Answering a Reader Question #78

Marla Wrote:

I guess the main reason why I'm confused is because I always hear that a tall model is important because of the designer's sample sizes. But the "commercial fashion" beyond the runway, in catalogues or at the mall is made for women with an average size of approximately 5'5" to 5'7", right? Or am I mistaken here?

So, are high fashion sizes different or do the designers want the whole focus on the dress (as opposed to how a dress looks worn) which is easier if you're really tall and really skinny and in effect a human hanger?

Hey, Marla...good questions, thanks for asking them! Commercial fashion is geared more towards the actual consumer. That being said, companies that specialize in commercial fashion lines use "fit models" to tailor the size and the way it is supposed to look on the women that will more than likely be buying their clothes (and the sizes for fit models is usually much larger than the sample sizes high fashion designers would use). When it comes to using models to wear the clothes in catalogs and other advertisements/publications, they still stick to fairly smaller sizes BUT the height requirement is not like it is for high fashion.

The sizes for high fashion and commercial fashion do differ and while they do still want the models that advertise the clothes to be slightly taller than the average female consumer, they don't necessarily want them to possess the whole "human hanger" effect like they do for high fashion. Many commercial fashion models in larger markets appear slim but in a healthier way compared to the models on the catwalk. Commercial fashion and high fashion are two completely different markets so it is important to distinguish the differences and the caliber of the people that will actually be purchasing those clothing styles.

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