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Plus-Size Model Nadia Aboulhosn: ‘Fashion Week Sometimes Made Me Feel Like an Outcast’

Nadia Aboulhosn
Nadia Aboulhosn Mireya Acierto/Getty

There should be room for all shapes and sizes in the fashion world, and Nadia Aboulhosn is making sure of that. The plus-size model, 28, isn’t a stranger to the game, what with her April 2016 Women’s Running magazine cover and a capsule collection with Boohoo. But despite her accomplishments, Aboulhosn still felt out of place at one of the most important style events of the year: New York Fashion Week.

Related: PHOTOS: Famous Plus-Size Models We Love

In an essay published on Friday, September 23, on The Cut, Aboulhosn reminisced about attending her first show, Tadashi Shoji in 2012. Afterward, a street-style photographer wanted to get her picture outside of Lincoln Center.

“It was the first time anyone had approached me outside the shows. I’d noticed that street-style photographers kept taking photos of girls who were wearing outfits virtually identical to mine, while ignoring me,” she wrote. “And as nice as it was for someone to tell me my look was unique, it made me realize such moments were rare. I don’t like playing the victim, but it’s hard to deny: Fashion Week sometimes made me feel like an outcast.”

Related: PHOTOS: See the Stars at New York Fashion Week 2016

Aboulhosn didn’t spend the next few seasons too salty, though. Addition Elle, a plus-size Canadian retailer that frequently produces lingerie collections with model Ashley Graham, tapped her to create a collection of sleek jumpsuits, lace-up skinny jeans, turtleneck dresses and more.

She had a very distinct vision for the line. “I want to offer women a wider variety of clothing selections than ruched tops and loose sweaters. I want everyone to be able to pick outfits based on what’s most fun rather than what hides flaws. I want women to feel good about themselves, not necessarily through clothing, but through being seen,” she continued in her essay.

With models such as Graham, Marquita Pring and Barbie Ferreira wearing her designs down the runway, she surely achieved that goal of representing more silhouettes. 

“It makes me feel like there’s revolution happening at Fashion Week, and I’m grateful to be helping contribute to it,” she noted.

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