This week, as I may have mentioned once or fifty billion times, I travelled to Melbourne for Melbourne Fashion Week Plus. I managed to get my exhausted butt to all the events including two discussion panels, four runways and an after party (plus some unofficial after parties, mind you). A massive effort but worth the pain of re-entering my life this week.

Re-entry, boy-oh-boy that hurts.

So what did I think? That’s the question on everyone’s lips. What did I think of the event, the clothes, the runways, the discussions? And the short version is that I’m so happy I went. I’m so glad to be a part of this industry changing fashion forever. Not just for plus women, but in ways such as manufacturing practices, body image, representation, and inclusion. We are making a difference and bit by bit we get closer.

When you see a diverse range of women wearing clothes, interacting, and just being themselves it changes your mind. It changes it because when you look around and feel represented, that matters. In a way that no one told you it would. It’s why an event like Melbourne Fashion Week Plus is so important. To see women of all shapes and sizes on the runway, in the audience, at the bar. Well, that’s a thing of beauty.

Women.

Diverse.

Beautiful.

Confident.

Women.

For that, I am so grateful to the organisers for making this happen. Yes, it was a long haul, one that perhaps could’ve been over four days instead of eight, but it was worth every sleepless night. When the team from Queensland took a week off work and invested our time and money into attending this event, we got why it mattered that we were there. To support, to cheer on, to be witness to this change.

And that, after all, is what bloggers do so well for this industry; we support it.

We support it with our shopping money. We support it with our comments and interactions on brand pages. We support it through sharing our finds with our readers and communities. We take the crap that comes from being visible and do it anyway. We stand up for the plus woman at home who feels like there’s something not right about her. It’s what we do. It’s our way of causing change, and I think that we have made an enormous impact on the industry if I do say so myself.

After almost seven years of blogging and most of them as a plus size fashion blogger, I’ve seen the shift. I’ve seen brands grow and expand. I saw some close. I’ve learnt where to shop for what and how. This hard-won experience can shortcut the difficulties and the angst for my reader and deliver to them what they need quickly and easily. So I want to celebrate my fellow blogger. For every photo, you posted, the comments you made, the brands you tagged or the models you celebrated this week, well done!

WELL DONE.

Man, you guys are cool.

And what did I think of what is coming in Australian plus fashion? Well, I think that I am going to need to get a second job to buy more clothes. Some stand outs for me, aside from my eternal favourites at 17 Sundays, were the Th Label, State of Liberty, Alison Dominy Designs, Black Mob the Label and the sneak peek at the new Sonsee Active Wear (!). There is a lot of good stuff coming team. A lot. And the best news? Some of it is ready and raring to go now.

Check out the blog tomorrow for some SHOPPING LINKS to items available now in my ‘shop the runway’ post.

Melissa Walker Horn

Hi! I’m Melissa Walker Horn. Around here, they call me Suger. I’m the Chief Blogger and doer of all the things here at Suger Coat It. Blogging since 1901; I love a casual ootd, taking photos, and writing about things that irk or inspire me. I love wine and cheese, long days at the beach and spending time with my family. I make stuff for the internet over at Chalkboard Digital. You know, living the sweet life.