Girls with curves deserve couture, too. Though Dascha Polanco is known for sharing stylish snapshots of her red carpet looks and colorful hairstyles with her 1.9 million followers on Instagram, she still has a huge gripe with the fashion industry. The Orange Is the New Black star, 33, revealed that she often has trouble finding designers to dress her for events.
“I understand that it’s business, but still, it’s like, really? My industry friends who are clear and honest with me say, ‘Girl, they don’t have your size, and you’re not at that level yet, so you have to either move that way or just build those relationships so that later in the future maybe it happens,” Polanco told Vogue.
And despite her popularity, certain labels still won’t change their ways. “I had a situation with a high-end brand the other day where I had personally invested so much money purchasing their items, and I love what they do, so I had my publicist reach out to their PR team,” Polanco continued. “Their response was, ‘Oh, you’re not the sizes we have, not right now, maybe in the future.’ Now even if they want me to [wear their designs] down the road, I will not give them the pleasure.”
Polanco’s tale isn’t unique. On Tuesday, June 28, Ghostbusters’ Leslie Jones tweeted her frustration about her unsuccessful search for a premiere gown. “It’s so funny how there are no designers wanting to help me with a premiere dress for movie,” the 6-foot-tall Saturday Night Live star, 48, wrote. “Hmmm that will change and I remember everything.” Although Christian Siriano stepped up to craft a bright red, off-the-shoulder number for Jones, he didn’t let the moment pass without addressing his peers. “It shouldn’t be exceptional to work with brilliant people just because they’re not sample size,” he tweeted on June 29. “Congrats aren’t in order, a change is.”
While stories like these can be perceived as disheartening, Polanco still manages to maintain her confidence. “Even though I’m a size 8 or 10, I still can look as great as someone who’s a size 0,” she noted, “This is why I work out; I’m making sure my body looks how I want it to look, so that I’m confident enough to wear a transparent cat suit, or show skin.”
She’s also taking matters into her own hands by creating her own clothing line. “I want to design something that’s between plus and between sample sizes—a brand that eventually would market to everyone, to all women, period,” she revealed. “I’m creative enough, and to be honest with you, I don’t mind work. Now more than before, it’s like, ‘You’re not going to make my shit? Well, I’m going to make my own!’”
