Lena Dunham Slammed For Plus-Size Clothing Line Not Being Inclusive
Critics of Lena Dunham’s new plus-size clothing collection say the pieces aren’t inclusive to all plus-size people because the largest size is a 26, Huffpost reports.
34-year-old Dunham told The New York Times of her collaboration with plus-size clothing company 11 Honoré on a “tightly edited collection of only five items.” The offerings, from Size 12 to Size 26, range from a $98 ribbed mock-turtleneck cotton jersey tank to a $298 jacket.
The Girls creator, who wears a size 14 or 16 herself, told the outlet, “right now the only thing I’m doing is speaking about my own experience. So this clothing line is a direct response to my experience.” Per Huffpost, the average woman in the United States wears a size 16 to 18, according to a scientific study, and plus-size brands like Eloquii and Universal Standard go up to a 28 and 4X, respectively.
11 Honoré design director Danielle Williams Eke said in an email to the media outlet, “We took a lot of time perfecting the grade up to a size 26 which included multiple fittings on a range of women from size 12-26 with varying body shapes. Our ultimate goal is to dress as many women as possible and we are completely open to expanding past size 26 in the future!”
Marcy Guevara-Prete , a celebrity stylist and co-owner of The Plus Bus Boutique said she believes 11 Honoré is “doing their best with limited resources to provide luxe fashion for plus sizes. However, I think this particular collaboration is somewhat tone deaf.” She added that “the simple solution is not to call it ‘inclusive.’ When something is called inclusive and stops at 26, it excludes a large portion of the plus size community, and the most desperate for pieces like these, those over a size 26.” Guevara-Prete said Dunham’s “quick foray into plus size fashion” shows “her continued privilege in the industry and now the plus size fashion industry.”
People on social media were not happy about Dunham’s clothing line:
Apparently Lena Dunham is making a plus size clothing line that only goes up to a size 26. That’s... not a plus sized line. That’s a mid size line with limited, extended sizing. pic.twitter.com/Xs3OFrVJwV
— Devon Cantwell-Chavez (@devon_cantwell) April 5, 2021
Fatness is strongly correlated with poverty, so excuse me if I'm not excited by a celebrity-designed plus size capsule wardrobe with price points of $100 for a top and $300 for a jacket.
— THEE mj (TV) (@scib0rg) April 5, 2021
Also, I just don't like Lena Dunham, so there's that.
Has society not tortured fat people enough without Lena Dunham trying to dress them https://t.co/mMy0UHtWia
— RoyalHoeliness @ bsky.social (@RoyalHoeliness) April 5, 2021
1000 percent behind more plus size brands, but is Lena Dunham the person to lead this? With a special in the NYT?
— Brianna Wu (@BriannaWu) April 5, 2021
She embodies literally every negative trait of the social media age. She doesn’t stand for anything beyond herself. https://t.co/akcqefzO0M
https://twitter.com/KaiLaiHei/status/1379618820604579844?s=20
A Lena Dunham clothing line...
— Ti Said What Ti Said YouTube Channel (@TiSaidChannel) April 5, 2021
So that's why they made this emoji 🥴 pic.twitter.com/RKekOQUX5k
