Women, Girls and the Media

The Age issue: We need more women like us out here

I'm watching Project Runway: All Stars, rather against my best instincts. I have been a fan of Project Runway since the beginning - although once Michael Kors left, things have never been the same- but All Stars, unfortunately, not only lacks Heidi Klum, Nina García and Tim Gunn (Mr. Gunn is a personality on his own right), but it is also weighed down by a rather ill at ease hostess, Alyssa Milano. The advertising is rather heavy-handedly delivered, even for this type of show's standards. In conclusion, it's such a bore that I'm thinking of just stopping mid-season, even watching it as I do while preparing a meal or doing the laundry.
Well, they have recently aired (December 19th) #Nina's Trending an episode in which they invited bloggers "from all over the world" (as far as I can tell, only from Toronto, New Jersey, London, and Los Angeles... that's just three countries!). All but one looked like celebrities from reality shows, unfortunately and, all in all, they were the perfect fashion victims (or maybe "the victims of fashion" would be more appropriate), as younger women so often are. Also, they were all around 25. Tops.
I was angry, let me tell you.

Fashion versus style

All designers but one had absolutely no idea about what silhouettes would suit their clients best. Two of the bloggers were very petite and ended up being swallowed up by their garments. Another was a clear athletic body type C, so the least she needed was a huge V on her torso making her hips even straighter...
The designers' perception of colour (again, except one) were not much better in regards to colour. Finally, their silhouettes were cut up in different ways: the line of the shoes, the length and cut of the outfits...

Episode 8 at Project Runway All Stars: #Nina's Trending by Caroline Grant. The most galling part of the episode was, for me, that the main product advertised was an enterprise of Ms. García, who would have never been caught dead wearing any of these outfits, not even when she was in her twenties, according to her book The Little Black Book of Style (HarperCollins, 2007). She comes from a privileged Colombian family for whom travelling yearly to France, the US, Italy or Japan was just the most normal thing to do. [Photos courtesy of Lifetime]