kellie b #fatatfashionweek
photo: @itsmekellieb / Instagram

While New York Fashion Week is trying to become more inclusive, they sure are taking their time. So, fashion bloggers have decided to take matters into their own hands — specifically plus-size fashion blogger Kellie Brown. 

Fed up with mainstream street-style galleries and noticing Fashion Week photographers capture only one body type, Brown launched the hashtag #FatAtFashionWeek. She's hoping the hashtag will take off so that people can see themselves reflected on the streets during NYFW and that the industry will stop pretending they don't exist.

Brown of And I Get Dressed had a revelation during a NYFW event hosted by 11 Honoré, a plus-size luxury retailer.

She said the event was "filled with boss bigger women: influencers, supermodels, fashion directors of major publications." But looking at street-style photos and audience photos during NYFW, you'd have no idea these women existed.

So, fed up with the lack of representation of plus-size women in fashion, she created the hashtag #FatAtFashionWeek. The concept, Brown said, took about 30 seconds to come to fruition.

"I’m starting a new hashtag #fatatfashionweek We are here, we work in this industry, we get it, we are leaders and consumers," she told her followers.

She even included the movement in her recent Fashion Week YouTube videos.

While showing plus-size women on the runway is important, it's just as important to see inclusion rippling through the industry. In other words, we need to see more than just skinny, white women showcased on the streets.

"I created the tag as a way to kind of show receipts that there are many bigger women working in the industry, influencing the industry and consumers alike, and looking great while doing it," Brown further explained.

And thanks to Brown's genius hashtag, we can finally see the variety of women attending NYFW. Translation: It's working!

#fatatfashionweek

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#FatAtFashionWeek already has 170+ posts (and counting), and every post features badass, stylish curvy chicks.

We are living for it!

"I’ve seen editors using it, which is one of the biggest compliments," Brown said.

 "A few people came up to me [at New York Fashion Week] to tell me they loved the hashtag and were excited to use it."

Other bloggers, influencers, and body-positive babes have used the hashtag to highlight their own fashion choices during NYFW.

Like Alex Michael May, Alex Larosa, and Kelly Augustine, just to name a few.

Larosa wrote a heartfelt post about how being #FatAtFashionWeek is tough, but this year has been a blessing.

We’re calling this look pajama chic! ???????? Being #FatAtFashionWeek hasn’t always been the best, but wow this year has felt like a dang dream! I’ve seen more #visiblyplussize models on the runways (????@jazzminecarthon @veronicapomee @supermodelemme @kellyaugustineb @yazziespeaks @simplycurvee @preciousleexoxo & more), plus size bloggers receiving awards for their style (????@itsmekellieb????), and and way more of us getting invited to the week’s best events! And to top it all off, I’m featured in this @instylemagazine roundup of the most stylish fat girls at fashion week! Thank you @lydiahudgensphoto for the shot and thank you @amandakater for the feature! #VisiblyPlusSize #NYFW . . . . . #plussize #plussizefashion #plussizemodel #plussizeblogger #plusfashion #plusmodel #plusblogger #psootd #psmodel #psfashion #psblogger #psfashionblogger #goldenconfidence #effyourbeautystandards #celebratemysize #whowhatwear #whowhatwearing #curves #blackgirlswhoblog #bblogger #whatfatgirlsactuallywear #beauty #curlyhair #naturalhair #naturalhairstyles

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"Being #FatAtFashionWeek hasn’t always been the best, but wow this year has felt like a dang dream! I’ve seen more #visiblyplussize models on the runways, plus size bloggers receiving awards for their style, and way more of us getting invited to the week’s best events!" she wrote on Instagram.

Brown said the next step is to grow the movement — to get people who work behind the scenes to use the hashtag.

 "I’d love to see models, makeup artists, people who work backstage [and] in PR, inclusive designers using it…. Hopefully, more to come next Fashion Week!" she explained.

The fashion industry IS trying and becoming more inclusive every day, but it's more than just showing diverse bodies on the runway. It's about seeing them in street-style galleries, seeing them in mainstream publications, and most of all, actually seeing the sizes reflected in stores.

"I started attending [New York Fashion Week] over 12 years ago as a publicist, and then I always felt like the only one," Brown told Glamour. "I know I wasn’t, but without the luxury of social media then, we weren’t connected. I love seeing so many larger models on runways [and] diversity at shows, but there’s still much to be done."

#FatAtFashionWeek is a step in the right direction.

It reminds us all that plus-size women are present, and they belong at NYFW as much as anyone else.