"I'm quite obsessed about girls on Instagram ... how girls see themselves and what they want to give us from their life, how they choose to be seen," this statement, from the program notes we found on our seats at Marques'Almeida's Tuesday afternoon show, is at the crux of everything the London brand is about. Not the social media part, per se, but the idea that for women today, image and message are personal and powerful, and immediate.

There are lots of fashion brands right now that team up and align with "real girls" (the term differentiates them from models, who-it's worth saying-are real girls also), but Marta and her co-designer Paulo Almeida really live it. They weren't the first to use street-casting and regular people on the runway, but they completely embody the ideals behind those acts. tIt's impossible to separate their frayed denim and exaggerated silhouettes from their commitment to creating pieces that strong women want to live and express themselves in.

Sofia Moser Leitao, discovered on Instagram by Marques'Almeida;
all images byPortia Hunt unless otherwise noted

We spent the afternoon with one of those women-22 year old Lisbon, Portugal-based culture and art student Sofia Moser Leitao-and talked to her about getting discovered on Instagram, walking in her first runway show, and the "new dimension" of fashion that she's found while working with the M'A team.

And then, yes, of course, we got front and center for the big spring runway event, too.

Sofia Moser Leitao images by Laura Cassidy

Sofia's accidental big break came when a friend tagged her in a Marques'Almeida Instagram post seeking girls to help in the Paris showroom. She was studying at the Sorbonne at the time, so when the team followed up with her and asked her to come meet with them, she figured why not? She had done little photoshoots here and there, but nothing for an internationally emerging brand. And yet, after she meeting with them and realizing how easy-going they were, she wasn't nervous at all about opening last season's show-in which Beyonce blared, net mini-dresses ruled, and Paulo and Marta further cemented their place as one of fashion's foremost start-up darlings.

Easy-going: it's a term Sofia and I settle on while hanging out in an East London cafe a few days before showtime. Her English is far better than my Portuguese, but still we struggle a little to land on what it is that felt so good about integrating the M'A scene. Eventually we decide it works as a descriptor for the attitude and mood, and the clothes themselves.

For instance, the instructions she was given before her first show. The designers simply showed the 20 'real girls' and ten models the layout of the runway, and told them to walk.

"I asked them what I should do with my hands and feet and they said not to worry about any thing like that," Sofia remembers. The professionals would supply enough of a fashion vibe, and anyway, Paulo and Marta just aren't concerned with presenting their clothes in a traditional, prescripted format. The days before this, her second go-around, were even more laid-back. She hung out with the non-models and the models and the M'A team, tried some clothes on and talked about hair and makeup, and it was "just like a party, with really cool girls."

When I ask her what her friends at university think, she pauses for some time and says that there are some who look down on fashion-they think of it as shallow and not worth their time. But she said that when she shared these experiences with them, she was able to show them that the business of designing, crafting and sharing clothes is an art and an expression. It's a way of opening up more of the world, and letting more of it.

Sofia was the second girl to emerge during Tuesday's show; her first look consisted of a crisp white blouse with extra-volume, and matte brocade short shorts. When she came back around, toward the end of the show, it was during a scene featuring trousers with thick, lace-up detailing and killer striped ankle boots.

Those elements-brocade, laces, exceptional accessories-interfaced with trademark unfinished denim for a collection full of really stand-out pieces, any of which could add transformative energy to an outfit or a wardrobe.

They're empowering pieces; they want you to be who you are, wherever you are. They want you to be seen.

Marta Marques and Paulo Almeida

EXPLORE: current-season Marques'Almeida | all emerging designers | all designer collections

YOU ARE HERE: Keep up with all our Fashion Week coverage and shop curated collections of our favorite designers at Nordstrom's Fashion Week Central.

-Laura Cassidy