Yahoo Lifestyle Robyn Lawley Urges Designers To Make Bigger Sample Sizes
Robyn Lawley.
Last week, Robyn Lawley became the first 'plus-size' model to grace the page of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit edition (and we say 'plus-size' in inverted commas because really, she is a normal, healthy size - and she looks incredible).
The move generated a lot of media coverage for Lawley, and also sparked debate around the use of sample size models.
Today, Lawley is urging fashion designers to use bigger sample sizes in order to diversify the industry.
"Designers need to not be so fearful of using a few models that are a different size on the catwalk," Lawley told The Cut. "They expect you just to fit into these sample sizes. They say, 'Yeah, you don't look like a size 12.' I've got a 42-inch hip, my friend; this is not going to fit. I can't get clothes for events. I'm very excluded from a lot of that, and it sucks.
"If designers had more sample sizes, they would make the magazines shoot size 8 on a size 8... I don't really understand why. I used to think sample sizes were made into a 0. But as a designer myself, I make the sample sizes whatever I want. Why are we so focused on having the girl fit the clothes rather than the clothes fit the girls?"
Lawley said her agents at Wilhelmina had been working for years to get the industry to embrace models of all sizes.
"At the end of the day, I'm a size that they're not used to," said Lawley. "It's quite a process and I am quite stoked they were really willing to go down that route... People don't know how hard it is to break a mould. It's a step in the right direction - I'm proud of Ralph Lauren, Calvin Klein, Sports Illustrated - and it needs to happen faster. We're hoping it does."
