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Leona Lewis says she was bullied by fashion designer Michael Costello after he accused Chrissy Teigen of sending hateful messages

Leona Lewis and Michael Costello
Leona Lewis, left, and Michael Costello. Mike Marsland/Getty Images, Robin Marchant/Getty Images

  • Leona Lewis said Michael Costello is hypocritical for accusing Chrissy Teigen of bullying. 
  • Lewis said Costello humiliated her by refusing to dress her for a charity show in 2014. 
  • Costello apologized to Lewis on Instagram, asking for a "heart-to-heart conversation."
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Leona Lewis has accused fashion designer Michael Costello of hypocrisy after he said he was bullied by Chrissy Teigen in 2014.

Costello, 38, wrote on Instagram on Tuesday that he experienced suicidal thoughts after Teigen wrongfully accused him of racism in 2014 and that she subsequently tried to have him blacklisted in the fashion industry.

Lewis said Costello's comments about Teigen were "the pot calling the kettle black" and wrote about how the designer left her feeling "humiliated" by refusing to dress her for a charity fashion show that same year.

Writing on Instagram Stories, Lewis said she was made to feel "very uncomfortable and awkward" at her dress fitting with Costello in 2014 because he did not want to alter a sample-sized dress to fit her. 

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She said that Costello did not show up at the final fitting, ultimately refusing to style her for the show. 

"I was so embarrassed and deeply hurt. Because I didn't look like a model size, I was not permitted to walk in his dress," Lewis wrote. 

"We all make mistakes, I know I have, but at this time I feel that when people apologize (Chrissy) and show sincere remorse and rehabilitation for their actions, we should embrace them and not try and kick them when they're down," she said. 

Lewis added: "I'm not discounting Michael's experience as this is an awful thing to go through and I wish him so much love and healing. I'm sure this will come as a shock as I never told him how this made me feel. But the pot calling the kettle black in this situation doesn't sit right with me. Bullying comes in many different forms."

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Costello has responded to Lewis on his Instagram Stories, sharing a screenshot of an email request from a member of the singer's styling team which shared details of her "American Idol" performance in May.

Michael Costello Instagram story
Costello said the email was sent by a member of Lewis' team. Michael Costello/Instagram

"If I made you feel bad in 2014 but you still wore my dresses and request them can we try and figure out what got lost in translation with the dress you wore? You looked so beautiful in it," Costello wrote in the caption. 

Costello went on to write a lengthier message to Lewis, saying he had already reached out to her privately but had received no response so far. He asked if she would be willing to have a "have a heart-to-heart conversation" about the incident.

Michael Costello Instagram story
Costello's post on his Instagram stories. Michael Costello/Instagram

Costello has since released a statement to Insider, saying that Lewis' team "has continuously requested for her to wear us from 2013 up until now."

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Costello told Insider that he was given seven days' notice before styling Lewis for the charity event, and that the singer was unhappy with the dress choices he presented her with.

"If Leona has been harboring misunderstandings and hurt all these years, I wish she would've talked to me directly," Costello told Insider. "My team was open in communicating with her team. Even a year later in 2015, she posted herself in one of my dresses on her on Instagram."

Costello added that he was "blindsided"  by Leona's comments "because the story she shared on Instagram paints a very different picture than the one she led me to believe for years."

"If she felt this way, I wish she could've said something to me about this privately, especially when I just spoke my truth in regards to Chrissy Teigen and others trying to blacklist me," he said. "Being blacklisted for years has led me to have to have suicide thoughts and depression. But I understand the risks I assume by coming out. I'm more of a target for smear campaigns, especially amongst those who follow and are close to Chrissy Teigen."

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Representatives for Lewis did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.

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