My hair and I are like Ross and Rachel (yes, I finally got around to watching Friends while I was in college and have since reference the series when appropriate). Admittedly, part of this complicated love-hate relationship is due to the fact that it is thick and curly, thought that is a topic for a future post. My hair is a dull shade of dark brown and has a mind of its own, to the point that I refer to wash day as “taming the beast.” Even still my hair has been considered my most beautiful feature. This was only cemented by how people reacted to it on a daily basis – – with awe and compliments. Continue reading
Tag: loving yourself
theCURVYcon 2016 Recap
Last year marked the first ever annual Curvycon and as you can guess, I was beyond upset at the fact that I couldn’t attend. So I made a point to get my ticket for this year’s con early so I wouldn’t miss out. This was incredibly important to me because Cece Olisa and Chastity Garner were the two first plus size bloggers I found when I was introduced to the medium. Words cannot express how significant this event is for the body positive and self love movements. There was just this feeling of love within every aspect of the event that I just had to share my experience.
Day 1 – Healthy Curves Workout and Pop-Up-Shop + Sip hosted by Gabifresh
The morning started with sessions hosted by blogger and CURVYcon co-creator, CeCe Olisa, and fitness guru, Anowa Adjah. I must say that they were not playing around with this workout which made me glad that I came prepared. It felt great to workout in a non-judgmental space with body positive instructors. I especially appreciated how both Cece and Anowa made it fun and educational, stressing that working out is not punishment for the body you have but rather a form of self love.
That funny moment when you run into an event a full half hour late only to find your Instagram post on the Tagboard screen.
My Two Cents: Modesty is NOT “Anti-Body Positive”
Webster’s dictionary defines modesty as, “the quality of behaving and especially dressing in ways that do not attract sexual attention; propriety in dress, speech or conduct.” Even with this definition “modesty” brings to mind images of plainness, frumpy clothes and overly-religious reserve; all things that the body positive movement is against. For the most part being body positive has meant wearing revealing clothes such as body-con dresses and crop tops, understandably so as plus size women are reclaiming visibility after decades of being taught self-loathing to the point of hiding their body. However, this in turn has made the movement somewhat exclusive as those who chose not to empower themselves in such a way are put down as needing more self esteem and confidence.
May exclaim: “Show those arms! Your figure! Them legs!” Continue reading
Messages From (26-year-old) Me to (16-year-old) Me
This year my beloved baby cousin turned sixteen. It is just unbelievable to think that just ten years ago this young woman carried my crown down the aisle at my sweet sixteen. Ever since she was born I made a point to be a good role model for her though I know I needed guidance myself half the time. Earlier this month as I celebrated my twenty-sixth birthday, she asked me if I believed my 16 year old self would she be proud of who and where I am today. That random question got me thinking and to be honest, I didn’t have an answer which obviously frustrated my cousin to no end. Yet now as I sit here I thinking about it again, I am pretty sure that my sixteen-year old self would be glad, yet at the same time surprisingly furious at some things. So while I know that it isn’t actually possible for me to go back and speak to my younger self, I decided to make a list of 16 things I would say to her if I did get the chance. I am hoping that these messages also inspires my cousin and other young ladies that are just reaching this milestone.
Big City, Curvy Girl, Thin Wallet Turns 1 – Revisiting My First Blog Post
As of last Monday (January 11), my blog is officially a year old. My first post was “2015- New Year, New Things To Try” in which I wrote about the trends that I wanted to try during the year. As I continued to write posts and featuring this list was always in the back of my mind, as I took it as a public declaration to myself to break out of my comfort zone and try new things. So I thought with it being a full year (and a week) later a good way to commemorate the blogiversary of Big City, Curvy Girl, Thin Wallet would be to take a look at that list and checking off my progress. Continue reading
Big City, Curvy Girl, Thin Wallet 