Reality TV star Jules Robinson has publicly addressed a torrent of online abuse she received over the dress she wore to the Melbourne Cup last year. The 43-year-old mother-of-two, who found fame on Channel Nine's Married At First Sight, faced a wave of nasty comments about her figure after wearing a pink and green striped frock by Pasduchas that she admits was a size too small.
'It's Just a Dress, It's Just a Day'
In a candid interview, Robinson revealed she tried the dress on for the first time on the day of the event, after it was flown to Melbourne. She dismissed the critics, many of whom she said were acting as if she was attending the Oscars rather than a horse racing carnival. "I didn't plan my outfit for six months," she stated. "It's just a dress. It's just a day. I'm not murdering anyone, I'm not hurting anyone. Get over it."
Robinson confessed the dress was uncomfortable but decided to adopt a confident mindset. "Yes, I was uncomfortable. It was too small and I just had to go, 'You know what? F*** it. I'm going to dig deep, feel confident and have a good day.'" She emphasised the relatively low stakes of the occasion, quipping: "It's just the Melbourne Cup, it's not the bloody Oscars for God's sake."
Turning Negativity into Body Positivity Advocacy
Despite the "really rude" comments, Robinson says she uses the experience to stand up for women who wear a size 14 and above. She argues that women should not be ridiculed for how their bodies look in certain clothing. "I'm wearing a dress not to look smaller, I'm wearing it because I love it. I've got boobs, I've got skin under my arms, I'm not a size 8 woman," she declared.
In a surprising twist, Robinson revealed the controversy had a silver lining for the designer, Pasduchas, which sold out of all its pre-orders following the backlash. She joked the dress was "the gift that keeps on giving."
Robinson, who runs the shapewear brand Figur, expressed pride in becoming a figure that women in Australia look to for body confidence. "If that is a conversation I am known for, I will never take that lightly because it matters, it can change lives," she said. However, she was keen to note that while body confidence is part of her voice, she is also a "mum, a business owner, an entrepreneur, a creative and a partner."
Navigating Fame and Protecting Her Family
The scrutiny, she admits, can be "a bit testing." Robinson, who met and fell in love with her husband Cam Merchant on the sixth season of MAFS in 2018, now uses techniques like kinesiology to protect her mental wellbeing. "It's not normal to have so many voices telling you what you look like or what you should wear, or how you've been or how you mother," she explained.
"You really have to protect yourself and your emotions, to really stand in your lane of who I am... If you listen to exterior noises, it's very easy to get swept up in that. I learned that the hard way," Robinson added. The couple, who married in November 2019, share two sons: five-year-old Oliver and one-year-old Carter.
Robinson now looks back on her MAFS experience fondly, as simply the unique story of how she and Cam met. "We don't look at it as this big thing. It's pretty remarkable, really, the chances of it working out... It's lovely," she reflected.
Recently, she channelled her energy into planning a "dinosaurs and slime" themed birthday party for her eldest son, Oliver, using a Cricut machine to DIY decorations. "I was very proud of my accomplishments... Ollie just thought I was the coolest mum ever," she said, describing herself as an "arts and crafts girl at heart."
