Updated 11/02 10:20 p.m. ET:
Tommy Hilfiger has denied criticizing Gigi Hadid’s size, instead praising the supermodel as “perfection.”
The American designer told Yahoo Style on Wednesday, November 2, that the 21-year-old Hadid wore a poncho in his fall 2015 fashion show because she wasn’t “quite as thin” as the other models.
However, Hilfiger later clarified his comments to Page Six on Wednesday, explaining that he was upset his casting people covered up Hadid for the show, and rejecting any notion she was too fat for his runway.
“The casting people put Gigi in the poncho, and I was not happy. I was saying, ‘Don’t hide her body.’ Even though the poncho ended up being the best-selling piece, I was very unhappy,” the 65-year-old said.
“The suggestion that I thought she wasn’t thin enough upsets me to no end. Gigi is the epitome of perfection.”
Original story below:
Only in fashion. Tommy Hilfiger explained in a new interview published on Wednesday, November 2, that Gigi Hadid wore a poncho in his fall 2015 fashion show because her body proportions weren’t quite up to snuff for his other designs.
“Our casting director said, ‘She doesn’t really fit because, you know, she’s not quite as tall as the other girls, she’s not quite as thin,’” the 65-year-old fashion designer told Yahoo Style’s Joe Zee. “So they put a red, white and blue poncho on her. It covered a lot of her body, unfortunately, but it received millions of hits.”
Hilfiger was so impressed by Hadid’s influence that he suggested that she and the brand partner up for a project.
“So I said, you know, why don’t we ask her to design a line with us — Gigi, come design this with me, we’ll do a Gigi x Tommy couture line,” he said. (The pair’s collaboration debuted in September — a nautical-inspired capsule collection full of high-waisted jeans, peacoats and cropped fisherman’s sweaters.)
In a recent interview with Harper’s Bazaar, Hadid, 21, said working with the veteran designer was “so much fun.”
“We would literally close down the Tommy building in midtown, like they were trying to kick us out,” she told the publication. “They thought of everything; they even made me cupcakes with my name on them. They made it very welcoming.”
“Designing with Tommy was an incredible experience,” she added. “Every time I see him it reminds me that being positive is so important. He’s always happy and welcoming and warm, and it trickles down to his entire company. Being nice is so important.”