Fashion Lovers Grow Weary of Waif Look

Fashion blogs, "Ugly Betty", and other pop staples are nudging the fashion industry to use more real people as models, Newsweek reports. So are YouTube, reality TV, and a slew of designers who make affordable lines for Target and H&M. "People would like to see somebody up there (on the catwalk) who reflects how people on the street really look," one casting agency topper says.

As New York gears up for Fall 2008 Fashion Week, insiders say more models will exude personal style rather than Brazilian mega-beauty. Ben Sherman, a British company, vows to use more real models, just as swimwear company Lycra did in Miami last year. "But if you don't look good in clothes, you're not going to sell them," one fashion editor warns—a possible reality check for those investing in real. (More fashion stories.)