Ashley Nell Tipton Is Launching Her Own Plus-Size Clothing Line

Though Ashley Nell Tipton won season 14 of Project Runway back in 2015 and later designed a plus-size line in partnership with JCPenney, today marks the first time she’s putting out clothing into the world that she 100 percent believes in.

“With the other collections, I was designing for other people’s customers,” Nell Tipton tells Glamour. “This time around I really wanted to design for my audience—and for myself—with no limits.” The result is a collection of black and floral bodysuits, sweeping skirts, biker shorts, and sheer dusters. The designer says it’s the first time she’s been able to make “a line of items that I see in ‘regular sizes’ and dreamt of wearing myself.”

Nell Tipton originally debuted on the retail landscape through a collaboration with JCPenney in 2016, shortly after her Project Runway win. Ashley Nell Tipton for Boutique+ consisted of four collections, dropping over 18 months. The retailer’s demographic wasn’t as fashion-forward as the designer would have liked. Now she’s able to take “risks” she wasn’t able to there—in place of leather jackets, jeans, and tees that say “Love You,” there’s sheer and mesh. The big difference, in her opinion: The customer is less conservative.

The launch of her eponymous brand is a huge feat, and it didn’t come easily. Nell Tipton had to get a refresher on how to build a line and navigate building a business for the first time. “The past couple of years working with JCPenney, I had lots of resources and worked with huge teams,” she explains. “[Having my own label] was an exercise in playing roles I wasn’t used to. I had to be the designer, the pattern maker, the sewer, and the fit model.” She also had to source her own production: “Finding the right manufacturers and teams to work with is key. I had limited [financial] means and really had to work within them. I didn’t want to let the costs affect my designs, so I had to be very resourceful.” Another challenge, says Nell Tipton, was her age: At just 26 years old the designer says some industry folk questioned her knowledge as a result of her youth.

Throughout the entire process, Nell Tipton says she “was going through a lot personally.” This year the size-22 designer had weight-loss surgery and was dealing with an ever-changing body. “I was at my heaviest when I started designing this collection, and my weight has obviously changed since then,” she says. That change did, in fact, affect the way she designed these pieces. “Because of the fluctuation, I was really paying attention to fabrics that had stretch,” she says. “I was focused on how the pieces move and how they’d work for different body types. I wanted to be able to accommodate everyone, and I wanted everyone to be comfortable. Beauty and fashion is not pain!”

But that’s not the full story behind the collection’s basic theme. The designer believes that while the plus-size industry has come a long way, it’s currently focused on giving shoppers above a size 14 as much trend as possible. “There aren’t many [brands] that do basic wardrobe staples well,” she says, then nodding to the fact that a lot of plus-size apparel is made from cheap fabric. “Because I had full control, I was able to really find fabrics that worked [best for basics].”

When the site, ashleynelltipton.com, launches today, this inaugural 15-piece collection will be available in sizes 14 to 30, with prices ranging from $24 to $99. There will also wide-fit jewelry and eyewear up for sale. Next, Nell Tipton says she’d like to “venture out into men’s and children’s lines to fill the gaps of the plus-size industry—it shouldn’t just stop at women’s.” Somebody get this girl an investor!

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