Hey curvy girls all around the world,
I hope everyone had a wonderful Mother's Day weekend. I know I did. Saturday I had a shopping date with Danielle from the blog
Rhapso_DY. We met up at Redress to bring in our old gear hoping to scoop up something new. It was a casual day so I wore a cute little striped top that I bought at H&M and a pair of capris that I scored at the Gap on sale. I also wore my fave wedges that I got from Banana Republic about 5 years ago when they used to make really cute shoes.
We spent about 2 hours in ReDress just talking and laughing it up. I kind of felt like it was meant for us to be there because we ran into the cutest young girl. Her mom was trying to find something for her to wear to prom. All I could think was, I remember those days. The mom was fustrated because they had been to a myriad number of stores and couldn't find anything age appropriate for the young girl who was about 13 years old. ReDress was her last stop and she's was hoping to find something young, fun, and that made her daughter feel good about her body.
What I'm wearing: Top-H&M, Capris-Gap, Wedges-Banan Republic, Watch-Michael Kors, Cuff-Loft (gifted)
In the fitting room next to the mom and daughter, Danielle and I were giggling like school girls while trying on pieces and creating outfits. The mom over heard us and she asked us if we could help her find something for her daughter. Of course Danielle and I jumped at the chance and brought the daughter a few items to try on. What I couldn't get passed was the sad look upon her daughters face. You could tell she wasn't comfortable with her body yet and she looked very annoyed that her options were limited. My heart went out to the littel girl because I remember how it was back in the 90's trying to find that perfect prom dress or clothes period that were cute and fit well. Although there are way more options now than ever before, there still is the problem of not being able to go in a store and try something on in your size.
To make a long story short, the young girl found a dress. I had tried on a silver pleated oversized dress and as I was twirling around in front of the mirror the mom and daughter saw me in it and asked if I were going to buy it. Looking at the hopefulness in her eyes that I wouldn't buy it, I told her no and happily gave the dress to the them. Danielle gave them some great tips on how to style the dress to make it work for prom we also pointed them in the direction of Faith21 on 42nd St. just in case they wanted a few more options. The mom was grateful to have ran into us and Danielle and we gave them our contact info.
That entire situation at Redress on Saturday stuck with me all day. One of my missions in life is to work with young plus size girls on body image and self confidence. So, right now I'm toying around with a few ideas to do my part in boosting the body confidence of young plus size girls. I'm thinking of starting a non profit, Big Sister program or a website/blog specifically catering to young plus size/curvy girls ages 12-16, Saturday showed me that there is so much work to be done in improving the self esteem of the younger generation. It also showed me the importance of brands to offer age appropriate clothing for the young plus size girls out there. My thoughts are all over the place right now, but, I wanted to share with you guys how important it is to encourage young women.
I feel that our young plus size girls need those of us who are confident with our bodies to help them become confident with theirs and to be honest it's not just plus size girls it's young girls of all sizes. However, the young plus size girl is rarely thought about in the fashion industry. She either has two options, to dress like her mother or dress overly sexy for her age. They need our help!