J. Lo might have said love don’t cost a thing, but where clothing concerned it’s not always cheap to make things with love. And Beth Ditto put a lot of that emotion into the bright, bold, unapologetic fashion line she debuted earlier this month. Needless to say, the line doesn’t come with price tags consistent with what you’d find at ASOS Curve or Forever 21. And the internet has let her know it’s not 100% pleased with this deviation from what has sadly become the norm.
Ditto’s line, though, isn’t just about making larger bodies look boss. It also gives plus-size women access to a level of quality and craftsmanship normally reserved for bodies that don’t go too far above sample size. As the unapologetic singer explained in an interview with Lena Dunham’s Lenny letter this morning, the current lack of high-quality options available stems from the assumption that plus size women don’t love their bodies enough to pay $395 for a sheer silver jumpsuit.
“That was the thing,” she explains. “It’s expensive. We made clothes with quality fabric. None of it is shit fabric. None of it. With the shit fabrics comes the idea that fat women are meant to change, that someday they will find this ‘thin person,’ thought of as the real person. The truth is that we are who are and the way we are is amazing and completely valid.”
She also makes the point that all women should be allowed to have nice things, and that ethical fashion is not doing itself a favor by shutting out a large part of the market.
“To get back on my soapbox, we don’t have the privilege of walking into any store, just seeing something in the window and trying it on and buying it. We don’t have the privilege to be able to look at clothes and think about Where is this made? and Is this made ethically? We don’t have that option. It just does not exist for us. I really want to get to the point where, whether it’s me or someone else, there is the option of quality.”
Credits
Text Hannah Ongley
Image BethDitto.com