Besides a peek at upcoming seasons' clothes, one of the best part of fashion weeks are discovering new names. At Spring 2014 British Plus-Size Fashion Weekend, I was blown away by all the emerging designers hitting the fatshion scene: designers who are brave; designers with intrinsic quirk factor; designers who give plus-size women a reminder that they, too, deserve the variety that straight-size women have always in apparel. Here's who to watch on the plus-size scene:
SYREETA BADU
Designer Syreeta Badu started hitting the plus fashion world last year, even garnering recognition by full-figured fashion frontrunners like Marie Denee and Velvet d'Amour. Out of all the designers and brands who showcased on the runway at BPSFW, Badu was the most daring. She's all about messing around with hard angles and bold prints. She's all about statement pieces. She's all about taking risks, and her clothes stand out for it.
THE CURVE
What the name lacks in a certain je ne sais quoi, The Curve makes up for in style and authenticity. Think rock chick and a lot of leather. Though not a plus-size woman herself, designer and CEO Sally MacDonald noticed a blatant lack in sexy, night-out styles for curvy women, and designed accordingly. The result: a predominently black-on-black kind of line that crushes any boring "little black dress" stereotypes and, in the process, creates something beautiful and bold. Leather short shorts? Yep. Leather-paneled ultra crop tops? You better believe it.
DEAR CURVES
More than any other brand at BPSFW, Dear Curves really seems to have a knack for patterns. Plus-size women are so often told to steer clear of anything that's not a solid color (thus eliminating 80 percent of fashion by that logic), so it's incredibly refreshing to find a brand that counters that to its very core. The Spring 2014 collection plays with animal prints, draws inspiration from African aesthetic, toys with angles, and ends up with a final product that highlights the figure and shows off every curve.
OPHEES
A lot of major brands cater to the indie/Hipster look when it comes to straight sizes, but the style has yet to become available for plus-size women. Ophees is totally revolutionizing that, though — the colors, the naturalness, the casual yet totally mesmerizing feel. This brand isn't for everyone, but for those who love experimental fashion and crave the vibes of the '60s, it's heavenly.
REMI RAY
Remi Ray loves curves, and you can tell that by the way most of the clothes sit tightly on the body, showing off the fuller silhouette beautifully. RR also has wit, like this "Fat Is The New Black Tee." Critics may call it offensive and spew out all the stats we've heard a thousand times about how being big is bad, and we shouldn't normalize fatness. But this T-shirt, and all of Remi Ray's designs, prove that there are women out there standing up for the beauty they perceive in the fuller form, even when most of society would still disagree.
Images: Marie Southard Ospina, Janie Britton, Felicity Hayward
