Curvy Con is one of the most sought after curve conferences in the U.S. This year it took place during New York Fashion Week which boasted an incredible line up of some of the most influential stars across the U.S from N.Y to Hollywood combined of celebrities and body positive bloggers. It was set up by plus size bloggers Chastity Garner & Cece Olisa who brought together brands from across the U.S and Europe to celebrate style for all under one roof across two days. I was thrilled to be able to attend and really see how the U.S are still ahead of the curve in so many ways.
The Panels
The talks were just out of this world. As a diversity in fashion advocate I was just blown away by the key speakers which included Fern Mallis the founder of New York Fashion Week who chaired one of the talk’s with model Emme – the first plus size model in America who just before the talk came from her first New York Fashion Week show modelling for Chromat at age 54! Among the panel was model Marquita Pring, Dia & Co founder Nadia Boujarwah and TV host Stacey London.
Photographed above with Fern Mallis and Emme.
I’ve been working in diversity in fashion now for 7 years both as a plus size model and research into the industry at all angles. It’s so wonderful to see how the industry is growing and how the landscape is changing. This year there were more plus size, curve and transgender models featured across New York Fashion Week runways than ever before. Each season there are more and more diverse models being added to designer lists but sadly this is primarily in New York. Outside of this London, Milan, Paris, we’ve only seen two designers feature a curve model; designers Mark Fast at London Fashion Week and Alexander McQueen at Paris Fashion Week. It’s very big step of course but still more work needs to be done in order to really create positive change and media inclusivity.
During Curvy Con this topic was spoken about in depth and it was also a great reflection to see how far the industry has come in terms of high street brands and sizing. Ten years ago we didn’t have half the selection that we do now and thats something that is certainly worth celebrating! Across the two days various topics were also discussed from how to be body positive in every area of your life to retail excellence. The ‘Girl Boss’ speaker panel was led by Claire Summers from Fashion Bomb Daily with top bloggers Nicolette Mason & Gabi Gregg who are new founders of their own fashion line Premme, and Emmy nominated actress Chrissy Metz took to the stage with Curvy Con founders speaking about her incredible career to date and breaking boundaries.
The Shopping
Following on from the talks there was everything from fitness classes to “shop and sip” in the fashion lounge. Premme U.S is the new kid on the block of plus size fashion as I mentioned earlier who grasped the attention of most of the attendee’s with their studio 54 style. Other brands included Macy’s plus size range, U.S designer Rachel Roy, Curvy Kate lingerie, Simply Be, Eloquii U.S and many more. After this the fashion show took place with headline sponsor Dia & Co. which also saw the first sneak peek of their collection with blogger Girl With Curves. The fashion show included a range of plus size and curve models to some celebrity faces including top You Tuber Loey Lane who took to the runway – I added some of my favourite looks from the show below.
What I Wore:
On the day itself I knew there would be a lot of running around and when I feel like I don’t know what a day might bring I go with something that will tick all the boxes. I decided on this particular outfit that ended up being all River Island ( most of wardrobe is from this store as this point!haha) but this dress was kindly gifted to me by the brand for Fashion Week. I opted for this red number from their plus range which comes in sizes 18- 28 ( today I’m wearing size 18) and its a brand that I know people can access both in the E.U and the USA. As red is an all year round season favourite this year and for 2018 I thought it would come in useful in the Winter also – true Senorita vibes with the frill detail and I liked the fact that it hugged your curves perfectly without being extremely fitted. As the straps were slightly thicker than typical spaghetti strap styles it meant you wouldn’t be limited to one particular bra style. For accessories I paired it with this monochrome bag which held both of my blog cameras without being too oversized.
Lou. xx
Shop My Outfit & Similar Styles Below
This NYFW I’m delighted to have Aer Lingus as an official NYFW X Style Me Curvy partner so be sure to check out my NYFW posts to see Aer Lingus special offer updates over the next two weeks!:) They fly direct to 11 North American destinations including two ways to get to New York, Newark, New Jersey & JFK from €169 and have also partnered up with Booking.com to make life easy so you can book your accomodation and flights from the one website at the best prices. More info via www.aerlingus.com!
