I am so excited to present to you today a guest post from one of my favorite bloggers: Laura from
For Those About To Shop. Her blog is an absolute must read for me (and should be for you too!). Her posts delve into fashion as well as beauty and are both incredibly well written and insightful. The post she wrote for all of you lovely readers here is titled "Beauty Belongs to Us All."
Beauty Belongs to Us All by Laura from For Those About To Shop
Working as a fashion writer, I’ve had the privilege of attending and reporting on
international events including New York, London, and Toronto Fashion Weeks. I loved
being immersed in high glamour as I had been preoccupied with fashion since childhood,
when I dressed up my Barbies in carefully selected outfits and sent them off to work in
their topless convertible. In 2009 my approach to fashion changed when I attended a show
in Toronto, notable because of its use of “regular” women on the runway. The models were
professionals but did not look like the girls I was used to viewing on the catwalk.
The women all came from the Ben Barry model agency, founded by a Canadian who
couldn’t understand why someone wasn’t considered attractive enough to model if she
weren’t young, tall, Caucasian, and wore a size 2 dress. What I learned that day and what I
decided to begin promoting with my writing is the idea that beauty belongs to all of us.
I believe the conviction Ben Barry expressed in opening his agency with a mission of
promoting diversity has directly impacted the industry and helped bring about changes
such as the recent health initiative at Vogue. (The world’s leading fashion magazine has
stated publicly its editors will not work with underage models or those who appear to have
an eating disorder.)
Soon after that 2009 show, I interviewed Ben Barry for my blog and I believe his
words describe the opportunity the fashion industry has to make beauty a source of
empowerment for women rather than something to which only a select few can aspire:
Many people in the fashion industry get confused when they hear a fashion show or magazine
is using real women. They think the image will look like a driver’s license picture – safe,
drab,and dull. That is the very opposite of what I envision. When we showcase diversity in
fashion, we have to remember it is fashion: diverse models should have the same glamour and
artistry as the other models. Diverse images are aspirational, but also attainable and honest.
A woman can actually look like the model, achieve her look, if she too got her hair and make-
up done and put on a similar outfit. It’s about authenticity.
Great post, Laura! I hope all of you will pop on over to her fabulous blog.
Stay beautiful!
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