We all know that models are supposed to be skinny. That's the prototype of a model. it's meant to make the clothes more prominent, not the shape of their body.
A model's body is meant to serve as a walking hanger on which expensive clothing can be modeled.
But what happens if the modelling industry decides that, due to public pressure, having very skinny models on the runway is no longer acceptable?
Well, it turns out that's just what happened.
Models who are younger than 16 or smaller than a size 2 will not be able to walk in this year's fashion week, and maybe that rule will apply henceforth!
Companies that are doing this own some of the most famous brands out there:
Dior, Marc Jacobs, Gucci, Saint Laurent, Balenciaga...
I completely agree with the age restriction - any younger than 16 is too young to be going into that industry. Even 16 might be questionable...but that's a story for another day.
Now...this opens up a whole new discussion.
Of course, there are plenty of models who are starving themselves, eating cotton balls just to feel full, but there are people out there, aspiring models, who are naturally thin. Who naturally have a smaller frame.
So, even if what the industry was trying to do was to raise awareness of eating disorders - is this really the way to go?
Sacrificing one group to potentially help out another (or showing them they need help)?
Subjectively speaking, this was not the right move. Maybe systems like physicals and medical history analysis would be the healthier option to put in place.
Banning all people below one specific size is absurd. With it you alienate healthy people who just want to fulfill their dreams and are willing to work hard at achieving them.
On the other hand, maybe this is the first, not well though out plan to get healthier models on the runway, and the rules will be revised once this makes a bit of an impact on the fashion industry as a whole.
Even though having models between the sizes of 2 to 10 would be the perfect world...IF they represented the majority of the world, but they don't.
People are not made to fit into a mold. So maybe it's time to break it.
So what do you think. Was this the right decision?
Comment below!
Fashion Week Is Banning Models Who Are Too Young or Too Skinny
I disagree with this. 1 of my best friends in high school was a size 1-2 and really tall and she ate like a cow (cows have 4 stomachs) we used to laugh about it all the time because she'd always be munching on something but she'd stay thin and she was only moderately active. Mid you, I met her when she was 16 and she didn't start putting on weight until she was about 22. I have another friend who eats regularly and healthily and she was telling me she felt fat after her first year of college.. apparently she had gained that freshman 15 from eating junk food but she looked as thin and delicate as usual. she's [probably a size 2-4. There are obviously some sick girls in the fashion industry that need help but to ban certain body types is pretty offensive in my opinion. I think that they should do some screening if they really want to help girls but banning naturally thin people will probably just cause lower self esteem/binge eating for some healthy girls.
Does this mean that we can expect a ban on the glorification of the morbidly obese body type soon? Or do we still all need to feel good about that? lol!
OMG Sally, it's freaking EVERYWHERE in America at the moment! It's all about "feeling great" about being morbidly obese and being "proud" of your morbidly obese bodies. No mention any more of diabetes or heart disease or other MAJOR health issues. Just all feeling good and rocking that bathing suit. It's gotten completely ridiculous. It's like it's no longer possible to hold the two concepts of "too thin--not good" and "too fat--not good" in people's heads simultaneously.
BUT, you HAVE to find it humor in it all, otherwise it just brings you down.
I guess there isn't a problem with banning models who look like they are anorexic. I think it's a good decision because I remember seeing one Fashion Week video on YouTube. The models had children with them. The models were wearing bikinis. The children were wearing bikinis too. It looked ridiculous to me. I just think that having underage girls pose in sexy outfits attracts the wrong kind of audience. Models shouldn't be allowed to wear thong bikinis or sexy lingerie unless they are at least 18 years old. I would ban children from the events. Most of the 16-year-old girls probably don't need to be there either.
Clearly, skinny models is what sells the clothes. When you have obese models in XXXL lingerie, nobody's going to buy it. Even if that's what the American population looks like, that particular look does not generate revenue in the clothing/fashion business (it may generate revenue for the fast food industry).
So if you were the owner of a clothing line, what would you do?
Skinny models = people buy your products. Large models = people don't buy your products and you go bankrupt.
Most of the people who are angry about skinny models aren't even the ones buying the products anyway.
its perfect, the reason i sometimes don't watch fashion show is, because models Rib cages are insanely repulsive!..
that is also the reason why i love Victoria Secrets models!. they sell lingerie so they keep their physical body really fit, and those muscular chunks on their body, make me explode
Break the mold? By allowing women to think being *size 2* is healthy? This is a victory for the industry & women. Size 6 is even dangerous & unhealthy size for *most women* if you are a woman who's naturally small you're healthy size is probably somewhere between size 6 & size 10. So while a child/teen might be size 2 (if she starves herself) or a comfortable size 4, *women* have a very different body structure, size & dimensions. These are also the people these clothes are being advertised to.
Models are admitted to rehab even at size 4, size 2 is unhealthy & unnecessary. It'd be great if there was more diversity as far as clothing size & model shapes as well as sizes but banning below a certain size is the first step in making some big necessary changes. I'm sure that they'll get more specific & have different conditions as time goes on but if it lets a handful of women have dressing with their salad & not throw it up afterwards, that's a good thing.
And yet a new season of Holland's Next has started where only specific sizes are allowed. On one side they are banning skinny and young girls, on the other hand they get new models through TV-shows who are barely legal and made to fit in certain sizes 'cause other sizes aren't good enough. Logic of fashion.
I agree with this. I don't think there is anything wrong with models expected to be thin and fit, because their job is to promote clothing and look good. they pay them for it. But you can be fit and skinny and have a bmi of 18, 19. Which are the lowest side of healthy weight, but healthy weight is healthy weight. I think for a fashion model that bmi is perfect. and for the ''naturally skinny'' girls with a lower bmi then gain weight then, it is not healthy, and you CAN gain weight. This is not skinny shaming, is for the models' and the audience's own good.
Something I do think is that there might be an unfair double standard with overweight models for plus size clothing. Like if we are talking about health here why are we allowing models over a bmi of 25 which is unhealthy to, to be in the runway? I dont know. lets just be healthy.
I feel like its not exactly a bad thing to ban the women that you can actually see their ribcage, like the model in the pic you had up. I can see that. Becuase then that becomes the ideal for impressionable young girls. I think if a person is at a healthy weight it shouldn't matter what their size on a tag is even if it's a 2 or a 10. If they're healthy. However, this could also be said for plus size models. By glorifying plus size women and shaming underweight/healthy weight women I feel like it's a way of telling average everyday women, go ahead, it's ok to eat half a pizza and drink calorie filled drinks. It's ok to be unhealthy and overweight, models are.
Now we're getting to a point in time where everything is starting to get bigger. Yes, everyone can agree that models are far too skinny but now we're getting fat models such as Ashley Graham and the likes. I have no problem with that woman, she seems like a nice person and I enjoy her message and her on ANTM but we're trying to normalize obesity or being unhealthy in general. We have these women who are basically advertising that being overweight is okay, it isn't okay. It's very unhealthy. Not only that, but I don't want to see naked fat chicks walking down a run way.
It sounds like a good decision, as bony women, can lead girls and women to feel as if that is how they should look too, and implying unrealistic images and expectations on women. Images like that lead women to eating disorders and anorexia, that can all too often be fatal at worst, and cause many women to feel as if they don't measure up, at best. Not to mention, bony women are just outright unattractive. I'd rather see a gal that is a little overweight than one who is drastically underweight, looking like a skeleton.
I think it's a good decision. I don't think it's mentally healthy for young girls to be judged that much by their appearance only. Also, sure it's a bummer for the naturally skinny girls, but there are not that many who are naturally that skinny. Most of them are often under 16 when they're still growing. So for the majority of the models who have to do a lot of dieting to be accepted, I think it's a good choice.
I think it's a good decision and a move in the right direction. Like you said they can revise it if need be. Having some kind of medical clearance would be nice, but I could see that being corrupted, with doctors rubber stamping whoever comes through their door.
Somewhere in the back of my mind it seems like England passed some sort of law on this. Don't know if I'm remembering right.
I agree with the age part of this, 16 is far to young to be getting involved in a business as cutthroat and vicious as fashion.
And models both to skinny and to fat shouldn't be in modeling, the ones that are to fat need to lose the weight and the ones that are to skinny need to gain weight.
Depends on your definition in my opinion. Some plus sized models are average, but because they're one number higher they're called plus size models. But if they're morbidly obese I'm agree with you, but if they're average I'm not. By fashion these one are considered plus size.
Why would you market a dress that would fit a size 0 anyways? They should be promoting beautiful clothing on HEALTHY women. All these anorexic chicks looking like they might fall off stage and break and kill over is not productive marketing. Market clothing to fit the masses. How many women are actually a size 0?
I get the age restriction. Let a child be a child. The size guideline should be more of for health purposes.
Its interesting bc there was a time where all of that didn't matter. Any kind of way you see bones tho they should tell them to go eat bc dang you know thats not gna sell too much to me, and modeling should be in a mature world unless its for a specific age group bc you do have to get naked in front of a bunch of people, so its not the environment for too young of a person
@abc3643 all it says about her is "Danish model Ulrikke Hoyer said she had been asked to starve herself in the run-up to a show. The casting director denied the claim" and only recently it was decided that size zero women won't be modeling, what happened with ulrikke was before that in may I think true or not of course the director would deny it but it's not the first time a model complains abound that :/
I totally agree with the age restriction - The size restriction you make a good point but a size guideline is easier to enforce than a health regime - So for your idea to work the whole industry has to change and the scouts will look for people who look healthy and should pass health checks for years - You fall into the same trap, will a very skinny young girl be picked.
Yes! I agree, age restriction is a must! And size two for what height? Someone who is 5'0 not likely to be in the show yes, but they may be a 0 or double 00. So height is something to consider.
I agree with age 16 thing but you're right about some people being naturally thin but healthy and they shouldn't be discriminated against. I agree with a lot of comments on here. They need to be a healthy weight for their height. If that means they are a size 2 then that's just how they are. But I'm also happy they are doing this for those girls who don't feel good enough because they aren't skinny enough.
I think the industry is unhealthy in general. It promotes unhealthy expectations of what women's bodies should look like. It's probably better to represent a wider variety of body types, like someone who is not extremely tall or skinny. I don't mean overweight or obese either, but just more normal looking people to model clothes.
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