The Friday FYI : Underage Models are a Thing at NYFW.

It’s coming to light that many of the models walking at Fashion Week this week are underage. The New York Times covered it in the Thursday Styles. Why are they turning to younger and younger girls? Because they’re thinner. 

Back in 2006, the death of South American model  Ana Carolina Reston prompted a debate and a movement towards healthier BMIs in the modeling world. American designers, though, have in part argued against BMI restriction saying that because of their height, it’s difficult for fashion models to meet standards seen as normal by health organizations. 

I don’t usually make these FYI things personal, and I kind of enjoy living behind a computer screen, but here’s my 50-cent piece: I’m 5’ 10” and I weigh 155 pounds. I’m lovely. And I’m healthy. So hearing the “she can’t have a normal figure because she’s too tall” line from designers I really love feels a bit like an insult, and a baseless one.

The upshot of the age debate at Fashion Week is that designers are designing for a certain age group (their consumers) and body type (women with BMIs over 17), but are marketing their product using a completely different age group and body type. I’m not even sure how I’m supposed to know how a garment will look on me based on this marketing tactic. 

Fashion Week is a cultural event in New York City. An awesome one. But this trend is making it look more and more like a circus sideshow. 

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Elizabeth Burke is attending her first New York Fashion Week event today.