Crystal Renn

If anyone pays attention to plus size modeling you have seen and heard of Crystal Renn. She is possibly the most famous plus size model in the industry. She was however, not always a plus size model. Crystal started out like any other model and when contacting a model agency they told her to lose 10 inches from her waist. She then began a war on her body and mind determined to lose the weight. She battled with an eating disorder that nearly cost her life. However, she decided that she no longer wanted to live like that. It took extreme courage to pick herself up from her situation and ultimately she has used her story to help others. She decided to let herself eat again and then proceeded to contact Ford Models about being a plus size model. She regained a fuller figure and she had instant success. She has participated in campaigns for Mango, Torrid, Lane Bryant, and been featured in plus size shops such as Macy's, Nordstrom, and Saks. Not only has her success been in plus size retailing but she has walked the runway numerous times and was personally requested for the Jean Paul Gautier 2005 runway show. She has had much success in US and international versions of vogue, Elle, and V magazine. Crystal also published a book about her story and has remained active in telling her struggle so that it could deter other girls from doing damage to themselves that Crystal had. Her book is titled Hungry and was published in 2009. I personally have not read this book but I feel her personal story of success is admirable. The core meaning behind her story is that you must love yourself and your body because you cant try to be something or someone else just because someone says that you should. Crystal decided to love herself the way she naturally was and when that happened her happiness and her career took off.

Fashion for the Curvy ones

 

There is a serious epidemic.


Plus size fashion needs help.....now. Girls do not want to wear their grandmothers clothes, Mothers do not want to wear tapered jeans or  Dereon, roca wear, and apple bottom jeans, and no one can always be a Triple D in her cup size. Tunics do not look good on everyone. Just because they have a tummy and people want to "hide" it doesnt mean a maternity top in disquise as a size 26 tunic top is flattering either. And may I give a shout out to the short plus size ladies out there? As a woman who is 5'3 and a size 20 it is NOT easy to find a pretty top that doesnt make me look and feel  3 feet tall AND wide. Finding a blazer that not only fits my B cup chest, my size 20 hips, and my 5'3 frame was a miracle in itself. However, in my never ending search for more fashionable clothing that actualy FITS the plus size woman I have found many brands that vary in price ranges.

Lane Bryant: My go to place for business wear and jeans!

Cacique (part of Lane Bryant): The best in the busniess for underthings, even lingere!

Avenue plus size clothing: You will have to dig deep here, but I have found several good things

Tjmaxx and Marshalls: have been my fashion savior. You can find cheap, in trend items there in sizes 1-3X & 14-26. I've found some great brands like Calvin Klein, Cynthia Rowley and Ralph Lauren!

ROSS: The cheapest of the TJMaxx/Marshals type stores, however I found a amazing Tahari dress there for $30!

ASOS: Its a online boutique with an amazing plus size line, slightly pricey but the clothes are great!

Torrid: Torrid is super trendy, be careful they offer a lot of tube tops, if you are top heavy FORGET IT.

Fashion Bug: Once you can get past the studded burnout Tee's you will find some good things. My favorite black cardigan and printed skirt came from here! 

Oldnavy: They do have a very extensive plus size line, however it is only sold online.

Of couse you can always go to department stores, but if you really want to find some trendy, age appropriate stuff go to Macy's. Truely the only department store that has their plus size fashion up to date. They carry many high end brands with plus size lines, below are just a few:

Ralph Lauren

INC

Style & Co

Tommy Hilfigure

Liz Claiborne

Michael Kors

Calvin Klein

Shoes and accessories are going to be a big hit, keep fit and silhouette as the utmost importance, and most importantly be comfortable and confident in what you wear!

Note: These are just a few suggestions. People who live in bigger cities definitely have more to choose from.

Skin

In the modeling industry you can never be tall enough, thin enough, or beautiful enough.  Models you see on the runway are painfully thin, and hardly anyone says anything about it. There is such pressure placed on models to be thin and fit in that sample size that it can lead to some pretty destructive behavior. Eating disorders are very common behind closed doors. In the industry it is their JOB to fit in that 00 sample size. There have been many tragic cases where models have died from anorexia and while there have been some regulations in the fashion industry they are simply not enough. Until the indistry itself starts changing their perspective on beauty, women will continue to be destructive to themselves both physically and emotionally.

Model, Isabel Caro died last year from complications with her eating disorder. She desperately wanted to get better, but so much damage had been done to her hear, her body, and her mind that she couldnt survive it. She hated her disease that controlled her life and tried made a campaign against anorexia. She wanted to help other women with the disorder and to keep other girls from going down the same path. She posed for billboards and advertisments that stated "no anorexia"  The image above is an image from the campaign:

Can we really ignore this epidemic in the industry

You Melt My Heart to Stone

By far one of my favorite women in the spotlight. I have always been a hardcore Adele fan and I personally consider her to be extremely beautiful.  Not only does adele have a extremely powerful, captivaiting voice, and striking looks, she also has a large amount of confidence in herself. She knows that its not about what size her breasts are, but what her music evokes in her listeners. A quote from the inverview at Rolling Stone:

"“My life is full of drama and I won’t have time to worry about something as petty as what I look like. I don’t like going to the gym. I like eating fine foods and drinking nice wine. Even if I had a really good figure, I don’t think I’d get my tits and ass out for no one. I love seeing Lady Gaga’s boobs and bum. I love seeing Katy Perry’s boobs and bum. Love it. But that’s not what my music is about. I don’t make music for eyes. I make music for ears.”

Curvy Girls

In hollywood it always seems like everyone is a size zero. There is an enormous amount of pressure to be thin in the industry and most celebrities are told they need to lose weight, they are subjected to tons of judgements and articls in the tabloids for their appearance. But there are some women who stand up for their natural body shape and embrace their curves. Celebrities like Christina Hendriks, Beyonce, Amber Riley, Marylin Monroe, Scarlett Johanson, Kate Winslet, America Fererra, Jennifer Lopez, Kim Kardashian and The Rodarte Sisters. It is especially interesting to me that one of the most powerful fashion duo's in the industry, the sisters who design for Rodarte, one sister is in fact plus size! These are beautiful women. These women are role models, they are people who stood up for themselves in a world of 00's. Instead of telling women everywhere they are "chunky, thick, chubby" maybe we should tell them they are "curvy, voluptuous, and beautiful".

The Feminine Male

It has become a evolution of sorts. Men are becoming more interested in beauty and fashion. While there have always been men who give a great deal of care to their wardrobe and beauty regimines, they are the exception. A vast majority of men have been trained that it is "girlie" or even in a more derogatory and insulting (paritcuarly to the LGBTQ community) way that its "Gay" to care about your skincare regemine or have a interest in fashoin.

However, the "metro-sexual" male is becoming ever more present. Brands are starting to carry skincare lines and a larger variety of clothing options for their more beauty inclined male. It has become more popular for men to get "feminine treatments" such as pedicures, manicures, spa treatments and even waxes. Personally, a man who wont complain or cry about getting his eyebrows shaped is pretty manly to me. 

Beauty is changing in this industry ever day. You know its true when you are sitting next to a man getting your nails done at the same time.

Andrej Pejic-Bluring the Lines between Male and Female

This fall Jean Paul Gautier debuted his Fall 2011 collection and with that he had selected a very interesting model to be in the show. This lovely young woman (shown above) is in fact a 19 year old man. His name is Andrej Pejic and he has been crossing the lines between female and male for his entire life. This speaks volumes about an adrogynous trend in the fashion industry. This is a ever growing trend in fashion and could possibly have been inspiration from the LGBTQ community. Andrej Pejic is not the only androgynous person in the spotlight, singer Elly Jackson from La Roux and model Agyness Deyn have been known for their androgynous looks. This trend in androgyny begs the question, "is the new female ideal to look like a man?"