Project Runway is casting for season 16, and a Seattle designer is hoping to make the cut. Hannah Schnabel of Belle Ampleur is auditioning for the hit reality show and hoping to become the second plus size designer on Project Runway.
"I think with the winner two seasons ago, it was great to have her there, and be a voice for plus-size women, but it's not enough," said Schnabel.
After years in retail, and frustrated with a lack of options for plus size women, Schnabel started her own business, making custom clothing for plus size women. Her goal is to create timeless and vintage fashion that allows women to embrace their beauty and their curves.
"Curves are difficult because they don't like to behave in the same way. You have to be on your game with it, and you have to understand how bodies work and pattern making in order to make your clothes work," says Schnabel.
She's hoping her unique designs and personality will catch the eye of the casting crew of Project Runway.
"Not only am I focusing on a niche market and a demographic that is very much ignored in fashion often, but I come from a theater background, so I have ingenuity. I can make anything on a tight deadline," said Schnabel.
But most of all, she hopes Project Runway believes in her mission.
"It's one of those things that when you are in a group that is consistently targeted and ignored and marginalized, to bring that to the forefront of the nation and put it in front of people's faces, and say, we exist. We matter. It's a huge thing," said Schnabel.
