LGBTQ+ Creators in the Fashion Industry To Support

By: Kassidy McDonald

Pride month has ended, which means most big commercial brands who “advocate” for the LGBTQ+ community are going to be silent until next June. Many fashion and beauty companies only show their open support for the LGBTQ+ community one month a year. Their rainbow-colored products and flashy commercials are not enough. 

From high fashion to everyday affordable brands and queer creatives, here are some people you can support:

LUXURY: Telfar Clemens is an internationally famous fashion designer originally from Liberia before moving with his family to Queens, NY. The 35-year-old entered the fashion world by designing reconstructed vintage pieces and then selling his creations in boutiques in NYC. He then launched his label “TELFAR” which incorporates a sleek street style that defies gender norms and redefines menswear. Telfar's slogan, “Not for You, for Everyone” encompasses how his brand is able to cross gender lines and occupy a space that has not been explored enough in fashion. According to The New Yorker, the Telfar customer is “a ‘Black-adjacent, queer-adjacent person’ who, until recently, was not often found in fashion advertising.” In 2017, he won the coveted C.F.D.A/Vogue Fashion Fund award. He is most widely known for it’s best selling  TELFAR shopping bags that are called the “Bushwick Birkins.” Telfar continues to pave a path for a new space in the fashion industry where the gender binary is no longer present.

JEWELRY: ALANCROCETTI jewelry is a genderfluid jewelry company that has been featured in Vogue, Paper Magazine, and GQ.  When looking at Crocetti’s four collections, Flowers From Exile, Corporation, Erotica, and Odyssey, his creativity and authenticity are present in every sterling silver piece. Crocetti’s work is special because he blurs the lines between what is considered feminine and what is masculine. Jewelry has been normalized as an accessory solely for women, but Crocetti’s work contradicts this common stereotype. His high fashion pieces are not designed to be worn by a specific gender, but rather to allow and encourage everyone to style these timeless pieces of art. Alan Crocetti’s work has most recently been featured on pop star Dua Lipa’s newest album cover, #FutureNostalgia.

AFFORDABLE: WildFang is an affordable clothing company based out of Portland, Oregon. The brand is female-founded and according to their website, have “the ‘radical’ belief that a womxn has the right to wear whatever the hell she wants and be whoever the hell she wants.” WildFang is constantly donating profits from their brand to organizations that support reproductive, immigrant, and human rights. Their claim to fame is their “Empower Suit,” which allows womxn to wear a well-tailored suit that’s still versatile and flattering to all figures. The “Empower Suit” comes in sizes up to 20, creating size inclusivity that has been lacking in the fashion world for a long time. The brand also includes a line of “Wild Feminist” tee shirts that celebrate human rights for all people.

BEAUTY: Wendy Asumadu is a makeup artist, beauty guru, content creator, and a makeup consultant all in one. With 31.1K Instagram followers, she has begun to attract attention on social media and reimagine the world of makeup. Wendy’s Instagram is full of creative and colorful looks that challenge traditional beauty norms. She uses intricate colorful lines all over her face that make each of her look very Avant-Garde. She also has a makeup account that shows her work on clients, and her artistic direction (@wendymakeups_). Wendy has announced on her personal account that she will be collaborating with other Black creators for the next month in order to help other Black creatives have their work seen and shared on social media. Check out her hashtags #editorialblk and #avantgardeblk on Instagram to see more Black beauty creatives to support!

PERFORMANCE ART: Hip-hop rap duo FAKA have begun to make their mark on the performance art industry. Their mission is centered around the idea of supporting Black queer voices in South Africa. The pair defies gender norms by sporting animal print jumpsuits, short crop tops, glitter makeup, and bright red lipstick; accessories that challenge the idea of a super masculine identity. This idea of a blurred gender identity is not widely accepted in their country quite yet, but the pair is doing their best to shine a light on queer underrepresented voices. FAKA directs, styles, and edits most of their own performances on YouTube. The attitude and spunk of both individual artists give their music, performances, and photography a strong creative vision. The duo also has a strong online presence on multiple social media platforms, allowing them to connect to a wider audience and share their art with the world.