Can fat ever be fashionable?

Is it possible to wear high fashion as a size 16 plus? We challenged celebrity stylist MARCELLA MARTINELLI to find out



By Julia Robson for MailOnline

What makes celebrity frock watching so compulsive? Marvelling at the fabulous fashions or the size of the women wearing them? Statistically speaking, size zeros (UK size 4s) are freaks, with more than 40 per cent of women a size 16 or above. Yet if you do fall into the national average - a curvy size 16 - and want your fashion with a capital 'F', it's likely that you will find it difficult to buy stylish items in your size.

Big girl: Model Erika wears (from left) red dress, £25, JL by John Lewis; shoes, £60, Moda in Pelle.

Purple silk shirt, £400, tartan jacket, £369, black wool skirt, £159, all Vivienne Westwood at Harrods; metallic ankle boots, £395, Wunderkind at Liberty. Silver and black lace dress, £45, Star by Julien Macdonald at Debenhams; peep-toe shoes, £320, Fratelli Rosetti. Deep V-neck black dress, £175, Anna Scholz; shoes from a selection at Carvela. Black and white dogtooth dress, £95, Jesire; black ponyskin boots, £445, Fratelli Rossetti



As well as getting larger and taller, British women are more aware of catwalk trends.

But being a size 16 fashionista is not as easy as it sounds. Apart from Vivienne Westwood, many designers stop at a 12, the national British average in the Fifties. Even High Street chains are not as forthcoming in fashionable 16s as they are for skinnier 12s.

What is this fashion conspiracy all about? Don't designers and retailers want curvier women to wear their clothes (which explains why shoes and bags are such moneyspinners) or do curvier girls not want to wear high fashion?

We asked the celebrity stylist Marcella Martinelli to pull together key seasonal trends, not for the usual model size 10 but for a size 16.

'I was shocked at how difficult it is to find the sort of pieces everyone is looking for,' says Marcella, whose clients include Kelly Brook, Julia Roberts, Anjelica Huston, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Martine McCutcheon.

'I'm not sure whether this was because they had sold out or they hadn't been there to start with.

'I was amazed I couldn't find a decent pencil skirt or tailored suit that wasn't frumpy at the younger fashion chains, such as Topshop. And no beautiful statement coats, apart from more expensive ranges or in the plus-size ranges of upmarket department stores such as Selfridges and Harrods.'

You are beautiful: Stylist Marcella arranges model Erika's clothes in preparation for the plus-size shoot



And when Marcella visited High Street chains known for their high fashion, she found size 16s difficult to locate.

'The bigger sizes were shoved to the back of the store and up close looked more like a 12/14, the size I wear. Many did not even have labels or had the price tag strategically stapled over the size label.'



On the positive side, there are more than 60 specialist plus brands in the UK, including designer names such as Elena Miro, Marina Rinaldi, Chesca and Anna Scholz.



Many stores carry size 18s, including Dorothy Perkins, Primark, Principles, Monsoon, Matalan, New Look, Marks & Spencer and Next. Some, like Matalan, even have specialist ranges (Rogers + Rogers goes up to a 28). Evans goes up to 32.



'I was impressed by the Designers at Debenhams range, particularly Julien Macdonald's clothes, which were so sexy and fashionable,' says Marcella.



'And I was pleasantly surprised to find labels such as Nanette Lepore at Fenwick, which had plenty of size 16s.



'Evans had the most fashionable dresses - including a one-shoulder, Grecian style short dress. Unfortunately, this was the wrong shape for our model, but I could see it looking terrific on other 16-plus women.



'The plus sizes at Selfridges and Harrods tended to be aimed at an older customer. They were classic rather than trend led and tended to be shapes traditionally associated with larger sizes.'



Shopping online is one route to finding great 16-plus fashions. 'We sell more 12s than any other size, but because our ethos is everyone who wants to buy into fashion can, we offer choice in size,' says Moriamo Oshodi, head of womenswear at fashion online retailer ASOS.



'There is no denying there is a market for 16 to 18s, which is why we've been carrying 16s for two years on most of our 200 brands and up to an 18 on our own label. I am a 14 and know only too well how resourceful you have to be if you are into fashion.



'I recently asked in a British department store if my Herve Leger dream dress went up to a 14 and was told by a sales assistant rather sniffily that the designer didn't go up to that size. When I did find the dress in my size in New York, I punched the air. If more designers did larger sizes, women would buy them.'



Deborah Wiles, who recently took over as design director at Long Tall Sally (aimed at women above 5ft 8in, sizes 10 to 20), agrees.



'I'm a 14. I understand fashion, I know how to dress and how to put clothes together and yet whenever I go shopping I come home empty handed. Why should I have to shop in the 'fat corner'?'



Wiles worked at Monsoon - which goes up to a size 22 - for 17 years. 'My brief when I joined Long Tall Sally was to turn it into a fashion brand,' says Wiles.



'It would help if there were more role models out there in designer brands. Not all female designers are a perfect size 10. It would be great to see someone like the plus-size women behind cool American label Rodarte include clothes for women who share their body shape.



'This would help change the perception of larger sizes, which is seen as niche market, not mainstream. The reason we don't see more fashionable clothes for bigger women is to do with body image and confidence.'



One designer plus-size range that has championed fashion since its launch in 1980 is Marina Rinaldi, the market leader and a sister brand to Italian giant MaxMara.



'We used to cater for a customer who wanted classic suits, silk blouses and cashmere,' says Monica De Bellis, Marina Rinaldi's design director. 'Now it's younger girls who are larger for many reasons and want fashion. Even baby boomers want young and hip, not ladylike.'



British-based Anna Scholz's designs go up to a size 26. She is stocked in 65 stores in nine countries. Although not cheap (£250 upwards), her clothes are fashionable.



'I grew up with designer tastes. My father worked in advertising and handled the Jil Sander account. My mother ran an art gallery. By the time I was 13, I was 6ft, a size 16 and clothes mad. My parents were desperate to spoil me, but couldn't. There was nothing in my size I wanted to wear.'



Scholz studied fashion at London's Central St Martins to come up with clothes that were suitable.



Belle Robinson, owner of the Jigsaw and Kew chains, and Bluebird designer boutique in Chelsea, is a size 16.



'From a production point of view, there is a practical argument why there are fewer plus sizes,' she says.



'The more sizes you have, the more work they are to produce. At Jigsaw, we know we'll sell a lot more 10s and 12s than 16s because that is our customer. When I buy for Bluebird, some designer labels make only sizes eight to 12.



'Often it's a vicious circle: you don't have the bigger sizes so larger customers can't buy the clothing. Do you stick out your neck for a size 16 customer who may not be looking your way?'



Jigsaw's Belle Robinson says: 'The fashion for a stick-thin body shape means some styles are impossible in larger sizes. You can't scale them up, so what is considered fashionable remains out of reach for many women.'



'I don't think the media help. We all know the Western world is getting bigger thanks to changes in diet and more sedentary lifestyles, yet magazines air-brushing and stretching models are sending out a reverse message. As soon as celebrities put on a small amount of weight they are seen as being compulsive eaters.



'It is important that people with an influence make a stand. That involves changing our perception of beauty, which isn't easy to do.'



Belle finds shopping on the High Street an isolating experience. 'I don't think I am alone. I'm not advocating size 16 models should be on the catwalk, but we shouldn't be left feeling like social outcasts if we are not the size of Cheryl Cole. The use of size zero, emaciated models on the catwalk is morally wrong and fuelling body dysmorphia.'



Companies who haven't embraced the curvy fashion-conscious girl might be encouraged by the healthy profits of those who have. On the day the Icelandic banks froze, British home shopping firm N Brown, which specialises in plus-size womenswear, announced a 20 per cent rise in profits. Anna Scholz has a 30 per cent annual rise.



'British women are catching up with the U.S. in terms of sizes,' says Beverley Jamieson, head of marketing at Marisota, the sister brand to Simply Be.



'It's amazing that clothing companies still refuse to work with plus sizes in case they get tarred with the fat ladies brush.



'There are occasions when you can't do some trends - pencil skirts, because of the shape and cut, and metallics because shiny things make you look bigger. But when we offer fashion for larger sizes, it sells out. Maxi dresses were a hit this summer.'



Media attitudes are starting to change. Larger-than-life singer Beth Ditto got eight pages in U.S. style magazine, Nylon, outlining what fashion means to her and posing in custom-made dresses by cutting-edge names such as Jeremy Scott.



There is even a plus size supermodel, 22-year-old American Crystal Renn. She is the face of Evans, which is focusing on fit, cut and fashion this season with Gothic-inspired day and evening wear.



'You can find fashionable pieces in larger sizes, you just have to spend a lot longer looking for it,' says Marcella Martinelli.



'I would advise women to think about their body shape and not get hung up on their size. That way you'd be surprised what you can pull off.'

Pictures: Chris Harding. Model: Erika at www.12plusuk.com Make-up: Ginni Bogado at DWM using Young Blood Mineral. Hair: Hamilton at SLR using kevinmurphy.com.au. Assistants: Kit Lee and Hatice Moran. All fashion from ranges with plus sizes.







