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Amy Schumer wants ‘every woman’ to feel good about getting dressed

Amy Schumer, right, was brought to tears in a "Today" show interview when she talked about seeing her sister, Kim Caramele, after the stylist on the film "Trainwreck" helped them both figure out how to dress well.

Amy Schumer, right, was brought to tears in a “Today” show interview when she talked about seeing her sister, Kim Caramele, after the stylist on the film “Trainwreck” helped them both figure out how to dress well.

(Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)
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What a difference a stylist makes -- and now Amy Schumer wants to share that experience with everyone she can.

The "Trainwreck" star got emotional in a "Today" interview that aired Friday as she described what a difference it made in her and her sister's lives when Leesa Evans, the costume designer and stylist on that movie, taught them how to dress for confidence.

"I was dressing really poorly, and I don't even mean financially," Schumer explained. "I would just be super comfortable and wear something out -- just kind of wanting to hide? That was me sending a message to myself that your value lays other places, so you don't have to worry about that, and if people look at you and judge you for not dressing well, then that's on them."

Tough talk, sure, but even so: Some nights she simply didn't want to go to work -- because she couldn't figure out what to wear onstage.

"It's been a struggle for me my whole life," the 34-year-old told Maria Shriver on "Today," "and especially just being in the entertainment industry standing on a stage in front of people. I can't perform my best or be confident if I'm not sure, if I'm pulling at something [I'm wearing]. And sometimes I would just want to ... kind of throw in the towel and be like, 'I'm not going to go do stand-up tonight.'"

So, if it's that hard for a talented celebrity, how hard is it for ordinary women struggling to re-enter the work force after tough times? That's part of why Schumer and Evans partnered with Goodwill Industries of Southern California on the Stylefund project.

"Leesa had given me the gift of showing me how to dress and feel good, and she didn't have to do this, but she just did," the comedian said.

"She shopped for my sister also and seeing my little sister wearing a little blazer and a shirt and looking just like a strong beautiful woman -- I realized that holding myself back was also holding her back. So to see the person I care the most about be given those tools was really moving for me. And I just wanted to give it to every woman."

Body image is also touched on in her upcoming HBO special, in which Schumer says she pulls back the curtain on the industry she's in. Her point of view: "You guys, I've been to Hollywood, it's nuts." Spoiler alert: Nobody in Hollywood is naturally thin, everyone's just starving.

And regarding the women Stylefund reaches out to, she said she just wants them to have the tools she's been given when it comes to feeling good in the skin they're in.

"Even someone who is successful, and beautiful, and, like, a model, they have the same moments these women have, and that anxiety, so they're not alone."

"Amy Schumer: Live at the Apollo" premieres at 10 p.m. Saturday on HBO.

Follow Christie D'Zurilla on Twitter @theCDZ and Google+. Follow the Ministry of Gossip on Twitter @LATcelebs.

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