Former Victoria’s Secret model Kylie Bisutti is determined for her new brand to succeed as the first-ever full-service Christian clothing label, according to Time.
Bisutti, 23, also happened to win a national modeling competition for Victoria’s Secret to walk in their 2009 fashion show. Bisutti has since renounced the modeling industry to live a more Christian-friendly lifestyle as a wife, expectant mother, author and part owner of God Inspired Fashion.
A message sent to Bisutti on her website went unreturned Thursday morning.
Bisutti recently wrote an essay for The New York Post about her journey. She recalls a time a photographer was coercing her into doing things that made her very uncomfortable.
“This is what Victoria’s Secret models do,” she recalled him saying. “This is why they hired you. If you want to be like Gisele, this is what you have to do.”
“That’s when it hit me. I was being paid to strip down and pose provocatively to titillate men,” Bisutti wrote in The Post. “It wasn’t about modeling clothes anymore; I felt like a piece of meat.”
The next day, Busitti said she broke down and sobbed.
“I was in my bedroom and dropped to my knees and started to pray,” she wrote. “God, why did you have me win the Victoria’s Secret Angel competition if it was going to make me feel this way? I’m not honoring my husband. I just want answers!”
That was more than two years ago. Today, Bisutti is living in Montana with her husband, enjoying the fresh air and volunteering with their church. Time reports she is four months pregnant.
Her two other recent babies, her autobiography and Christian fashion line, also are keeping her busy. I’m No Angel: From Victoria’s Secret Model to Role Model is a way Bisutti explains why she turned her back on the modeling industry and converted to Christianity, Time reported. She didn’t wants to be a good role model for young girls. Now, she hopes her clothing line will help Christians to “open the door” and start a dialogue about their faith.
God Inspired Fashion is made of modest, casual separates with screen-printed proverbs such as “The Lord is my Strength” and “Fear God,” Time reports. Women’s options include racer-back tanks, sequined vests, peasant skirts, skinny jeans and more.
Former Victoria's Secret model Kylie Bisutti, right, is co-owner of God Inspired Fashion, a Christian clothing line. (God Inspired Fashion; AP)
(God Inspired Fashion)
(God Inspired Fashion)
“What we really want to focus on is getting God’s word into the world,” Bisutti told The Daily Beast. “But we really want it to be fashionable and up to date. It’s why we have a lot of neon stuff right now -- that’s what’s really in right now.”
As Time reports, her line is the first of its kind – for several reasons.
“There are actually a few other Christian clothing companies out there, but they namely focus on T-shirts and hats,” Bisutti said. “This is really the first one that has jeans and blazers and handbags. It’s the first one to cover everything.”
