Modelling

While pregnant, I remember gazing at the slim, lissome models in the posh maternity wear catalogues and wondering if they were going to give birth to a basketball instead of a baby.

Those graceful elongated elks seemed to inhabit an enchanted forest a world away from mine. They wore clothes I couldn’t afford to buy. They were tall, slim and had beautiful round compact baby bellies. I was short, squat, perspiring, and afflicted with varicose veins in unmentionable places.

But it never occurred to me that these catalogue women posing in the chocolate Toorak wrap dress ($269.99), the Point Piper aqua tee ($69.99) or the Double Bay print pant ($99.99) were not actually pregnant.

Continue reading "A knockout blow to knocked up confidence" »

Aussie runway model Andrej Pejic is one gorgeous specimen. With strikingly good looks and legs that go on forever, the Serbian-born beauty has caught the eye of every fashion designer on the planet. Looking fabulous in floor length gowns is no challenge for the 19-year-old supermodel but there’s just one thing that differentiates Pejic from other models on the catwalk - Andrej Pejic is a man.

Pejic’s knack for modelling both men’s and women’s clothing has sent the well-kept feathers of the fashion world flying. International designers have all clamoured to use his androgynous look while the glitterati flock to catch a glimpse of ‘the chick who is actually a dude’.

I love seeing Pejic looking incredible in mini-skirts and corseted bustiers. Heck, I would kill for his legs. What I don’t love however, is seeing him waltzing down the runway in clothes that are supposedly designed for women.

Continue reading "You’re a beautiful (wo)man but get off the catwalk" »

Oooh la la. French women might not get fat, but they’re happy to hold up a very curvy woman as the apogee of style.

Pick up a copy of the current issue of French Elle and you’ll find American plus-size model Tara Lynn seductively pouting in a white jumpsuit on the front. Inside, 20 pages are prominently devoted to Lynn, who is a size 16, modelling things like blue chunky knitted capes while causally pretending to ride a bike - your standard fashion fare.

For some, this is just another example of what the New York Times has dubbed “the triumph of the size 12s “, that is, a backlash against the prevailing dictate of exclusively employing the skeletally thin girls previously favoured by designers and editors.

Continue reading "Turning thin fashion chic on its emaciated derriere" »