Beautifully Human: Jill Scott in Essence

R&B Soul singer Jill Scott is on the cover of this month's Essence talking about her music, personal struggles and the pressure to lose weight within the music industry.

Once I started looking for a record deal, I had a trainer. And the trainer told me that I would never sell a record if I didn’t lose weight.

Personally, I sincerely hope she told that trainer off but the very fact that anyone would even say that gives insight into how body conscious the entertainment world is. As intense as the beauty standards for fashion are its easy to sometimes forget that fashion isn't the only industry wherein this pressure exists. The music world enforces its own rules and standards for its female performers. Lately it seems as though the most important thing a singer can do is look "good". With the seemingly endless stream of disposable popstars and drum machine heavy songs more reliant on audio editing programs ProTools than singing talent looks play an increasingly important part in the marketing of music. Reading through the Jill Scott piece I couldn't help but think of this editorial from a few months ago on the importance of sexiness as a marketing tool.

She was an "amazing talent," a young singer with a wonderful voice who wrote beautiful songs. But she was no beauty, plus flat-chested and overweight to boot.

Remembering the aspiring star, music executive Jody Gerson still feels terrible about thinking: "She's never going to get signed, even though she's fabulous."

Its a shame to think just how low actual talent ranks in the scheme of things. How do you feel about stars being asked or told to lose weight in order to secure record deals? I think we can all agree that it is a reprehensible practice but how prevalent do you think it is / can a star succeed if they don't fit the typical cookie cutter?

Back to fashion, I think Jill looks amazing in her red velvet Igigi dress! Absolutely gorgeous - she seems positively regal especially posing on that chaise.

Dairy Queens

This yoghurt advert is to me like ice-cream to Dawson's dad...

Reading Feministing, I came across this post.

Apparently there's a series of adverts for a diet yoghurt that uses iconic images of women, like this --

-- and replaces the original skinny version with a plus-size woman.

The caption reads "Forget about it. Men’s preference will never change. Fit Light Yogurt." (Thanks to joelle once again.)

Apparently after you finish retching in disgust at the hideous fatty, you then rush out and buy some diet yoghurt to make sure you remain attractive to men and diet yo'self down to the original skin'n'bones version.

Apparently, it's 2007.

Her milkshake brings all the boys to the yard...

However, I must now edit, because another dairy-licious thing arrived in my inbox today. To balance out the hideousness of that advert, I bring you the super-sexy fantastic Sara Ramirez. Who has got milk, and got curves, and got It:



Sara Ramirez: bringing me and dairy back together since ought-seven.

Big Girl (You Are Beautiful)

Mika is releasing Big Girl (You Are Beautiful) as a single, and the London papers are currently full of pictures of the video shoot in Croydon last week. Now, it's no Fat Bottomed Girls (they make the rockin' world go round, apparently), but it's interesting.

Photo courtesy of Big Pictures Blog -- many thanks to joelle for the link!

What do you guys think? Positive portrayal of plus women? or vaguely patronising, fat-fetishising anthem?

I'm a little leery of this, partly because within the first four lines we're talking food, pizza specifically - because hey, only big girls eat, and big girls eat pizza! Plus it sets up that whole plus vs. skinny thing with the 'only big girls are real women', as if there's a checklist somewhere for what makes a real woman. Let's play real woman bingo - do you have all the items on the list?!

(Although I do like the 'big balloon' imagery, but that's just cuz I like balloons. Shiny, colourful pretty balloons.)

One other thing - there are a hundred bajillion songs about girls and women and girlfriends and love etc etc etc. Unless they specify height, weight, race, age, hair and eye colour, and shoe size, I like to think they could all apply to me. Why not, right? Take "You're Beautiful" - dreadful song, but there's nothing in there that says it can't be about a plus-size woman, or a buck-toothed buzz-eyed club-footed lass. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, right? So maybe there needn't be a special song for pluses, because all the songs are for us, them, you, we - and by separating out songs, Big Girl, Fat Bottomed Girls, Baby Got Back, it suggests I was wrong about all those other songs, and they were actually just about slim women.

Or maybe I read too much into it. At any rate, it's less disgusting than Baby Got Back. Actually, Sir Mix-a-Lot, Cosmo doesn't think I'm fat. And keep your anaconda away from me! (I actually do love that song. But it's gross.)

Here's the Big Girl (You Are Beautiful) lyrics. Tell us what you think. Aside from anything else, the video looks to be cool - the stills I've seen are colourful and fun and filled with gorgeous, beautiful, voluptuous women. Final thought (in a non-creepy Jerry Springer way...): whatever the politics of the song, the positives and the negs, that one idea should always be said, and never be ignored: big girl you are beautiful.

Big girl you are beautiful

Walks in to the room
Feels like a big balloon
I said, 'Hey girls you are beautiful'
Diet coke and a pizza please
Diet coke I'm on my knees
Screaming 'Big girl you are beautiful'

You take your skinny girls
Feel like I'm gonna die
Cos a real woman
Needs a real man is why

You take your girl
And multiply her by four
Now a whole lotta woman
Needs a whole lot more

Get yourself to the Butterfly Lounge
Find yourself a big lady
Big boy come on around
And they'll be calling you baby

No need to fantasise
Since I was in my braces
A watering hole
With the girls around
And curves in all the right places

Big girls you are beautiful (x 4)

Woman In Full: Sara Ramirez

The fact that I'm completely in love with Sara Ramirez probably renders me incapable of giving an objective analysis but I am not going to let that stop me from talking about her style. Anyone who watches Grey's Anatomy or is a fan of Spamalot knows exactly how awesome Sara is but acting/singing skills aside she's an incredibly impressive and intelligent woman. Reading her profile in Glamour sheds some light on her own struggles with body image and what it is like to deal with those issues in Hollywood. Remember her incredibly cute Grey's underwear dancing scene? Apparently it wasn't as effortless as it looked:

"I went to Shonda Rhimes, the executive producer, and said, “Do you really want me to do this? Why me? I have so much cottage cheese here and there!” She just looked at me and said, “Work it.” That was all I got from her. And sure enough, doing the scene helped me get over a lot of my issues. I had to accept my body.

And now? I’m not going to lie: I still have days when I walk by the mirror on my way to the shower and think, oh God, I didn’t just see that! But I’ve learned to stop myself and ask, am I being realistic? What do I love about my body? What am I grateful for? The answers to those questions remind me that I’m very blessed." - Sara Ramirez

I think Sara's story is very interesting and it sounds quite frankly like what alot of women go through every day. Most of us don't have to worry about what a casting director might say but there is a still an incredible amount of pressure placed on women to fit a very specific mold and in a sea of ever shrinking starlets its nice to see an actress who loves her body as is.

Now of course I'm here to talk about style so onward to the sexy. I've really been loving what Sara wears on the red carpet. She always seems to find the absolute perfect little dresses. They're flirty and cute but with just the right amount of sex appeal.


The Many Sides of Sara

There is something almost retro about her red carpet outfits. Look at those peep toe pumps she's wearing in the picture with McSteamy co-star Eric Dane, they could have been pulled from Marilyn Monroe's closet.


Inspiration

I've taken the liberty of using some of Sara's greatest fashion hits to create a look that can fit right into your closet. For those nights when you just want to unleash your inner glamour girl.



Dress: Banana Republic, Pumps: Steve Madden, Clutch: Jimmy Choo, Body Shimmer: Michael Kors, Lipgloss: Laura Mercier, Earrings: Antony Nak , Eyeliner: Givenchy


First we have the signature red dress but in a very casual almost beachy style. Perfect for summer barbeques or picnics. Then we've got the amazing leopard pumps, a complete steal at 79.99 and peep toe pumps can go with everything from jeans to jewels so you can really get alot of wear out of the shoes themselves. Plus there is a lower heeled wedge version if sky high heels aren't your thing. I think every girl needs at least one pair of animal print shoes and you can't go wrong with the classic leopard spots. Now my absolute favorite part of this entire look is the gilded Jimmy Choo clutch. I just feel like its an instant conversation piece though that may just be because it reminds me of Fort Knox, either way a good clutch will always be in style. Finish the look off with a stunning pair of dangling earings, discreetly placed shimmer and the perfect lipgloss and you've got yourself ready for an evening out on the town. Or a night curled up with McSteamy your special someone. The choice is yours.

There's Nu Limit

I interrupt your regularly scheduled TFFF for a couple of reasons. One is entirely to baste my ego, much like a turkey, and another is to give you some news of plus-sizes in the media, although not strictly fashion related.

First, let me brandish this turkey baster and fill it with the sweet liquid goodness of blowing my own trumpet, to badly mix a metaphor or two. I had my first fashion piece published last week in British newspaper The Independent, which means that when you read TFFF you can rest easy in the knowledge that we are a website run by professionals. (Ha! My professionalism barely amounts to getting to work on time.) Anyway, I have a few more commissions coming up that I shan't bore you with in future, but since the article was in the features Extra section - and thus didn't go online - I thought for this first one at least I would bore you with a scan.

(A bad scan, at that, since the paper is bigger than the scanners at my college, so the headline and picture is cut off. But my utterly brilliant words are there for all to see!)

Click the glowstick to see my article!



The second piece of news I wanted to share was from another British paper, The Guardian, who have commissioned Gossip's Beth Ditto as their newest columnist. Beth will appear fortnightly in G2 (the features-based supplement to the main paper) in their Women section, dispensing advice to those who ask for it.

Her opening column is here. I love this quote:

People still sometimes comment on the way I look, but at this stage they can't tell me anything I don't already know. I know I'm fat, I know I'm quirky, I know my teeth are yellow. I do actually have access to a mirror, so this hasn't got past me. When people say things like that, I just feel like saying - "Duh?" Or, "Wow, you're a genius, you should be a photographer. You have such impeccable vision."

Her first piece of advice relates to coming out to colleagues.

Nothing to do with fashion, but everything to do with fat politics, and having more plus-size women in the media is a definite (no pun intended) plus.

Can You Hack It?

Kate Moss for Topshop is arriving any day now, so naturally the press is all a twitter and her pieces are everywhere in the media. Well, I say 'her' pieces but as we've all seen, they're not really 'her' pieces at all...

Anyhoo, the collection's Look Book / press release / catalogue / whatever dropped on my desk this morning. The clothes can best be summed up as 'um' and 'what was she smoking?' and 'oh, Topshop. Why hast thou forsaken me?'.

The clothes are not quite as um, however, as the introduction to the lookbook. (Really! Since when does a glorified catalogue need an introduction?!) Which is written by one Jefferson Hack.

Luckily for TFFF readers, I love you like I love kittens and rainbows and Nintendo, so I painstakingly copy-typed it for your edification:

"Let’s look at the collection; a life long obsession with costume and clothing, distressed elegance and finely tuned decadence. These are more than just hand-picked pieces from Kate’s wardrobe, sourced from impossible-to-find boutiques and bazaars scattered around the world. It’s a mercurial touch that restructures a vintage dress so it looks modern and cutting edge. It’s a cunning eye that holds original prints and fabrics in elegant proportion.

The muses – women like Anita Pallenberg, Marianne Faithful and Edie Sedgwick. Iconic night birds who fill our daydreams with rock ‘n’ roll chic. Excess all areas, but always impeccably dressed. Their sartorial romance is still a blue print for independence and personal freedom. They are strong women who changed the way men dressed and changed the way girls carried themselves, who inspired directors to make movies, musicians to write anthems and photographers to create archetypes.

Kate & Irina, it was a kinship that bound them together first. Work always came second. They are from different chapters of fashion history, but share the same lineage. The outsiders. Their rebel spirits bound by a passion for music and a love of life.

Kate Moss’s collection blurs the distinction* between night and day, between high class and street smart, the possible and the impossible in style and dress.

Jefferson Hack"

*Kate's collection blurs the distinction between plagiarism, copying and homage, says I.

Oh, Jefferson. Remember the good ol' days, when Mossie's crew used to refer to you as "the babysitter" and you were basically totally pussywhipped? What's it like now you've broken up, and you're totally an independent man, throwing your hands up at me, buying your own diamonds and paying your own bills....oh, wait.

Why is Jefferson Hack doing the intro? Why's it so obsequious? Why doesn't it make any sense? Photographers create photographs, not archetypes. And surely "life long" should be hyphenated?

Whatever. Hack is quite obviously still in thrall to La Moss, for reasons that elude me. (I've read the gossip on Holy Moly about how and why the collection samples had to be thrown away repeatedly and remade, thanks to Moss's questionable hygiene...)

Those who have had the misfortune to see Kate's collection...what do you think?

Kate Moss for Topshop is available at Topshop, London; Corso Como, Milan; Colette, Paris; and Barneys, New York.**

**TFFF holds no responsibility for the massive disappointment you will feel should you be fool enough to be excited about it.

Oscar Magic

I am a huge Oscar nerd so I absolutely had to mention the fashions on Hollywoods biggest night. Personally I felt that almost everyone looked absolutely stunning this year. There were no desperate for attention get ups (hey Cher) no dreadfully dull gowns (hey Jennifer Aniston) and no "what were the thinking" moments (hey again Cher) all in all starlets looked fresh, actors looked polished and I had no complaints. If only this could happen every year. I was also pleased to see a slew of young designer labels one doesn't often see on Oscar night, its about time we saw some Proenza Schouler and Marchesa amidst the sea of Armani.


Miss J's Best Dressed





Gwyneth Paltrow in Zac Posen, Reese Witherspoon in Nina Ricci, Rachel Weisz in Vera Wang, Emily Blunt in Calvin Klein, Rinko Kukuchi in Chanel Couture, Cate Blanchett in Armani Prive, Queen Latifah in Carmen Marc Valvo, Nicole Kidman in Balenciaga

All these girls look just so gorgeous I can't even pick a favorite dress of the evening. Emily, Cate and Rinko (who has been wearing amazing Chanel pieces all awards season) leave me breathless but I actually gasped when I saw Rachel Weisz (can we talk about that jeweled neckline) and Gwyneth. Queen Latifah shows us that horizontal stripes can be a major fashion do, Reese gets a special prize for wearing Theyskens and Nicole's Balenciaga makes me wonder why Nicholas Ghesquière never shows stunning gowns like this on the runway. Perhaps its performance anxiety but something tells me that maybe Nic just wants to keep all the goodies to herself.

Oscar Night Risk Takers



Jennifer Hudson in Oscar De La Renta, Eva Green in Givenchy, Kirsten Dunst in Chanel, Jennifer Lopez in Marchesa


I must admit I did not enjoy Jennifer Hudson's silver capelet at first. The words "hated it" immediately flashed into my mind and even now I'm still on the fence. Overall, the shape detracts from an otherwise appealing bronze gown but I'm glad she took a risk and did something different. Too often we see the same old thing on the red carpet and that blast of metallic python was fresh. I also really enjoyed Eva Green and Kirsten Dunst's gowns though the fashion police may disagree with me. Eva wearing a gown from the Givenchy couture collection, previously featured right here! What I love about this is how she takes such a dramatic couture piece but she really brings it to life. Its nice to see someone wearing something that avant garde especially to an event where fashion conformity is rewarded on some levels. Kirsten's dress was dissed everywhere from E!'s Fashion Police to US Weekly but I love it. Its so utterly coquettish and very Chanel. Not for everyone but I love it. And J.Lo's Marchesa was perfect, very few people could pull off that bling neckline but she is most certainly one of them.

Who did you love Oscar night? I know I'm forgetting about ten gorgeous gowns but I've already cheated my top 10 into a top 12!