online only? In 2008, when Australian designer Leona Edmiston decided to double her size range to a 24, coincidentally she also only offered the larger sizes online, after her research indicated that many larger women felt uncomfortable in boutiques.
Wayne Cooper could be the “Gordon Ramsay of the fashion business” if Kostas Metaxas has anything to do with it. The Melbourne-based filmmaker has a "fashion comedy miniseries" called The WC starring Cooper in development and is currently talking to Australian and international television networks. Curiously, there has been zip local publicity on this, beyond a press release about a National Association of Television Program Executives award the teaser webisode, below, won in LA in July. The webisode was made specifically for the latter competition according to Metaxas, who tells frockwriter he has shot three quarters of the material for a full-length feature, but that The WC could be, pending interest, “a feature, a tv series or 20 webisodes....This is like a starting point. Wayne is an interesting character, and he’s an exceptional actor. And at the same time he has a sense of humour. He understands that what we’re doing is not meant to be rocket science”.
It’s been interesting tracking the story of plus sized designer clothing over the past two years. In March 2008, at Fully Chic, we incurred the wrath of some plus-sized consumers after reporting that although Target Australia made up to a size 16 in its Stella McCartney collection in 2007, so much size 16 merch was left on the sales racks Target stopped at a 14 when it came to producing its next collab with Zac Posen. Several weeks later we reported that Australian designer Leona Edmiston was doubling her size range to a 24 – but only in her online boutique. The story triggered a heated debate amongst those who lauded Edmiston's pioneering efforts - and those who claimed the move was “normalising obesity". Last year, Today Tonight took size 16 Melbourne blogger Hayley Hughes undercover into Melbourne’s Chapel Street. She found virtually no merchandise over size 12. Eighteen designers and retailers refused to discuss with the program why fashion's high end actively discriminates against larger consumers by ignoring them, with insiders citing concerns the issue was "bad for their image". So it was with some surprise that we spotted what could be the best-kept secret in the fashion business: a report that Saks Fifth Avenue is about to trial plus sizes from luxury brands including Chanel, Yves Saint Laurent, Dolce e Gabbana and Fendi on its New York designer womenswear floor.
Here is the video player for the first story I pitched and produced after arriving back at Today Tonight. It looked at plus size discrimination at the designer end of the fashion market. The story aired on 27th October 2009. It took a while before I could source the correct embed code for the Seven/Yahoo videos and in the blur of the past six months back on deck at the program, I overlooked blogging this as a standalone. So here it is finally (posted 24/04/10, but backdated). Many thanks once again to the awesome Hayley Hughes aka Fashion Hayley, who was happy to hit up Chapel Street for two days, wiretapped by a tabloid current affairs crew. Also Nicholas Perkins and Antipodium's Fenella Peacock. It took chutzpah to talk about this issue on prime time television. As the story mentions, 18 fashion designers and major retailers were approached for comment, including companies that do cater to 16+. All declined. Reporter Laura Sparkes, one of my absolute TT faves, voiced the story. Damian Moncrieff edited.
In addition to semi-regular fashion chats with various radio stations, I am now doing a fortnightly chinwag with the Afternoons with Carole Whitelock show on ABC Adelaide, every second Tuesday at 2.00pm AEST. This week, we discussed the news of the move by Australian department store Myer to incorporate plus-size models in its upcoming Spring/Summer 2009/2010 season launch parades around Australia - and the general subject of fashion and the larger woman. Click the player above to hear the iv. I do hasten to add here, however, that the plus-size models will be appearing everywhere other than the Sydney launch on August 19. At the time of the interview, having read several interstate stories, I believed they may also have been due to appear in Sydney. My apologies for the confusion. Myer's plus-size brands – which include Basque Woman, Jane Lamerton, Taking Shape, Nouvelle Woman and Estelle – will only be shown in the consumer parades. Myer spokesman Mitch Catlin told frockwriter that plus-size models will appear in Myer's consumer parades, including the five Sydney downtown parades, but not at the most high profile event on August 19, “Because that [parade] is Australian designer and they don’t make plus size. Also, it’s a media event, not a public event. We decided that all of our public events would reflect what consumers are buying”.
Although the public might not be invited to the Sydney press launch, they will of course be viewing the reports.
As we already know moreover, one of Myer's best-known designer brands, Leona Edmiston, does in fact cater up to a size 24. Same goes for Toni Maticevski who, from this month in 20 Myer stores, will offer a custom-make bridesmaids range called Maticevski Sweethearts that also caters up to a size 24.
So that's two of Myer's headline designers who will be featured in the August 19 show, who already cater to the plus-size market. Why on earth not show some of their merchandise?
I wrote about Edmiston's decision to upsize to 24 on my Fully Chic blog at NEWS.com.au.
Fully Chic readers who migrated to frockwriter may recall that the Leona Edmiston post prompted quite some debate – not to mention vitriol. And from both sides; that is, from both fat and skinny bashers.
Many larger women applauded Edmiston's decision to finally cater to their needs, while some criticised her decision to sell the larger sizes in the online boutique only. Others claimed the move was "normalising" obesity.
One commenter attracted a lot of attention - from not just blog readers, but also from the hosts of 10 Australian radio shows that wound up talking about the post - when she noted that she would hate turning up to a party in exactly the same dress that a size 24 was wearing.
Edmiston's decision to make larger sizes available exclusively online was based on the company's market research that indicated many larger women feel uncomfortable in designer boutiques - something that was certainly borne out in comments on the Fully Chic post.
Several months later, I did an interview with Paris-based American plus-size model Velvet d’Amour, who says she has been criticised for "ruining" the plus-size modelling industry because she is so much bigger than the plus-size norm.
I had originally interviewed Velvet in October 2006, when she was modelling in Jean Paul Gaultier's Spring/Summer 2007 show in Paris. It was her first full-length interview and it attracted quite a lot of attention at the time, notably from the US.
Last year's Fully Chic interview also prompted heated debate amongst NEWS.com.au readers – and yet more vitriol. Although Velvet encouraged me to publish some of the harshest comments, to demonstrate the vilification that is often faced by larger people, there were many, many comments which just could not see the light of day because they were so disgusting.
Damn those larger ladies and their propensity to hog the fashion spotlight. Can’t they just stick to muumuus? Don't they know their place?
Apparently not. As Velvet noted in the latter interview, there is a “quiet, fat revolution” underway, spearheaded by larger-than-life high-profilers such as Beth Ditto.
Ditto, the frontwoman of American indie rock outfit Gossip, has no fear of fashion, pouring herself into Hervé Leger and Alexander McQueen – among other brands - all of it presumably custom-made by designers who don’t mind high-profile larger women wearing their clothes. Which is, one has to say, pretty unusual. Although truth be told, the designer brands worn by Ditto would be hard pressed to cater to even a size 16 in their regular offerings.
