HYDERABAD: It has been a roller coaster ride for plus-sized model Ashley Graham from the beginning. With being featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated and launching her own clothing line to being named Glamour’s Woman of the Year and even gracing with her very own Barbie (with no thigh gap), it comes as no surprise that the 28-year-old is now starring in her first Vogue cover.
First, she was seen in a bikini on the cover of Sports Illustrated, which shook some critics - including swimsuit model Cheryl Tiegs, who claimed that the size 16 model was “glamorised” being overweight. Following this, she appeared as the first plus-size model on the cover of Maxim, holding (not wearing) a white button-down shirt. People said she was photoshopped. Now, she’s the first plus-size model to grace the cover of British Vogue - and controversy was sure to follow.
The editor-in-chief, Alexandra Schulman said that Ashley’s photoshoot was a hurried affair and was “fairly last-minute”. Why? Because many high-label designers and brands flatly refused to lend or make clothes for the model who was outside the sample range! But size 16 is now the average size of an American woman.
Closer home, women are facing similar problems. “It feels like designers don’t want to associate themselves with the stigma that comes with bodies over a certain size,” says Shruti, a size 18 woman. “It’s difficult to find clothes for my size.” The jackets that fit around her shoulders are all cropped very short and her torso can’t get the last word in!
“Designers don’t realise that our arms get bigger too. The same cropped jacket would fit my torso, but I had to go up three more sizes to get the arms to fit. By that point, I could be wearing a garbage bag and it would have fit me better,”she rues.
Claiming that it’s easier to find casual wear, Anamika has a tough time finding formal gowns and dresses. “A lot of my friends are getting married, but I can’t find readymade dresses my size. The only options are for a 95-year-old frumpy grandma or a 15-year-old brightly dressed school girl. There is nothing in between.” The statement “I’m a plus-size woman who loves fashion” need not be a contradiction.
“Why is fashion inclusivity and sizing so hard?” Anamika rues. “I don’t know what’s worse - when I have to beg for a size 10 or a 12, and have the sales associates assure me, “We have bigger sizes in the back”! It’s especially upsetting when they suggest that you trim down to a “healthier” weight like it’s no big deal.”
It’s no secret that our fashion industry is in desperate need of a makeover. In a world where researchers have found that plus-sized women are forced to cross-dress to work out (study by Nicole O’Donnell from Washington State University) this is a message for more accessible designers - it’s time to step up the sizes and the designs.