Anna Scholz Blog

Our friend,  Michelle W., creator of the fun Something to Wear blog, recently wrote about how she’s been lovin’ lumo lately, especially paired with crisp white and silver. She gave a few of Anna’s lumo pieces from the current collection a whirl. Here’s what she has to say about how they work for her.

I started my color therapy by leading off with a super new trench coat from my favorite posh plus size designer, Anna Scholz. This frill-trimmed, leopard lined confection is in an ever so slightly greenish glowing light yellow called Lumo, that is truly luminous. With a slight empire waist, flared sleeves and flared skirt, the fit is divine, and the details make this the most charming coat I have ever owned. I wear it with work clothes, denim, you name it. I am so in love with this darned coat that I will be sad to see the rainy days go, and kind of miss living in my hometown in rainy Oregon…well, almost.

Now I am a big fan of color generally, and I am always trying to incorporate more of it into my wardrobe in the chicest way possible, so Anna and I are a match made in heaven. Along with the amazing coat, I nabbed her clever, long “drawstring” cardigan in a bold, saturated chartreusey lime. This cardi is great because of its amazing versatility - you can draw up the strings ala Roman shades to make it varying lengths to suit your figure and outfit. And, yes, a bold hue like chartreuse can be versatile! Depending on what you pair it with, this piece looks dressy, it looks casual; it is, in a word, sensational. The first sunny day we had I wore it with white jeans, a white tee, and some white sandals with kicky colored tassels. …The cardi also cheered up another neutral palette when paired with chocolate brown trousers and a pair of awesome snakeskin platform sandals. LOVE LOVE LOVE IT!

Read more about Michelle W.’s adventures with bright colours and with fashion generally on her blog, Something to Wear.

Deborah wrote us about her fabulous-sounding birthday dinner, thrown for her by Beverly Johnson in Rancho Mirage, California. Taylor Dayne was a guest and even sang “Happy Birthday” to her!

Deborah is a writer, performer, designer, and the award-winning author of “The Cheetah Girls” novel series (Disney Publishing Worldwide). Appropriately, she is wearing Anna’s lumo leopard print crochet back jersey dress.

Peter sent us this photo of his wife Susan in Anna’s silk wrap dress “on a convivial evening on board the Island Sky in April”.

Amanda sent us this photo of her wearing Anna’s orange floral silk cowl neck dress (shortened for salsa-ing!) when she performed in a music video in Havana, Cuba for the famous salsa band, Los Van Van (the Rolling Stones of Cuban salsa music).

Amanda has won a £100 shopping voucher for use on www.annascholz.com!

Customers: we invite you to submit your photos now for the June photo contest. Send us snaps of you in your favourite Anna Scholz looks for publication on our blog, and you’ll be entered to win a £100 online shopping voucher. Whether you’re just hanging out or out on the town, we’d love to see how you lend your personal flavour to Anna’s clothes.

Just e-mail your photo to info@annascholz.com

Edinburgh College of Art has become the first fashion school in the UK to introduce size 18 mannequins to their fashion course.

The college’s move is part of the industry-backed All Walks Centre for Diversity project, which has already involved a number of major fashion designers in its spring campaign.

Both the founders of All Walks and the college’s instructors maintain that properly trained fashion students should be able to cut clothes for anyone, not just runway models. “There has been a disconnection between fashion students and the person who’d be wearing their clothes, the consumer,” says Mal Burkinshaw, head of the ECA fashion course told the Edinburgh Evening News.

Students also welcome the change. “I think everyone on the course agrees this is a good method,” says second-year ECA student Lauren Smith, 21,”especially because there aren’t many people out there who are model-sized.”

This Thursday, the third annual Full Figured Fashion Week will kick off in New York. This highly anticipated event is on from June 16-18, and will feature fashion shows, press and blogger events, sample sales, trunk shows, and a guided shopping tour around New York’s plus-size stores. The price of admission gains you access to many of these exclusive events, and a jump on the latest developments in the plus-size fashion industry.

FFFW celebrates the sizes that are ignored by the mainstream fashion world and spotlights both established and up-and-coming plus-size designers. Organizer, Gwen Devoe is expecting over 1,000 attendees at the grand finale showcase. “It’s been crazy,” Devoe told NYDailyNews.com. “It’s just exploding … We have money to spend, and we’re happy to give it to the designers and stores who help us celebrate our curves.”

To read more and see a runway show video, click here.

We are loving the latest Italian Vogue cover story, featuring the top rising stars in the plus-size modeling circuit. Among those curvy beauties is the charming Sydney native, Robyn Lawley, who also was featured on the April 2011 cover of French Elle. Lawley recently spoke with New York magazine’s The Cut about her childhood, her passions and her career as a model.

Here are a few highlights:

If you could change one thing about the industry, what would you change?
I would love to change the opinion of plus-size girls. I always feel people are surprised when they work with one of us and find that we can, in fact, model very well. Just because we’re not a size zero doesn’t mean we can’t model effectively. It flabbergasts me. But this isn’t exclusive to us; this can be said about older models and different ethnicities, too. Fashion should be indicative of the world, and we are all different; we’re not all 16-year-old Russian teens. I feel every catwalk and every editorial spread should feature all different types of bodies and faces.

It seems plus-size girls are more sensitive to this issue. Why do you think this is so?
Doing plus-size modeling has helped me a lot, as I was a skinny model before. [Making the switch] opened my world in seeing beauty in different forms. You don’t realize that personality and confidence has so much to do with one’s success. Look at Tara Lynn [another plus-size model on the Vogue Italia cover]. Her body is insane. She’s a bigger girl; it’s beautiful. It’s unfair for the industry to make young girls feel pressured to be incredibly thin, because it does ruin their lives. You have to be obsessed with it, and I haven’t got time to be worrying about it. I’ve got to eat!

What’s your diet like?
Although I am indulgent with my food, cooking is also a passion of mine. I love to make food from scratch and eating well. I’ve always been a very active, sporty girl so I get my workouts in. It sucks when people automatically think plus-size girls are unfit, fat girls.

Lastly, any advice to up-and-coming models?
I feel things are starting to change within the industry. We are looking for individuals now; they want you to be you. If being a model is not working for you, stop trying to obtain it. I’ve seen girls stare at a yogurt container calorie box for hours on end, deliberating whether they should eat it. Look, if it’s not working for you, hell, come to the plus-size world. You’ve also got to keep your hobbies and have a backup plan. A lot of girls are naïve and they come to New York with the idea that they’re going to become some big-name model, but they don’t focus on anything else. I’ve seen girls be chewed up and thrown out. What are you left with? You have to make sure you have yourself covered. I think we all have time, no matter how busy we are, to take a course at a university or learn a language to do something.

You’re about to be stranded on an island, and you can bring one person and one thing, what would you bring?
My boyfriend and, uh, a lighter.

Read more of Robyn’s interview on The Cut and see a video interview with her on Models.com

Aimee Cheshire is the owner and driving force behind Madison Plus, the blog and web shop for the fashionable plus-size woman. Madison Plus is an interactive and personalized shopping experience and guide. It offers shopping, style tips, trends and street style, info on plus models, the latest news in the plus-size fashion industry and celebrity news. Madison Plus has been a great source of information and inspiration for the Anna Scholz blog. We have done a little guest blogging for each other as well.

What is your favourite part of your body?

My lips and legs.

Where will you be in 5 years?

Running Madison Plus and maybe in the world of mommy-hood.

Who would be your dream date?

Eugene Hutz of Gogol Bordello. I have a crush.

What superpower would you like to possess?

Invisibility would be handy because I am nosey.

What is your favourite movie?

Amelie, and the original Hairspray. Tracy Turnblad showed me my shape shouldn’t matter.

What is your favourite restaurant?

No clue where to start but if I could do any meal again it would be the tasting menu I experienced at La Truffiere in Paris. It was full of all the decadent things I love in life: red wine, fois gras, bone marrow, and cheese. I live in Brooklyn so I am very lucky to have a good collection of restaurants at my fingertips like Rye, Fette Sau and Traif.

What has been your greatest achievement?

Being able to watch my dreams unfold with Madison Plus.

What has been your happiest moment?

Meeting my hubby– I knew immediately my world of dating was over.

What is your greatest fear?

Losing my support system of family and friends.

Which living person do you most admire and why?

Natalie Manhasset. I love that she has been able master the work/family balance while creating Net-A-Porter. I am all about working, but without a proper balance you end up losing your passion, drive and vision.

What trait do you most dislike about yourself?

I have the memory of a goldfish. I would like it to be more like an elephant.

What makes you sad?

When polar bears die.

How do you relax?

For immediate relaxing I love yoga, a book and a bottle of wine.

Who is your favourite designer?

L’Wren Scott. She doesn’t follow the trends and has an elegance that she adds to the pieces she makes. Now we just need to get her to do plus.

Heels or flats?

Flats, with a heel or two here and there. I am a casual girl at heart, but I know how to do it up when needed.

Black or white?

Black– I’m a New Yorker

Where would you like to be right now?

Mountain Lake, my family’s cottage, where I can totally disconnect from the world by rowing a boat, swimming, playing cards, reading and staring at the stars. It’s a good place to be.

What is the most important lesson life has taught you?

To persevere. When things are difficult and anything but fun, I keep the mindset that this is happening for a reason and all will be fine once it’s over. The greater plan always reveals itself.

How would you like to be remembered?

I hope that my work in the plus industry will make a difference and, of course, being the best wife ever.

What is your favourite song?

Such a tough question. I have so many favourites it depends on my mood, time of day….Here are a few from my top played on my iPod: The Constellations – “Setback”, Gogol Bordello – “Pala Tute”, Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros – “40 Day Dream”.

What has been your biggest disappointment?

I’ve had quite a few; don’t be disappointed if I don’t mention them.

Have you ever said ‘I love you’ and not meant it?

I am sure it’s slipped out a few times; sometimes you just can’t stop yourself from saying it.

What is your guiltiest pleasure?

Can I have more then one? If so, then I have at least a handful. Here is a selection pack: fois gras; a bottle of Chateau Rayas; an email-free day; bacon.

What is the worst thing anyone ever said to you?

There is a famous Hollywood actress I crossed paths with many moons ago who I overheard speak very badly about my shape. While it was far from the worst thing, it always stuck with me and then she became famous, and now I get to remember it every time I see her.

That being said, I am sure she is just lovely now. You’re not always at your best when you’re young.

What do you appreciate most in your friends?

Loyalty, humour.

What is your idea of happiness?

So many equations in life that will equal happiness. I know I experience happiness in its purest form when I am at home with my husband, friends and family.

If not yourself who would you like to be?

Renzo my cat; he leads a very relaxing and cozy life.