Tim Gunn with the mic drop!
The co-host of Project Runway has written an essay for the Washington Post lamenting the lack of designers willing to make beautiful clothing for plus-size women.
Related: Kate Upton Talks Body Shaming & Bullying
He writes:
“I love the American fashion industry, but it has a lot of problems, and one of them is the baffling way it has turned its back on plus-size women. It’s a puzzling conundrum. The average American woman now wears between a size 16 and a size 18. But many designers ├óΓé¼ΓÇ¥ dripping with disdain, lacking imagination or simply too cowardly to take a risk ├óΓé¼ΓÇ¥ still refuse to make clothes for them.”
The Emmy winner dishes out facts that are hard to ignore, explaining that plus-size women are actually spending more money on clothing than straight-size women.
Still, mainstream designers rarely if ever offer clothing above a size 12.
Tim reveals:
“I’ve spoken to many designers and merchandisers about this. The overwhelming response is, “I’m not interested in her.” Why? “I don’t want her wearing my clothes.” Why? “She won’t look the way that I want her to look.” They say the plus-size woman is complicated, different and difficult, that no two size 16s are alike.”
Wow! Shameful! Perhaps the real reason is that some of these designers don’t have the talent to make functional and attractive clothing for anybody who’s not a size 2!
He also completely slams last year’s Project Runway winner:
“Ashley Nell Tipton won the contest with the show’s first plus-size collection. But even this achievement managed to come off as condescending. I’ve never seen such hideous clothes in my life: bare midriffs; skirts over crinoline, which give the clothes, and the wearer, more volume; see-through skirts that reveal panties; pastels, which tend to make the wearer look juvenile; and large-scale floral embellishments that shout “prom.” Her victory reeked of tokenism.”
Whoa, tell us how you really feel!
The 63-year-old concludes by saying:
“[T]his is now the shape of women in this nation, and designers need to wrap their minds around it. I profoundly believe that women of every size can look good. But they must be given choices. Separates ├óΓé¼ΓÇ¥ tops, bottoms ├óΓé¼ΓÇ¥ rather than single items like dresses or jumpsuits always work best for the purpose of fit. Larger women look great in clothes skimming the body, rather than hugging or cascading. There’s an art to doing this. Designers, make it work.”
That’s right — make it work!
What do YOU think of Tim’s thoughts on the matter???
[Image via WENN.]
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