Lena Dunham Just Raised Thousands of Dollars for Planned Parenthood

This morning, 169 pieces from the wardrobe of Girls creator Lena Dunham hit The RealReal. Needless to say, Dunham isn’t the first celeb to host a mass closet purge on the fashion consignment site. However, hers is backed by a very cool concept: the writer/actress/activist has pledged to donate the entirety of her 70 percent commission to Planned Parenthood, which, as we all know, is now in dire need of support.

“I realized I had been carrying around a lot of crap, both internally and externally,” Dunham told the New York Times. “I always thought I was going to hoard all my clothes for my future daughter, and now I understand, especially being a woman with a reproductive illness, I may end up with an adopted son, I may end up with a daughter who doesn’t identify with her gender at birth. You can’t live for the future that does not yet exist. I have to take all this good fashion fortune I’ve had and spread it.” (For those just tuning in, Dunham was recently diagnosed with endometriosis and has spent the past few months tending to her health.)

The selection includes a mix of high fashion and everyday pieces that Dunham’s worn on red carpets, Brooklyn streets and as her Girls alter ego, Hannah Horvath. Each buyer will also receive a letter from Dunham (or its designer) explaining its significance. For instance, a gown by Dunham’s former babysitter Zac Posen — which the Lenny Letter co-founder wore to the 2013 Golden Globes — will come with a note explaining how Glenn Close graciously slit the gown open (using a pair of nail scissors) when Dunham began hyperventilating. Then there’s the Kenzo x H&M dress Dunham cried in when Hillary Clinton lost the 2016 Presidential election and the $4,000 Elizabeth Kennedy gown Dunham wore to this year’s Met Gala, which she exited in an ambulance. (“[I will] probably be remembered for visiting the emergency room more than anyone else you know,” joked the director in a February video interview with Vogue.)

Thank you for all the love & concern that’s been pouring in since Tuesday. Although I’m much healthier than I was a year ago, complications arose from my most recent endometriosis surgery. When the healthcare of so many American women, especially our trans sisters, is at-risk- or already nonexistent- I am lucky to be in the position to seek help when I’m in pain. To those in that privileged spot- never forget that we are blessed and can pay it forward by supporting Planned Parenthood and LGBTQ clinics like Callen-Lorde with our and . I also want to remind all the women suffering from chronic illness that we aren’t weak- quite the opposite, actually. We do our jobs with skill even when we’re struggling. We care for our families even when we can hardly care for ourselves. We serve major face on a red carpet when we feel like lying face down would be more appropriate. I’ll always be proud of those Met Gala pics- not just because I felt beautiful, surrounded by art and magic, hugging my best friend tightly, but because they’re evidence that women contain steely multitudes. Just that morning @dianafalzone sued Fox after they took her off air for disclosing her endometriosis. But they’re the ones who lost when they lost her, because everyone who’s anyone knows that if you can battle chronic illness there’s nothing you can’t take on.

A post shared by Lena Dunham (@lenadunham) on May 4, 2017 at 8:22am PDT

Dunham tried to keep the assortment inclusive. Pieces range in size from a 4 to a 12 and beyond. (“I like being a woman who’s not typical Hollywood size putting beautiful designer things out into the world,” she told the Times.) About half of the items cost $100 or less.

Happily, the fish are biting: at time of publishing, most of Dunham’s picks have sold, save for the aforementioned Elizabeth Kennedy gown, a lace A-line dress by Erdem and a striped and checkered romper by Sass & Bide.

Suffice it to say, Planned Parenthood is about to receive a fat check from one of its most vocal celebrity advocates. “It’s a very, very challenging moment to be a woman in America,” Dunham professed. “Planned Parenthood’s never been more essential. The work that I’ve done with them has really become front and center to my life, really as important to me as my art in a lot of ways.”

[ via the New York Times ]