Produce Runway? Alya Chaglar, a creative mom from Turkey, creates the optical illusion of dresses with veggies, fruits and flowers for her 3-year-old daughter, Stefani, and the internet can’t get enough.
Since the Russian-born oil painter began sharing her creations on Instagram in August 2016, Stefani has “worn” everything from a lettuce gown to a mermaid tail made of melon, and a broccoli hoop dress. In just one year, Chagler has racked up more than 31,000 devoted followers.
The idea was born last summer when Stefani was standing in the distance. Chagler held up a piece of watermelon and noticed that it appeared to cover Stefani’s entire body like a dress. She snapped a photo, uploaded it to Instagram and the rest is history.
“Stefani loves modeling. Her facial expressions are hilarious,” Chagler, 32, tells Us Weekly exclusively. “She strikes her poses spontaneously. All I need to do is press the button at right time.” Indeed, in every picture, the blonde toddler totally nails the perfect pose.
Chagler, who dreamed of becoming a fashion designer as a child, says she has 40 more ideas in the works for the dress series. “For me, this is about about Stefani,” she tells Us. “She has a very bright personality and it comes through in the pictures.”
Though the shoots only take five minutes, Stefani wouldn’t mind if they went on longer. Says Chagler: “She enjoys doing this more than I do!”