17 February 2023 , 15:29
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A size 18 model says progression made with the body positivity movement is being reversed - with bigger plus-size models being left behind in the last few years in favour of smaller shapes.
Netsai Tinaresse Dandajena, who goes by Tinar, appreciates brands including different body types in recent times, but she and others in the industry are now noticing a 'disheartening backward change' with a preference for smaller plus-size models, such as a size 12, promoting the overall message in fashion that 'smaller is better'.
This London Fashion Week (February 17 to February 24), Tinar, who has been in campaigns for Glamour magazine, Missguided and In The Style, says it is crucial for representation on the catwalk to inspire the younger generation.
Tinar was told she was 'too ugly' to be on screen while her teacher told her she needed to lose weight (@tinar.dandajena/Instagram)While the beaming model is now a body positivity champion, the 35-year-old learnt to build back her confidence after it was shattered during her teens and early twenties - when she was told she was 'too big and too ugly' by her own family.
Knowing the damaging impact this can have on someone's self-worth, she now hopes to inspire young women and girls to believe that 'big is beautiful' and has called on the industry to catch up.
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Tinar, originally from Zimbabwe, moved to the UK at 13 - at a time when she was going through puberty.
She was always bigger than her peers, both in height and weight, developing noticeably bigger hips and breasts.
At school, while she was never bullied for her size, she would wear her sweater around her hips to hide her bottom.
And in one Year 11 class where the students had to be weighed, her teacher told her she needed to lose weight after stepping on the scales.
"I remember that stood out. I lost a lot of weight after that," Tinar recalls.
"It was the first time someone told me I was too big and then the whole class laughed."
The comments about how she looked were more common at home, with male relatives making inappropriate comments at family functions, resulting in her mother having to jump to her defence reminding them that she was just a child.
It was her auntie, who she lived with for a period whilst her mum was away, who made a lasting negative impact, shattering her confidence.
"During that time [living with her] she would go on about how big and ugly I was," Tinar admits.
The model used to hide her body (@tinar.dandajena/Instagram)
Her mum and sister then entered her into a modelling competition (@tinar.dandajena/Instagram)"I say it's actually a victory for me because those things didn't break me. I was so lucky to be able to pick myself up - after you've lost all that confidence and then finding myself actually changing my life.
Strictly stars reunite at Fashion Week event as they pose for photos together
"You have to go through it to stand up for the next girl so she doesn't have to go through it."
She left her hometown of Coventry to study drama at university, hoping to fulfil her dreams in London.
But once she graduate, her auntie continued to cloud her judgement with doubt.
"I went from a kid wanting to take on the world to just losing myself completely," she says.
"I was so excited for the world. But she looked at me and said stuff like 'for a black girl you wasted your years studying drama for a white man's television.'
"I'd moved to London, but I had no dreams anymore.
"I thought I was going to work at Topshop forever. I was shattered at this point, no self-confidence, and I didn't realise at the time but when you look back, I was broken."
Her parents suggested she moved back home and shortly afterwards, her mum and sister signed her up for Ms Curvaceous UK modelling competition - where she learnt everything she now knows about modelling.
At the casting Tinar was told that she was "more than a model" - which she says rings true as she has since found herself taking part in body diversity workshops and talks.
After coming third in the competition in 2014, she has worked with campaigns for Glamour magazine, Missguided, Pepper Girls Club, and Pretty Little Thing, and is now with an agency looking to return to acting too.
"Given these opportunities made me feel seen," Tinar says.
"I went from thinking I was so ugly and not worthy to being chosen to be a beauty standard for the UK. It helped me heal.
"I have women message me in my DMs and comments [on Instagram] saying 'I feel beautiful because I see you and you look like me.' That changed my mindset.
"Now I don't rely on what people have to say and people's words don't affect me anymore. I see the value in me, it's self-love."
Laughing, she adds: "If it's a compliment then thank you but I don't let it get to my head, I accept it and if someone says something that isn't nice, that's their opinion.
"What someone says about you is not who you are, what you think about yourself is who you are."
But Tinar, among other plus-size models, has been disheartened in recent years with work opportunities dwindling as progression in the body positivity movement appears to have slowed down.
She even knows of size 12 models being cast for photoshoots but then fitted in size 16 clothing - with clips holding together the fabric at the back so brands can say that the model is in a size 16 on their websites.
"It's bitter-sweet," she continues.
"So many brands were buying into the body positivity movement and they were inspired to change the industry, but once again, from 2021 to 2022 it's changed.
"From a model perspective, we've gone from being involved in so many things to hardly getting so many opportunities. We're all fighting for that one role.
US model Bella Hadid is dressed by spraying Fabrican Spray-on fabric during the Coperni Spring-Summer 2023 fashion show in Paris (AFP via Getty Images)"If you look at London Fashion Week, New York Fashion Week, the plus models being used are preferably a size 14, size 16, not that there's a norm, but it's not a different range. It is okay to use a size 22.
"The industry is changing backwards, we're seeing more of the smaller plus size being celebrated than the bigger plus. The message all round, whether in the plus size industry or regular, is that smaller is better.
"It's a shame because some brands are trying to be inclusive. But the models they're choosing are smaller and I can see that shift, it's disheartening."
In last season's catwalks in 2022, flat stomaches with visible ribs and hipbones were just some of the trends.
The imagery led to New York Post's controversial headline of 'heroin chic is back' while a standout moment was at Coperni, where Bella Hadid stood naked while a dress was sprayed onto her.
The stunt was about the sustainable credentials of material Fabrican but it also showcased the supermodel's super slender physique.
This came after last year's Met Gala, where Kim Kardashian, previously known for her curvaceous figure, drastically lost 16lb just to fit into one of Marilyn Monroe's dresses.
And this year's Gala will honour the late Karl Lagerfeld, who was open about his dislike for larger women on the runway and who famously said singer Adele was "a little too fat".
"No one wants to see curvy women," the Chanel designer also told German magazine, Focus, in 2009.
Kim Kardashian at the Met Gala on May 2, 2022 (AFP via Getty Images)
Lagerfeld was known for his views on plus-size models (Getty Images)"I recognise that the unfortunate thing is the industry wasn't inclusive for so long, certain people were not invited to it and there are people that genuinely believe we don't belong or it's no longer fashion as soon as it's on a bigger body," Tinar argues.
"Plus size models in it right now, a lot of us are genuinely trying to change barriers and recognise the power of our voices.
"By going through what I went through, you understand the power of words and they either destroy you or you can change those words for the future generation.
"We hope one day that certain people in the industry that have such a big platform to influence so many young girls can look and think 'maybe this can work with a different type of body.'
"These changes might be taking longer than we hoped, but hopefully we will see it happen for the next generation."
There are some brands making waves, with Tinar crediting Rixo as a brand she can always rely on to present bigger bodies on their catwalks, while Brazilian-born designer Karoline Vitto is also bucking the trend.
She even showcased her stretch jersey pieces at last year's London Fashion Week catwalk with exclusively plus-size models.
"I knew I didn’t want any [UK] size six or eight models in the show," she told the Guardian. "No traditional models. The smallest size we were open to casting was a 10, but in the end the smallest model we used was a 12. I wanted a sense of representation for women who don't see themselves in most shows, and I looked for a strong walk, strong personalities."
Tinar says this representation is crucial for the confidence and happiness of young people and discredits remarks about those that claim plus-size models are promoting obesity.
Tinar hopes to inspire the next generation (@tinar.dandajena/Instagram)
"The healthiest version is seeing value in themselves." (Instagram/tinar.dandajena/PrettyLittleThing)"Some children are just born the way they are and it is unfair for any child to be made to feel inferior because of what they look like," Tinar asserts.
"It's important for those kids who are unfortunate to come from homes telling you you will never be on the screen, it's important for them to see that reputation and that it is possible for them.
"It's about finding a healthy way of loving who you are and the only way someone can be the healthiest version is seeing value in themselves.
"Seeing people like yourself on the catwalk, TV, and more of those bodies will make you value yourself and once you value yourself, you want the best for yourself.
"I think it's the opposite of what people think. You're then worthy of being healthy, wearing the best clothes, walking out there and going for the best position of your career, it's bigger than modelling and there is power in that."
For this season's London Fashion Week, which commenced today, Tinar hopes to see a wide range of plus-size bodies on the catwalk and among the crowd watching the shows.
"It will be interesting to see if someone takes a risk and show they [plus-size] can still do fashion," she adds.
"It's always the same shapes. It would be so refreshing to see different sizes on that catwalk - I know that plus-size girls can catwalk, we know how to do it to the same standard.
"But also not just the models but the people invited to watch the catwalks, it will be interesting to see if they have more of the plus size influencers joining in and being a part of the industry."
The Mirror has approached the British Fashion Council for a comment. For more information on London Fashion Week, head to https://londonfashionweek.co.uk/