Lord Taylor of Warwick

One might ask, what does a Lord know about fashion? Apart from wearing an ermine gown once a year at state openings, I have two teenage girls with modeling experience. London fashion week is an economic booster, raking in million of pounds for the economy. It also is a strong source of influence. It states, This is what you should wear: this is what you should look like. This message is powerful, especially to young women. Fashion editors are considered deities, and fashion magazines are regarded as a bible. Some class fashion as art. Textile is one of the most influential of the arts, because we live and spend our lives in it.

But when did the pin-thin look become fashionable? In Victorian times, larger silhouettes were seen as a  sign of fortune, health, and prosperity. In the 1960s,  a stick thin young girl from London named Twiggy shook the fashion scene. Her thin look quickly personified chic. This style developed into the heroin chic look of the 1980s, which sadly persists today. Presently, most Fashion designers believe that tall, skinny, and non-curvy bodies bring greater appeal to their artwork.

 As I understand it, the flow of the fabric when in motion allows the eye to capture the garment, rather than bring attention to a hint of swaying, curvy hips. These designers like the way the clothes hang off the body rather than be interrupted by the shape of a woman’s body. Models are trained to walk and they have coaches who instruct how to stride down the catwalk with confidence. The term Catwalk comes from a cat’s apparent lack of fear of heights. The Catwalk is a  walkway so perilous that only a surefooted cat would walk on it. None of the models smile, because designers do not want to show the slightest hint of vulnerability.

 Recently, German designer Karl Lagerfeld of Chanel criticized  Heidi Klum at 8 stones for being too big for the Catwalk. This year, Vogue UK editor Alexandra Shulman has fought back. She wrote a letter to top designers including Karl Lagerfeld, asking for clothes that fit realistic body types. Shulman made a point that the clothes being sent for photo shoots did not even fit the slimmest of models.

 This year, one event at London Fashion Week struck cords with the catwalk audience. Mark Fast, a young designer from Canada, premiered his portfolio of tight knitted dresses worn by three, larger12-14 sized models. By fighting this discrimination against larger models, Fast pulled a fast one.

 Medical professionals have been highlighting the dangers of eating disorders and the promotion of these ultra thin bodies for years. We are aware of the dangers of anorexia and bulimia, but that has not stopped promotion of the thin image.

 As fashion trends keep changing, hopefully they will prioritize health. The rise in role models for healthy shapes has optimistically risen in the last few years. Dove’s beauty products Self Esteem campaign emphasizes real beauty, real age, and real sizes. This has been supported by some Hollywood entertainers such as Scarlett Johansson. I believe that healthy is the best look. By using women who look like real women, Mark Fast took a step in the right direction.