Curvy Confidential

Crystal Renn is a plus size model who began her career as a straight sized model at the young age of 14.  After being discovered by a scout, Crystal was asked to lose 50lbs and began starving herself to maintain her skinny figure.  After a slew of crazy diets, Crystal got to a point where she just couldn’t lose anymore weight.   Her agent recommended she try plus size modeling and the rest is history

Crystal has been very outspoken with her views on body image and has been an inspiration to aspiring plus models everywhere.  She is highly successful with an amazing career – the only plus model to appear on a Harper’s Bazaar cover, contracts with Mango, Evans, Lane Bryant and Torrid and of course, her famous finale walk down the runway for Jean-Paul Gaultier’s 2006 prêt-à-porter collection.  Booking these types of jobs is simply unheard of in the plus industry.

I have photos of Crystal plastered all over my walls so I was thrilled when I came across the December 2008 issue of Italian Elle.  Not only was she on the cover of the magazine, she had a 8 page editorial in the issue!  But when I began looking at the images, I was struck by how thin Crystal looked.  Is it just me or does she look like a size 2?  Is this the work of a master photoshopper or has she gone the way of the lettuce chomper and dropped the pounds to book more work?  Doesn’t this go against everything she stands for?

What do you guys think?  Would you still consider Crystal a plus model?

Well, you may or may not have heard this yet but beloved 50’s pin-up icon, Betty Page, passed away on December 11th, 2008 from pneumonia. She was 85 years old.

Whether you are full-figured or thin, conservative or free-spirited, sweet or sinful,  we all loved Betty Page. She was a leader in the women’s sexual revolution and helped to usher in a new era of awareness for our gender (and our admirers).

Betty truly knew how to walk that thin line between reality and fiction, the line between the sweet girl next door and the sinful woman of one’s dreams. Whether you want to admit it or not, she was everything that many woman dreamed to be.

Working with plus size lingerie, I have seen how important it is for us as women to possess confidence in all we do and all we are. It is so important for us to find the beauty within ourselves and let it shine outwardly. Not only our appearance, but in how we carry ourselves and the presence we carry with us wherever we go.

Some may call Betty scandalous, some may call her a sex goddess, but others would be perfectly content calling her a role model for women. She is a role model for those who seek to find that inner confidence and grace that we should all share as women, especially full figured women. No matter your size, color, or shape, we are all beautiful.

Betty, you will be missed.

I just received a link to this youtube video.  It’s a spoof on a Bud Light ad entitled “Bud Heavy”.  I really felt like I was going to enjoy watching it as soon as the man in the video asked his stick thin girlfriend why she only drinks light beer.  She slaps him after he makes a reference to her being “small boned”.

Cut to a clip of three plus size women.  Although they appear sexy and confident, I can’t figure out if this is a spoof about fat women or a spoof about light beer.  Either way, it left me feeling uneasy.

Check out the video here.  What do you guys think?

Our friends over at Judgment of Paris have a fabulous post up about a nutritional product called “Wate On”. What’s funny is that as I was typing the name of the product out, I instinctively wrote “Wate Off“.

Can you believe there was ever a time where women would want to put weight ON? Or that companies would spend marketing money advertising a product that claims to “Help fill out cheeks, bust-line, arms, legs, and entire body“? I had to research the product myself to validate that it was real!

The advertisements were so wonderful that we wanted to share the post with our friends and readers.

The post is definitely worth a read so pop on over to Judgment for the whole story!

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Have you heard of my newest favorite singer, Adele?  Her voice packs a soulful punch and at a curvy size 14/16, she is happy with her body and happy with herself! She is such a lovely role model for positive body image. We love it when women like Adele command attention from the media!

Check out one of her videos and fall in love with her too!

P.S. If you can’t see the video player below, click here to watch.