Check out our very own Melissa in the latest flyer for The Bargain! Shop. Way to go Melissa, you look beautiful! It looks like they have some great prices on plus size apparel, has anyone ever shopped there to give us their review? Melissa thinks the pieces she got to model were very comfy and a great value for the price.

Maxi dresses are everywhere this summer and we couldn’t be happier!!! Light, breezy, long and flowy, you can’t find anything more comfortable to wear on a hot sunny summer day as a plus size woman. This summer maxi trends feature bright, bold colours, beautiful florals, and eye-catching prints. We have compiled 18 of our favourite plus size maxi dresses for this coming season. Enjoy!

1. Ashley Stewart – Print Tube Maxi Dress With Belt $49.50
2. Lane Bryant – Lace Back Maxi $92.63
3. Ashley Stewart – Printed Maxi Dress $59.50
4. Anna Scholtz – Double Silk Corset Strap Maxi Dress £449.00
5. SWAK – Anastasia Maxi Dress $89.00
6. Torrid – Black Floral Border Maxi Dress $68.50
7. Fashion to Figure – Summer Bloom Striped Maxi Dress $40.00
8. Lola & Gigi – Melissa Masse Fiesta Blast Maxi Dress $350.00
9. Forever 21 – Strapless Maxi Dress w/ Belt $22.80
10. Nordstrom – JS Boutique Print Chiffon Maxi $225.52
11. City Chic – Aphrodite Maxi $138.00
12. IGIGI – Plus Size Rainforest Paradise Maxi Dress $185.00
13. Lane Bryant – Ruffled Maxi Dress $92.63
14. Addition Elle – Belted Chiffon Maxi Dress $99.99
15. Kionna – Vienna Maxi Dress $128.00
16. Nordstrom – Bellatrix Print Maxi Dress $91.04
17. Calvin Klein – Ruffle Front Jersey Maxi $122.07
18. Addition Elle – Belted Tiered Maxi $89.99

After what seems to be the longest pregnancy ever, Jessica Simpson has finally given birth! Jessica and  fiance Eric Johnson welcomed their brand new baby girl Maxwell Drew Johnson (9 lbs. 13 oz. 21 3/4) to the world. We are long time fans of Jessica. She has always struggled with her size and has received extreeme criticisim for her weight gain over the years. She is also proud to represent plus size women with her Jessica Simpson line of plus size clothing which is available at the Bay stores across Canada. Congratulations Jessica!

This image was posted to the Jessica Simpson website today…

Also, yesterday our friend Julia who was features a few days ago in our Plus Size and Pregnant article has given birth to a healthy baby girl too! Welcome to the world baby Kayla!

A few days ago we had the privilege of taking a road trip to London, Ontario where our Beauty Editor for Killer Kurves (and the face behind Funny Face Beauty) resides. She hosted a fabulous sunday brunch at the The Idlewyld Inn, in celebration of her 30th birthday. We think her adorable decor is deserving of a special Lifestyle feature here on Killer Kurves. The party was full of tasty treats and fun parting gifts like nail polish, candy and pink picture frames for everyone! Happy Birthday Alicia! xo Karyn & Melissa

Killer Kurves’ Karyn & Melissa

Your Killer Kurves girls from Left to Right: Karyn in Addition Elle, Alicia the Birthday Girl in Torrid, and Melissa in Eloquii

Our friend and fellow Canadian plus size model Julia “She Plus” Connelly is pregnant! We are so excited for her as she is quickly approaching her due date, and asked if she would share with us some of her struggles throughout her pregnancy as a plus size woman. The following is her story of what the last 9 months have been like for her. We thank Julia for sharing her story with us and our readers. We hope by exposing this truth it will help to make a change and show retailers that there is a huge gap in the marketplace when it comes to fashionable clothing for pregnant plus size women. Please share your stories and comments with us below. We would love to know if you have gone through a similar story or have any suggestions and/or tips to help other plus size mommies-to-be. – xo Karyn & Melissa

I’m WHAT?!? “You’re pregnant!!” My Mother yelled as I stared at the two pink lines on my take home pregnancy test. As she danced across the room mimicking something between the waltz and the “If your happy and you know it” dance, I was overwhelmed with probably about every emotion and thought possible. After wiping the snot from my nose and laughing my tears away, the thought that terrifies every woman to their deepest core presented itself clearer than day in front of me… “I’m about to get big…. REALLY BIG.”

Being a plus size woman my entire life has been a struggle. From being the ugly duckling at school to having insecurities in the dating world; having a negative self image was easy for me. Until around 2007 when I was scouted in the mall to model for Canadian company “Voluptuous” I never knew there was a world of fashion that I too could participate in. Being in the beauty industry my entire life (I am a makeup artist of 12 years) I always anticipated and grasped the latest trends with full force. The fact that there was little to NO options available fashionably for me to showcase my creativity and love of beauty and fashion made this moment so exciting when I discovered that there had been a break in the market. From that point forward, I made a promise to myself to participate in the plus size movement, shaking the grounds of a size 2 fashion world. From stomping the runways of “Project Runway Canada” for Stephen Wong of Greta Constantine, to shooting the cover of Canadian TV series “How to Look Good Naked Canada” and making to the top 10 finalists in Canada for Addition Elle’s “Canada’s Top Plus Size Model” it sure felt good to be a part of every other curvy’s dream that there was going to be a change.

Now, moving into 2012, I am pleased to see that retailers have put forth an effort to participate in this expanding niche that is still in my opinion, lonely. Well, it was about to get lonelier for me. In my closet that is. As I moved through the weeks of my pregnancy, I found myself reading up on any article possible for an “estimate” of how BIG I was really going to get.

“If you’re overweight, it’s recommended that you gain between 15 and 25 pounds by the end of your pregnancy. Women who are obese are advised to gain only 11 to 20 pounds during pregnancy.” – Babycenter.com

Well, according to the good word of society, I am OBESE and for once looked at those stats and couldn’t have been happier. “11-20 pounds? I can do that!” I thought. Well as the weeks went by, the pounds came on or re-assigned themselves to different areas of my body and I found it increasingly difficult to figure out what to wear. Initially I was completely in denial of wearing maternity clothing. I figured that since I was already big, I could just squeeze into some usual pants or tops of mine until month 9 and then POOF, it would be over. Well was I ever wrong. I even tried to pop into a maxi dress of mine thinking an empire waistline could flatter anyone, and ended up looking like I was in a moo moo. I would like to shout over a mega-phone the importance of actually wearing maternity clothing while pregnant. It flatters the body shape and doesn’t pitch a tent over your stomach that looks like your hosting Woodstock 2013 under your breasts.

“Hi there, do you have these in a size 16/18?” I asked a woman at a Thyme Maternity. I was desperate to find a pair of jeans or tights that didn’t suffocate me and my ever growing belly. “Ohhh… I’m sorry hunny, we don’t carry that size” was the response I got. My heart absolutely sunk. How can you NOT have a size for women that were bigger to start off with?! I searched high and low for clothing that was fashionable and WEARABLE, I repeat WEARABLE in my size and had no luck. Finally at a baby show, a woman tried to sell me a pair of tights in XXL for something like $59.00. I just laughed and said “I’ll go naked!” Either that or go bankrupt trying to find a few pieces that I could wear for the duration of this pregnancy. To be honest my husband and I searched everywhere for clothing that could accommodate my size and my belly alike. Only ONE retailer that I could find specialized in this department that didn’t cost an arm and a leg. And that was good Old Navy. Happy as a pig in doo, I pranced to the maternity section at Square One Mall and joyfully found a pair of skinny jeans in a size 16, maternity!! I grabbed a few other essentials, such as long sleeved white and black t shirts, tights, jeans and off to the change room I went. Not only did Old Navy have clothing that was my size, but they had pieces that were extremely flattering. That was the first and last time I found pants that I, as a size 16-18 woman, were comfortable and felt beautiful in. I bought a few pairs of 4x tights from Addition Elle and asked them if they had nursing bras. They said that was not an item they carried. I just couldn’t help but think to myself.. “Do curvy women not get pregnant? Do we not have a right to look good?” So here I was again, finding myself circa 2004 trying desperately to find a look that I wanted, and having nowhere to turn. My Mother did find me a dress at EVYMAMA in Toronto, but I’m pretty sure it cost her a pretty penny. I gathered bits and pieces from Target on a desperate trip to Buffalo one afternoon, but I still have to rant that Canadian retailers do not engage and represent a market that is very much so in need. There was not one store in a regular mall that could even accommodate my bust or waist size for maternity or nursing gear.

With all this being said, I am in my 9th month, and creatively have managed to make due with the few pieces I bought at Old Navy, Target and select pieces from my old closet. As my due date draws near, I endearingly gaze at my closet of ‘regular, plus size clothing’ and dream about wearing some of the pieces this summer. Although I am aware that certain companies do offer plus size maternity, this experience is written from the eyes of a picky, plus size fashionista that refused to wear a moo moo.

Will Canadian retailers smarten up and accommodate to us in the future? Will Canadian plus size Mom-to-be’s stand up against them? My only hope is that they will, and that every woman at a glowing 9 months, of any size, can show off their belly with pride in their image. xo Julia

You can follow Julia on Twitter @thebusybeauty or visit her bidal hair & makeup site here: Julia & Julia Bridal

Here is a list of retailers we found that carry plus size Maternity options (although we can’t guarantee they will fit or be fashionable):

Canada:
Mother Hood Maternity
Evymama
Ample Mama
Old Navy

USA Stores that ship to Canada:
JC Penney Plus Maternity
One Stop Plus
Target (maternity sizes up to XXL)
Destination Maternity
Avenue

Here is a sneak peek at the new Addition Elle Look Book for Summer 2012. Gorgeous!!!

View the entire look book at AdditionElle.com

And here is a behind the scene look at the making of the new Summer Look Book…

Yesterday we were invited to a discussion on real beauty with Dove and to view the launch of their newest real beauty campaign. When it comes to beauty, things aren’t always how they look. Dove believes that beauty should be real and should not be faked. Their newest campaign Real or Retouched has been created from this idea and exposes the truth of extreme digital retouching.

According to research by Dove, 55% of Canadian girls under the age of 14 have expressed that they feel pressured to be beautiful. The negative impact of these thoughts can be detrimental to young girls starting with them “checking out” of daily life including not wanting to go to school or participate in gym class. These girls are comparing themselves to images that are totally unreal, but many girls and women alike have yet to realize that almost all of the images of perfect models and celebrities that they are bombarded with in today’s society are almost 100% retouched in someway or another. From a simple touch up to remove dark circles to an extreme change of the shape of someones body it all impacts us and tells us that our real self is not good enough. To add to this, only 3% of Canadian women are comfortable enough calling themselves beautiful, this news is devastating to us.

Dove believes that by exposing the truth of extreme digital retouching that it will help women to understand that images that may be perceived as normal are not. Dove doesn’t want us to just know about the issues of retouching, they want women to start internalizing the information being given to them and do something about it. The first step to creating this change is to start the conversation! Dove’s new campaign will do just that when launches across Canada April 26th. This campaign will invite women to join into the conversation online. These conversations will be sparked by the following images that Dove will be releasing.

These campaign images trick your eye, when they are upside down they seem like you are looking at an attractive woman but as soon as they are flipped upside down you are shocked to see that they have actually been extremely retouched. This has been done to show us how extreme retouching can go so easily unnoticed and distort a woman’s perception of beauty. This happens everyday when advertisements trick us with the creation of impossibly perfect models. Visit the Dove Facebook Page to join in the conversation to tell Dove what you think! Visit Dove.ca for more tools and resources.

Some of the beautiful women at the event, Karyn from Killer Kurves, Valerie from I’m Charming You, Lena from Listen to Lena, Jen from Shedoesthecity and don’t worry, the photo is totally untouched! All four of us in our natural beauty!

Lena from Listen to Lena looking glam for the cam after being interviewed for Dove’s real or retouched campaign.

Be sure to join Killer Kurves on Facebook.