Revel The Runway brings a size-inclusive runway show to Canberra next autumn

Posted on 6 September, 2024

A runway showcasing and celebrating designers visibly creating for plus-size bodies – this is the ethos of Canberra’s newest fashion show.

Bringing the Ainslie Art Centre to life in March 2025, Revel The Runway is Canberra’s size-inclusive runway show, shaking up and showcasing fashion in the capital. Conceived and created by plus-size content creator and stylist Amy Abrahams, it’s all about making fashion accessible and relatable for everyone.

Also known as @wearthedamndress, Amy has been making a positive impact in the online fashion space with her account since its launch, following the birth of her second child. Posting content that “helps people to wear clothes that make them feel great, whatever their shape”, Amy’s passion and drive come from her own experiences, and wanting to create a different narrative in the fashion industry.

“@wearthedamndress began with a long-held battle with body image…I got sick of having my life on hold and waiting to be thinner,” she says.

“There were no pictures of me with my kids, my wardrobe was full of things that didn’t fit me because I was waiting to get back into them and I just got tired of it. It started as my personal challenge…then it grew into a platform to share some of that with others,”

“I want a different narrative out there; I have an opportunity to play a part in that narrative and I feel like I have a responsibility to play a part in that narrative. I feel like it’s easy to sit and think ‘It’s outside of my control and there’s nothing I can do’, but there are so many things we can do and different ways we can approach it. This is mine.”

Amy Abrahams AKA @wearthedamndress.

The reality of the runway

When it comes to body diversity – particularly on the runway – fashion isn’t ahead when it comes to the curve.

In fact, Vogue’s first size inclusivity report for Australian Fashion Week found that of the 1,209 looks presented by 38 separate designers for Resort 2025, 1.1 per cent were plus-size (AU 18+), 8.7 per cent were mid-size (AU 10-16) and 90.2 per cent were straight-size (AU 4-8).

To put that in perspective, body-positive fashion app, Mys has released Mys Tyler Insights – Australian Edition 2024, revealing that the average Australian woman wears a size 16, and over one-third of Australian women (36.9 percent) are considered ‘plus-size’ (size 18+).

Amy says that this staggering gap in the fashion industry – one that ignores a majority of Australian women – is why inclusive fashion shows like Revel The Runway are needed.

Inspired by the Curve Edit runway event at Sydney’s Australian Fashion Week in 2022 and Reborn The Runway, which was held in Brisbane in 2023, Revel The Runway will be a professional fashion show, showcasing diverse models sized 14 to 24  as well as works of local designers, highlighting both in one stylish swoop.

Also hoping to highlight other inclusive Australian brands – Philosophy has already shown an interest – Amy says she has some big plans.

“Canberra doesn’t have something like this. There’s more and more industry in Canberra – we have some really small boutique designers like Penyu Concept, Holly Lulu, and all other brands that are trying to get out there, so why not create an event that kills two birds with one stone?” she explains.

“One that lets them shine in their local environment but also provides an opportunity to showcase size inclusion, and diversity of bodies on the runway.”

“If you don’t see it, you don’t believe that it could be possible for you.”

All about putting on something that is “genuinely valuable and appreciated” by Canberra and the regional community, Amy is also planning to hold a ‘Shop The Runway Market’ so attendees can also shop the brands in person.

Hoping that the show will eventually grow – possibly into a fashion festival – the launch of Revel The Runway marks the beginning of a breath of fresh air in Canberra’s fashion scene.

“There are so many things we can do and different ways we can approach it. This is mine.”

And while she admits that there are still days when she looks at the media and feels deflated and self-conscious about her own content and plans for Revel The Runway, Amy keeps coming back to one thought: ‘But it will make someone feel good.’

“There is a whole generation of people coming through who deserve better, who deserve to see themselves represented in runways, in media, in fashion, in stores, in catalogues, and online,” she says.

“We become warped in our sense of what is normal, what is beautiful, and what is okay. If you don’t see it, you don’t believe that it could be possible for you.”

“Maybe it’ll be an eight-year-old, maybe it’s a woman who’s just had a baby, maybe it’s a teenage girl who is trying to find her place in the world – there’s somebody out there who will see it and will feel good. That’s why it’s important.”

Calling for expressions of interest from designers, models, and potential sponsors, with more information to come, keep an eye on @wearthedamndress and @reveltherunway.

Images by Jai Morgan Photography.