Some final thoughts on Fashion Week

Being back in the "real" world, away from Fashion Week, really helps puts some things in perspective.
The biggest thing people have been bringing up to me isn't the clothes or the colors or the hemlines; it's the models. People want to know what's up with all of those skinny-looking models.
I think this issue is bigger than some people in the fashion industry may realize.
But what's the answer?
With his excellent show last Friday, designer Charles Nolan showed a possible answer. Nolan used a combination of models and real people in his show. It was a beautiful sight - the gray-haired executive, the young women with the womanly shapes (breasts! hips!), the beautiful but slightly older woman who was totally believable as a mom to a couple of child models.
The collection was great; the show was even better. Bravo, bravo, bravo.
Nolan isn't the first designer to use regular women in his show, of course. I recall going to a show a couple of seasons ago by Yeohlee that featured all real women.
But these are generally treated as anomalies and not part of a "real" fashion show.
I think the key to changing the industry norm will be for some of the major designers to step up and select bigger models. Right now, most runway models are a size 1 or 2. Select some girls who wear a 4 or even a 6. That's still smaller than the average woman, but bigger than the current look.
Marc Jacobs, Zac Posen, Vera Wang, CFDA president Diane von Furstenberg, Michael Kors, Anna Sui, Ralph Lauren, Donna Karan, Francisco Costa for Calvin Klein. If a couple of these major designers took the plunge it could prove revolutionary. My guess is that until one of these major designers makes the move not much will change.