Preview: Day 2 of V Magazine’s Size Issue

Tara Lynn by Sølve Sundsbø*

Last week, I showed you the preview of Crystal Renn’s editorial of V Magazine’s upcoming Size Issue. V Magazine are obviously trying to generate a lot of buzz, as Models.com have released yet another preview from the issue: Day 2: Curves Ahead by Sølve Sundsbø. (For the complete editorial and full size images, head to Models.com. All images are copyright V Magazine and respective photographers. The Size Issue is due out on 14 January 2010.)

As the name of the editorial suggests, these pictures place much more emphasis on the curvy body. In my opinion, the fashion is secondary to the thighs, hips and rolls on display.

Candice Huffine by Sølve Sundsbø

While I am completely in love with the Day 1 editorial, I have a lot less love for this shoot. When a magazine like V attempts to display larger bodies as artworks in and of themselves, it always appears as though they are fighting their fashion instincts.

We all know that fashion magazines photoshop. A lot. Freckles, cellulite, shadows, uneven skin tone – anything that is perceived to be a flaw is mercilessly eliminated. However, in this shoot fat rolls, normally an obvious flaw to be removed, must be kept as a feature of the editorial.

So how does a photography team accept the inclusion of fat rolls and present a flawless fashion spread? By doing a really bad job on photoshop.

Candice Huffine and Tara Lynn by Sølve Sundsbø

I mean, look at that. That picture is ridiculous. Candice Huffine has a beautiful roll on her back, yet her back does not bulge in any way. Tara Lynn has some adorable belly chub, yet her stomach stops exactly at the waistband and there is no overhang. Fat doesn’t sit so conveniently in real life.

This editorial is trying so hard to present the ‘real’ body and yet the finished product looks disappointly fake.

*As an aside, that first image of Tara Lynn looks an awful lot like a number of fat softcore pictures I’ve seen. For example, this picture of erotic model that I featured on Hey, Fat Chick. I don’t know if it was deliberate but it sure is interesting…

Preview: Crystal Renn in V Magazine’s Size Issue

You may have heard that V Magazine is publishing a Size Issue, due out on 14 January 2010. There will be a number of spreads that will range from fully dressed to nude and will be shot by Terry Richardson, Bruce Weber and (lololol) Karl “No one wants to see curvy women” Lagerfeld. As editor-in-chief Stephen Gan put it, “Big, little, pint-size, plus-size — every body is beautiful. And this issue is out to prove it.”

Now Models.com and V Magazine are whetting our appetites big time by putting out an exclusive preview of Terry Richardson’s shoot - One Size Fits All.

It is a brilliant concept, with straight size model Jacquelyn Jablonski and Crystal Renn wearing the exact same outfits and striking very similar poses. It’s a seriously clever dig at all those in the industry who feel that high fashion can only be presented on a smaller body.

Not to mention Mel Ottenberg’s styling is absolutely amazing. These outfits are exactly what I love: colour! prints! accessories! It’s almost too much, which is why it appeals to me.

For full size images, click here. For full size images of Jacquelyn and Crystal’s individual pictures, click here. All images are copyright V Magazine and respective photographers.

All images sourced from VMagazine.com. Thanks to Pippa at Runway Revolution for the tip-off!

OoTD No. 3 – Starring the Whipper Snipper

Going through my old blog posts, this is my first OoTD since… August?! Shit, really? This year has gone outrageously fast.

This is my first summer outfit post, as well as my first time showing you a glimpse of Work Frances.

On Friday, I went out with the in-laws for the Boyfriend’s birthday dinner (The Light Brigade Bistro in Paddington – highly recommended). I came straight from work, hence the black jersey, though my not-terribly-corporate office does Casual Friday, hence the short hemline and the sandals.

The Boyfriend took these pictures and insisted we use that most overlooked of props, the whipper snipper.

What? There's heaps of unkempt grass edges by the pool.

She works hard for the money... so hard for it honey...

Dress: Country Road (I had it shortened – it looked a bit like a nun’s outfit when I bought it)
Necklace: Dinosaur Designs
Watch: Nu + Nan
Bracelet: Mimco
Sandals: Nu + Nan
Nail polish: Molly by Bloom
Whipper snipper: Poulan PRO

Editorial: Crystal Renn in Elle Canada, Jan 2010

The future Mrs Frances (humour me), Crystal Renn, is in an amazing new editorial for Elle Canada, January 2010. The people at Elle Canada must love her as much as I do, as this is the third editorial she’s done with them in the last 12 months (check out the other two on Runway Revolution here and here) and this one covers 18 pages.

I love this shoot. The pictures are absolutely stunning, as I’ve come to expect from Leda & St Jacques, and I adore the ultra glamourous New Years Eve styling.

Also, Crystal has the most fantastic hair in the business – hands down.

Women I Love: Beth Ditto

I know, I know, I know. Every fat woman in the world loves Beth Ditto. But my love for her is still quite new, so I’m still very much in the honeymoon stage. Therefore, she gets a mention on my very exclusive, very prestigious, Women I Love section.

What I love more than anything – more than her brilliant songs with The Gossip, more than the line she did with Evans – is that she’s a chameleon.

She displays her body like it’s an artwork:

Modelling for House of Blue Eyes, September 2008

The Gossip performing at London’s Forum, 13 September 2007

At the 2007 NME Awards

She can be a fierce couture bish:

Love magazine, March 2009

At the 2009 Mercury Music Awards, London

Photo by Alice Hawkins

BlackBook by Shawn Mortensen, May 2009

BlackBook by Shawn Mortensen, May 2009

She’s friends with Jeremy Scott and looks great in his dresses (for this, I will be forever jealous):

via Jeremy Scott's Twicpic account

At the JC de Castelbajac Fashion Show during the 2009 Paris Fashion Week

Photo by zerbit on flickr

NYLON magazine, May (…or June) 2008

And she looks like she’s the sweetest girl in the world:

At the Love magazine launch, December 2008

LOVE YOU, BETH.

Seen in… Sydney

Thanks to blogs like The Manfattan Project and Curvy Street Style on Saks in the City, I’ve been noticing more and more how many well dressed fat women there are walking around. So I am officially hitching myself to the Street Fashion Bandwagon with my new feature, Seen In…

Giddy up!

Imogene, Sydney CBD

Corporate wear can be so frightfully dull, but I saw Imogene’s sweet blouse and suit combo from about 20m away. (Then I raced over to her and nervously babbled about taking her picture for my blog. She was nice about the whole thing, which was quite good of her, so extra points for Imogene.)

Fluvia Lacerda in ‘16′

I received an email from the people at the plus-size brand IGIGI that opened with “I know you are a big fan of Fluvia Lacerda…” (Is it really that obvious? I thought I was being subtle.)

IGIGI have commissioned a short film titled ‘16′, directed by fashion photographer Mark De Paola and starring my beloved Fluvia Lacerda.

In the company’s words:

This film is about beauty – real beauty. Not the artificial, airbrushed, enhanced, starved beauty we are bombarded with everyday. It is about a powerful, sexy woman who loves herself and her body.

It’s certainly an interesting idea. The film is beautifully shot and Fluvia looks UH-MAY-ZING.

For more information and to have some input into the second chapter of ‘16′, visit IGIGI’s website. The beautiful dress worn by Fluvia in the film is also available at IGIGI.

“No one wants to see curvy women”

There goes Karl Lagerfeld, running his mouth again.

“No one wants to see curvy women,” Lagerfeld was quoted as saying on the website of news magazine Focus on Sunday.

“You’ve got fat mothers with their bags of chips sitting in front of the television and saying that thin models are ugly,” he added.

The world of fashion is about “dreams and illusions”…

I get that much of Karl’s anti-fat outlook probably has to do with the fact that Karl used to be a fatty. Not only that, when he was a fatty he had ACTUAL FACIAL EXPRESSIONS.

Proof fat people are jolly.

So maybe he’s not some twatty body fascist. Maybe he’s still navigating the body acceptance journey. Poor little dear. Karl, if you need it, there’s a hug waiting for you in my now ample bosom.

I agree with him on one point. Runway shows are, for the most part, about “dreams and illusions”. Even I, from my casual flirting with fashion (read: I look at pictures of fashion shows every so often when avoiding work), can see that the catwalk relies heavily on the theatrical. But I fail to see how this is exclusively the domain of the skinny model.

Crystal Renn in the finale dress for Jean-Paul Gaultier prêt-à-porter S/S06

Johanna Dray for John Galliano, S/S06

Velvet d’Amour for Jean-Paul Gaultier, S/S07

See? Fierce as shit, hips and all.

While runway shows look amazing, they don’t exactly translate to the street very well. Which is where Brigitte comes in.

[Lagerfeld dismissed] as “absurd” the debate prompted by Brigitte magazine which said it would no longer feature professional models on its pages.

Brigitte, one of Germany’s top women’s magazines, said last week it would only publish photographs of “real women” after readers complained they could not identify with the models depicted.

The magazine’s editor-in-chief Andreas Lebert told The Guardian last week that he was sick of having to retouch photos of underweight models.

“For years we have had to use Photoshop to fatten the girls up,” he said. “Especially their thighs and decolletage. But this is disturbing and perverse, and what has it got to do with our real reader?”

He said he would invite German women to put themselves forward as models for the magazine. According to The Guardian he is likely to extend an invitation to Chancellor Angela Merkel.

The magazine will stop using professional models from 2010.

There is a reason why blogs like The Sartorialist and all the fatshion blogs out there are so popular – we want to see how trends translate onto a real body. Professional models take very nice photographs, but someone like me with a body like mine is not exactly inspired to try out, say, the jumpsuit when shown a photo like this:

Carmen Kass in Spanish Vogue, May 2009

But put it on a body like this:

via Fat Girls Like Nice Clothes Too

Or even a body like this:

via Le Blog de Betty

And you’re more likely to get my money.

This is not about banning skinny models from catwalks or only allowing fat(ter) women in magazines. This is about allowing consumers to relate to fashion in a more meaningful way through a wider spectrum of bodies. The validation women will get for their body shapes is just gravy. From a cold, hard, financial standpoint, it makes sense for fashion magazines, advertisers and clothing brands to get on board the Everyday Woman train.

Oh, and Karl?

Article source: Sydney Morning Herald
Picture source: Fat Girls Like Nice Clothes Too!
Picture source: Le Blog de Betty

My new favourite website

Allen, Bedford Ave. (photo by Greg Speck)

Everyone should check out The Manfattan Project post-haste.

In the words of the moderator:

[The Manfattan Project is a] collection of photographs of stylish everyday people in New York City. These people are beautiful, they are well-dressed, they are confident. They are also, without apologies or contradictions, FAT.

Hana Malia, Union Square Farmer’s Market

I never realised how rarely I see the everyday street fashion of fat people until this site came along.

Jess, FIT.

Well, go on then. Clickety click your way over there.

My boobs are outraged.

Recently, my tits grew. I’m not sure when exactly because, due to my deep deep hatred of bra shopping, I put up with spilling out of ill-fitting bras for months. When the last hooks on my bras threatened to snap off suddenly and violently, I decided to brave the hideousness of the department store lingerie section.

I’m quite pear shaped, so it was only with this recent booby growth that I made it into plus size bra territory (I’m now a AUS 16D, which I think equates to a US 38D). With my new back-to-cup ratio I have apparently made the transition into completely sexless bras.

Helllooooooo boys.

I don’t know about you, but it’s a wee bit hard to think “I break hearts for a living” when encased in this much beige microfibre.

Even the prettier, less practical bras – like this absurdly expensive one by Fayreform – subject my tits to an unnecessary amount of control.

HI. I'M STRAPPED IN.

My hatred for bra shopping has now increased tenfold.

What’s the deal? Who decided that bangers, once past a certain size, must have enforced sexlessness thrust upon them?! MY BOOBS ARE TOO FABULOUS FOR THIS SHIT.

I need your help, Fatosphere. I know there are many of you that have been dealing with this crap for many years and have worked out which brands flatter the girls and which try to hide them from the world completely. Where should I go? What should I buy?