We’ve had some great images sent in from our retailers this week with Curvy Kate making catwalk status as a gorgeous selection of shapely girls flaunt their figures down the run way. The online retailer Tempestra showed off the Tease Me Coral range, while Milton Keynes retailer At Ruby’s supported the Bosom Pal charity showing the summery Ivory Black Thrill me range.

Take a look at the snaps below.

The Tempestra Team

Flaunting her curves in Thrill me

Simply Stunning in the Coral Tease Me Bra

Last week there was a lot flying around in the press about the size 14 ideal. Basically, Equalities minister Lynne Faetherstone wants a warning on airbrushed models and says we should aspire to the curvy, size 14 look of Mad Men’s Christina Hendricks.

Now for as long as I can remember I’ve been a size 14, recently on the lower side of 14 and previously edging towards a 16 but always a 14. I’m fairly tall for a girl and I wouldn’t class myself as fat, I’ve just always been this way and have bigger boobs which is going to make the tops I wear a bigger size anyway. I was contacted by a journalist to get my thoughts on the statement and ended up being involved in the feature, to show that there are many girls who are a size 14 who are perfectly healthy.

The shoot was great fun and there were four of us involved, all of very different shapes. We all have healthy lifestyles and loved our figures, to be honest I couldn’t really work for Curvy Kate and not like curves – I think they look great.

Me and my size 14 glory!

On the other hand there has been a backlash against the size 14 ordeal, what if you’re just naturally skinny, what if you are 5ft and a size 14 or 6ft and a size 14 – surely that makes a difference? All in all there does seem to be some interesting points drawn about airbrushing and the negative effect girls who are size 0 can have on women when we are constantly bombarded with these negative images.

Have a read of the feature and hear my say on the Size 14 ideal issue. Be great to hear your feedback too!

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/top-stories/2010/08/05/we-love-being-a-fabulous-size-14-115875-22464549/

So last week Laura Ann Smith, the new face and bust of Curvy Kate took part in her first shoot as part of her year working with the brand. Laura Ann, a beauty salon owner from Scotland flew back from her holiday in Mexico and jumped straight in front of the camera to prove that her double H curves we’re just what the brand needed. Laura Ann modelled the new Spring/Summer 2011 range and will front the next two seasons campaigns.

..and better than ever! Curvy Kate is one year old this month!

Curvy Kate officially launched last July after 3 years of product development and testing. So far, so good, we’ve had a fantastic response to the brand and look to build on the successes of the Curvy Kate product.

I just wanted to thank everyone on behalf of the brand for the help and support that has been offered, from customers to retailers to the lingerie trade – everyone of you has helped to create what we believe to be one of the best plus size cup brands on the market. It took us time to get to where we are now though but there have been so many highs and fun experiences. The team is passionate about producing a product that lets curvy women celebrate their shape and through all our products I hope that we do that.

Because we are (one year!) old now I’ve been looking back at some of the best bits of the year. See our profile on facebook to view some further images and I’ve posted a few below.

Storming show at Harrogate last year – AWG do some work while Adriana and Steve rest their feet!

Contour Lingerie Ball 2010. A great night with some interesting dance moves. Gary from AWG Brands with our Lady in Red, Seema

Just our morning ritual to really get the blood flowing and the brain in action..Do the Macariana!

We’d love to hear how your year has been and how you’ve found Curvy Kate. If you have any feedback on the brand, please do let us know. We are continually striving to improve everthing we do and it’s our retailers that know us best. Email seema@curvykate.com with your feedback or visit www.curvykate.com.

Shapely Scottish beauty, Laura Ann Smith from Bonnybridge has been voted the face and bust of fuller figured brand Curvy Kate. Proving she had the confidence to look gorgeous in lingerie, Laura impressed the public with her natural curves and double H cup assets. She will now model for a year with Curvy Kate DD – J cup lingerie and become the face and bust of the brand.

The National Star in a Bra competition,  encourages women who are DD+, charismatic and confident to enter. Going against the grain, Curvy Kate were unsatisfied with the images supplied by many brands as they were unrealistic and not a true representation of a fuller figure. Brastop wanted to show their average 34G customer exactly how a bra would look if worn by a real DD+ woman.

In it’s third year the competition has found several successful fuller figured models who their customers can relate and buy from with more understanding of how the bra will look. Laura Ann Smith will join the previous winners who range from F to HH cups and model with the brand under a year contract, also winning a year’s supply of lingerie.

Laura Ann came from a family of larger busted girls with her sister undergoing a breast reduction in 2007. It’s this that pushed her at 11pm on the closing night of the competition to send her photos in. ‘I want to make women of all shapes and sizes aware that they should love what they have been blessed with.

She continues ‘I think it’s a great competition because people have got to realise the curvy figure is normal. Every day women are looking at these pictures. Not everyone is a size 6 and at the end of the day you want to see what it would look like on your own body type, not something unachievable.’

Curvy Kate Marketing Manager went on to say ‘We’d like to thank all the other girls who entered the competition. It has been another successful year and with each year we want to continue with the passion we have for celebrating all different kinds of beauty. All the finalists wowed us but we believe that the public have made a brilliant choice with Laura Ann. We’re looking forward to a fun year ahead.’

Just wanted to say a Happy Happy Birthday to our Sales and Distribution Manager, Seema. As it’s her Birthday and she is one in a million, we treated her to a plethora of ice creams and delicious toppings. Seema usually spoils the team here by baking gorgeous cakes for us, so it was her time to be spoilt…and ice cream seems to be her favourite…can  you tell?

Yummy! Have a great day Seema, from all the Curvy Kate team xxx

So you choose our Top 10 and put them through a photoshoot with Top Photographer and style team – now it’s your turn to choose who you think should be the face and bust of Curvy Kate. We’ve had some gorgeous winners in the past such as Laura Butler from Birmingham, Lauren Colfer from South London and Daisy Hill from Kent. I was at the photoshoot to see how confident each girl was in front of the camera and I’ve got to say – I’m glad I’m not choosing!

Take a look at some of the behind the scenes pictures and this video link so you can see all the inside gossip from the day! Also Brastop’s blogger Becky Mount, who ran the bust for justice’s campaign interviewed each girl. Find out why they wanted to become the Face of Bust of Curvy Kate. The Brastop Blog – News and Star in a Bra updates.

Alison from the Sun makes Carrie strike a pose

Team Curvy Kate trying to jump in on the action

Anna Broadley Flaunts her curves

To vote visit www.starinabra.com and choose who you would like to be the face and bust of DD – J cup lingerie brand Curvy Kate.

With nearly 1000 entrants from all over the UK, 30 busty Britain’s have now been chosen to fight for a place in the Top 10 of the National Star in a Bra competition. Going against the grain, Curvy Kate are championing the UK’s shapely figures and their average 34G customer by searching for a DD+ girl who is curvy, charismatic and confident with a fuller body and natural bust.

The UK’s average boob size is now above a DD and the average dress size a 16 but many fashion brands still lack in choosing models that relate to these statistics.   The annual Star in a Bra search has once again scoured the country for naturally curvy girls, who have the chance of becoming the face and body of the new fuller bust brand Curvy Kate.

Kirsty Wickenden, Epsom

The next stage will see the Top 30 gorgeous girls being put to the public vote. After 2 weeks the 10 girls who receive the most votes will take part in decide in a makeover and professional photoshoot with a top photographer and styling team. The Star in a Bra 2010 looks set to be even stronger with consumer’s crying out for more natural figures in the media and the Star in a Bra search is looking to make real women modelling the norm, not just a novelty.

Lauren Sadler, Dover Kent

Laura Butler, Star in a Bra winner 2008 explains why she entered the competition. ‘The Star in a Bra competition was a great opportunity for me to step into the spotlight and show how gorgeous a naturally curvy girl can look in lingerie. It really kick started my modelling career and I still model with Curvy Kate and love all the shoots…and attention!’

Kirsty Smyth, Berwick-upon-tweed Northumberland

Now it’s all down to you to help choose the Top 10 and there are only 3 days left until public voting closes on Sunday evening. Go to www.starinabra.com and choose your favourite 3 who could be in with a chance of being the new Face and Bust of Curvy Kate lingerie.

So on one of our recent trips out of the office we went to see Dawn at Oh Knickers in Truro who was one of our first retailers in the UK. Dawn has a fantastic store, which is every girl’s shopping dream. It’s newly refurbished and looking even more delectable, just have a look at the pics we took and also check out the website which we are loving playing around on – http://www.ohknickers.co.uk/

Oh Knickers stock the Curvy Kate Spring/Summer ranges and the curvy cornish girls seem to be loving the collection. So next time your heading to Cornwall as well as stopping off at the local pastie shop, why not head to Truro to see this gorgeous store.

..and that’s exactly what we did, with two gorgeous models in toe we proved just how great Curvy Kate looked on a fuller bust. The Aussie’s have gone mad for it after realising how great their boobs can look in a well fitted bra. Not only that but you can improve your posture, comfort and of course confidence. For all the Curvy Kate stockists in Oz visit www.curvykate.com. It’s time to flaunt your curves down under!

With the 2008 and 2009 Star in a Bra searches fighting the cause for plus size models, the Star in a Bra search 2010 is once again scouring the country for naturally curvy girls, who have the chance of becoming the face and body of Curvy Kate.

Although the UK’s average boob size is now above a DD and the average dress size a 16, many fashion brands still don’t seem to relate to these statistics. Going against the grain, online retailer Brastop.com are helping us to find some new models who are a DD+, curvy, charismatic and confident with a fuller body and natural bust.

Brastop.com, the online discount lingerie store, receives regular requests from curvy women who want to see how various lingerie ranges look on a fuller, more natural figure. Responding to this request, Brastop began the search for a Star in a Bra to give their customers exactly this – a true representation of how a bra fits and looks on a bigger bust. We’ve now gotinvolved and the winner will model for Curvy Kate for a full year. Curvy Kate want to make real women modelling the norm, not just a novelty.
Laura Butler, Star in a Bra winner 2008 explains why she entered the competition. ‘Most lingerie brands either use stick thin girls or girls with fake boob and I could never figure out which bras would suit my shape. Curvy Kate has given me the opportunity to step into the spotlight and hopefully show how gorgeous a fuller figure can look in lingerie. It really kick started my modelling career and I still model with Curvy Kate and love all the shoots…and attention!’
Adriana, Product Developer explains why they started the search. “The response from last year’s competition was overwhelming. Not only from the amazing number of girls who applied, but also from the customers reaction to our models. We want to make the lingerie buying experience an enjoyable one and believe all women should feel happy with the package they have been given.”

Talented lingerie student Sarah Greenwood has designed her way to the top European  lingerie show in Paris after wowing a panel of judges from big bra specialists Curvy Kate.

Sarah, 20, from Leicester, was one of 37 students on De Montfort University’s Contour Fashion degree course who were challenged by Curvy Kate to design large cup size lingerie for their summer range.

Proving that full cup lingerie can be fun, playful and still perform the vital function needed to support a fuller bust, she will now be working alongside Curvy Kate to develop her collection. Sarah will also join them on the trip to Paris to have her design exhibited at Salon International, the leading lingerie design show in Europe this summer.

Curvy Kate Managing Director, Steve Hudson, said: “We teamed up with De Montfort University to find the next big thing in the fuller cup lingerie world.  As the only honours degree of its kind in the UK, its second year students were set the task of creating a DD+ piece to fit the brand’s modern and fun philosophies, making sure to focus on fit, style and support.

DMU’s Contour programme leader and lingerie expert, Gillian Proctor, said: “So often in the contemporary lingerie market the rising demand for beautiful, well cut and ‘on trend’ styles for larger cup sizes is not catered for. British women have the largest breast size in relation to rib dimensions in Europe and often the market place neglects this demand.

Sarah’s collection is called “Sugar Rush” as the colours originate from brightly coloured candy and children’s books.

“The idea was to create a fun, playful and vibrant collection for the Curvy Kate brand. My aim was to create a comfortable and supportive everyday bra whilst maintaining a sexy creative edge. Every woman should feel fabulous on a daily basis,” said Sarah.

Sarah said: “I was surprised at how limited the plus size lingerie market is, which is why my designs create a little more glamour for an everyday but sexy collection. I am thrilled at winning and realise that getting to the show and working on my collection with Curvy Kate is a huge boost to the career I’ll be launching when I graduate.”

Second and third place went to Ella Chidgrey and Carli Pullinger, respectively.

So our first European Trade show outside the UK and what a huge success! The Curvy Kate team along with Laura, our gorgeously curvy model went out to spread the word. We had an absolutely fabulous time and with over 200 cupcakes being given away and the new Autumn/Winter collection on display, it seemed all the buyers thought Curvy Kate was delicious!

Every now and then I like to get out of the office and stretch my legs and so I found myself taking a trip with Gary, our agent to a few stores in the North. It’s good to see what our retailers are up to and find out what they think about the current collection. We love the feedback and Jill, from Eve of Blackburn had lots to tell me. So we sat down had a hot chocolate and had a good catch up.

As a Curvy girl Jill, has had some great feedback from the range and also owns a few sets her self – particularly loving the Emily range.  The Portia and Showgirl range have sold well in store and shapely women are loving the extra choice. Jill’s store makes you feel welcome and more at home than in a shop, as if you’re just sat around having a girly chat. Everything is very cosey and it was a real pleasure going in and meeting Jill and her staff. Hopefully I’ll get to go back there again soon!

Her are some pics of Jill in store.

..well, my home that is!

Originally born and bred in bonny Preston I couldn’t resist going to see the first store to stock Curvy Kate in my local area. Chic Lingerie in Garstang have received a great response to the brand and currently boasts the Emily and Princess ranges as their favourites in the collection. Chic has a brilliant reputation in the area, particularly loved for their fitting expertise, which is making the women of Preston shape up in the boob department.

A recent UK wide survey on over 250,000 women proved that the North West had the biggest boobs in the UK, being an impressive 34E. So it seems owner of Chic Lingerie, Gill and Emily, store assistant (above right ) must have quite a job on their hands – excuse the pun – Especially as it still seems over 70% of women are still wearing the wrong size bra! So if you’re in the area and you think you’d like to see how good you could look in Curvy Kate, why not go and get fitted. Curvy Kate encourage every woman to get fitted before buying any bra to improve comfort, posture, your shape and of course your confidence.

For retailers in your area why not check our locations page.