#MsSurreyCurve2015 Made Press!!

I met with Kevin Black the editor of my local paper; Oxted County Border News recently to talk about Miss British Beauty Curve.  Here's what he said;



She is big, beautiful and wants to be an inspiration to all ladies who may be worried that they are too large for a comfortable life. And 31 year old Croydon born Katherine Henry, a mother of one and now firmly part of the Oxted scenery, has proved that her 18-20 size - she weighs in at 108 kilos - could be a winner.
For Kat, who works for a law firm in the City, is one of the finalists in the Miss British Beauty Curve 2015 competition. The grand final is at Epsom Playhouse on August 8 and she is representing Surrey. "I want Surrey to be proud of me" she said.
Miss British Beauty Curve is designed to empower ladies who are UK size 14+ to celebrate the beauty that being larger holds.
"Beauty comes from within" said Kat who has lived in Oxted for five years. "It is not a terrifying thing to be big."
That's the message Kat is keen to spread to adults and youngsters through her work as an ambassador for Ms Curvaceous UK. She was obviously chosen for her vivacious, outgoing personality. She would like to visit schools and talk to students about being big - not to be confused with obesity.
"My goal is to inspire people and promote body confidence to all body shapes and sizes." she says. "I really feel it's important to instil that acceptance especially in the younger generation."
Kat, who is signed to a model agency, will be contacting local businesses to gain support for her attempt on the Miss British Beauty Curve contest, not with financial help but by publicising her desire to help the larger lady.
For details see Kat's blog and Facebook pages www.henryskat.blogspot.co.uk or https://m.facebook.com/henryskat2014 and you can also see www.missbritishbeautycurve.com


The Oxted County Border News is a locally circulated paper which is printed weekly, it contains all the local happenings and is a brilliant forum to celebrate Surrey's achievements.

This story will feature in this week's edition which you will be able to view online once published here >>> http://www.oxted-today.co.uk/

All photo credit to Kevin Black

Miss British Beauty Curve 2015 - FINALIST

I have been chosen to represent the whole of Surrey in a National competition; Ms British Beauty Curve 2015.

I am thoroughly humbled to be picked as one of the 20 finalists, all the other ladies are simply gorgeous and I cannot wait to meet them all in person.

Miss British Beauty Curve is a pageant style competition for women all over the UK who are a size 14+. The competition is designed to empower women to embrace their shape and be body confident whatever their size.


The finals take place at Epsom Playhouse on August 8th 2015.  As soon as tickets go on sale I will leave you a link!

Many people have asked me why I want to be involved in a pageant and why does this competition mean so much to me.

The last 6 months have cemented something for me; the firm belief that I am worth much more than I have ever given myself credit for.  The knowledge that my fate and happiness lie entirely in my own two hands and I have the ability to move mountains if I want to.

In short, I have done two things in the last 6 months; firstly I made positive changes towards improving myself in more ways than one; mind, body & soul.  The other thing is I stepped outside of my comfort zone, took risks and tried new things.  Both these things gave me the confidence to embark on this journey.  My health has improved, my mindset; inspired and my soul rejuvenated...I am happy! 

Confidence had to grow from inside first...when I started to love me, I wanted to please me so I did little things that made me happy and here I am today with a long road ahead of me and many more changes yet to come.

This competition is my chance to show people that you can be whatever the hell size you want to be and still be beautiful, intelligent and successful.  I want to reach out to the people who are struggling with body confidence issues and tell them it's all gonna be OK and I am here to listen and help wherever they need me.  If I can inspire just one person to make a positive change in their own lives than I have won already.  

To me it's not all about winning the title, it's about spreading a very important message that WE ARE ALL BEAUTIFUL and different and that is what makes us unique.  Giving another voice to the plus size community of women who make up a large portion of today's society, whilst stamping out people shaming altogether.  It is NOT ok to discriminate against another person for their size, race, weight, hair colour, sexual preference, disability, religion or anything else that sets us apart from one another. We should be celebrating each other not dragging each other down, bitching, hating and throwing shade gets you nowhere!

As we get closer to the finals you will see my long string of sash emblazoned selfies and you can join me on my mad rush to get all my outfits together.

Between now & August 8th I want to spread the word of the competition as much as possible...I will shout from the highest rooftops if I must!

I want people to see me and say if she can do it then so can I!

So join me on this journey and support #TeamSurrey

You can show your support by using the hashtag #MsSurreyCurve2015

xx

#LondonFashionWeek & #LondonFashionWeekend

Repping Curvy Ladies all over the world at #LondonFashionWeek & #LondonFashionWeekend with my +Ms Curvaceous UK girlies was such an honour.  Fashion week is usually stacked full of smaller framed fashionistas so we really shook up the vibe by injecting a "plus-size" dose of extra Curve to the mix.

I had the pleasure of interviewing some amazing fashionistas and photographers alongside Patreece, from Doller Crem'e.



All my girls looked fantastic & totally on trend - take a look-see at this little flipagram of some of the outfits we wore on Day 2!!





Day 1 (right); 
My entire outfit came from +Simply Be

Inner top - no longer available

Day 2 (left); 
I sourced the majority of the items I wore for day two from local charity shops.

I lucked out with this gorgeous faux fur trim swing coat for a mere £20.00, the wool hat was £4.00 and the boots were £3.99.

It was an amazing opportunity to get out there & network.  It was so interesting asking straight size models and fashionistas whether they believe that the Plus-size ladies had a place at London Fashion Week.  I expected people to be hesitant or be caught unawares by such a question, but I was pleasantly surprised to see how welcome we were, everyone I interviewed was very PRO-Curve which in my opinion is a huge stepping stone for the plus size community.

I was proud to be involved and it was so much fun to be snapped all over the place.

I had an amazing time on both days xx 






Showing some #PSBloggerLove for Sara Meredith from Walking With Angels

Today we are showering the social media world with love and appreciation for our fellow #PSBloggers all thanks to the creative genius that is +Debz A 

I wanna send some big "Kat" loving out to a lady whose blog is one of the most true and honest reads I have ever come across.  Her words are heartfelt and her posts full of an abundance of love and pride in her family.  A woman who despite all adversity rises up and pushes on.  She is a truly beautiful soul and I cannot wait to share her with you...

So without further ado...I introduce to you to Sara Meredith
Photo credit to +Sara Meredith & +Chiara Aprea 


Not only is this woman impeccably stunning but I have found that her beauty radiates from within.

She is the mother of four beautiful girls and also devotes her time to children with special needs as a foster parent.

Sara has been happily married to Alan for years and they make a super cute couple.

In short I find this woman utterly inspiring.

She suffered the unfathomable loss of losing a child in 2008.  Her daughter Livvy; her third child who will forever be 9 years old. Livvy had an illness called Retts Sydrome; a rare neurological disorder which primarily affects females.  The illness can leave sufferers with profound physical & communicative disabilities and whilst I do not know the extent of Livvy's symptoms, I can only imagine how difficult it must have been to watch your child deal with such a complex illness.  It takes immense strength, compassion and patience to have children let alone children with special needs, which can be far more reliant on the parent.  I take my hat off to you, Sara.

One thing that hits me hard when I read Sara's blog is how she deals with the loss of losing Livvy.  Now I will not profess to understand this grief or comprehend the emotion of losing something which came from you.  No parent should ever have to bury their child, that's not the natural progression of life.  Many a time I have sat reading her blog, dumbfounded by her strength, simply in awe with how she copes with day to day life but without ever failing to acknowledge that a part of her will always be gone...missing...her baby...Livvy.
She is blessed to have other children and you can tell from her words that she dotes on each of those girls, but she does not have three girls, she has four and Livvy will always have a place in her heart & home.

It's not unusual to cry reading Sara's posts, how can you not, you simply wouldn't be human to not be touched by the love emanating from her words.  I am sat here crying as I write this because, I could not do what you have done Sara...you are a stronger woman than most and most definitely a braver woman than me.  I cannot begin to understand the pain you have felt but I can empathise for I hope I would feel the same if I were to lose my baby girl.

There is also an air of positivity about Sara's posts which add testament to her ability to be a blinding mum and a beautiful woman who is finding herself and loving life along the way.  I love her fashion posts and I cannot wait to meet her in person at Style XL this year.

It would be an honour!

Thank you Sara for being you - for you are simply awesome
xx

You can check out Sara's Blog here;


Please take a minute to like Sara's Facebook campaign page to help raise funds to create memory making days for children with disabilities.

Models of Diversity casting for the Ideal Home Show

This was an amazing experience, it was my first proper casting, so the feedback & advice that was given by the panel of judges was priceless.  Such a learning curve!  I made some new friends & contacts & also got the chance to spend some time with my #MCUK family, what more could you ask for?!

All in all, this was definitely a highlight of my year so far :)


Curvy Kate @ Evans, Oxford Street & #StarInABra

It wasn't until I met +Curvy Kate 's Hannah who actually took the time to fit me at the Oxford Street branch of +Evans Clothing recently that I realised that I had been wearing the wrong bra size for years.  I have been measured many times by Debenhams & M&S; my last fitting had me at a 40E but I have previously been told I should be both a 44D & a 42DD.


No bra ever fitted correctly and I wrongly assumed that this was something to do with my shape & size or perhaps that I was simply to big and bras weren't made for people like me!



How naive I have been! Now I must admit that with my recent weight loss, dropping a back size is totally plausible but Hannah measured me up as a 38GG and gave me a recommendation of two Curvy Kate bra's that not only were absolutely gorgeous, had the best fit I have experienced ever!  She even suggested that if I continue to lose more weight that I drop another back size but perhaps increase a cup; so try a 36H. As soon as payday rolls around, I will be heading down to the nearest stockist to revamp my whole underwear selection!


Although I wasn't successful, I broke down a major confidence barrier and bared all (well in lingerie) in a submission for their #StarInABra competition.  I knew I didn't have a chance, but for me to even consider submitting an entry was a big milestone for me!

Did any of you get fitted by the Curvy Kate ladies or did you enter #StarInABra??

Roller....Coaster.....

Hey there Kittens,

Woah, these last few weeks/months have been a total roller coaster.

I have had so much good news, opportunities, some blips but mostly positive things.  Blogging has unfortunately had to take a back seat during this whirlwind, but I fully intend to get back into the swing of things.

The next few posts will be some highlights for you :)  hope you enjoy....

Life is good right now...

...can't nothing bring me down! :)


My Guest Post for Color U Bold

...just in case you missed it, I had the extreme honour of guest posting for Jasmine over the Valentine's day festivities.

She is a total babe and such an inspiration.  Her posts are colourful, unique and quirky and I will never tire of reading them. 

Here is the link back to her guest post on my blog;  


Romantic to Seductive by Jasmine from @ColourUBold


and for those of you who would like to see my offering...

>> here's the link to my guest post on Jasmine's blog;


If you are not following +Color U Bold make sure you change that....cos she is totally amazing!