With the Black Lives Matter movement spreading over the world during the past week, it’s been amazing seeing my fellow bloggers from all different walks of life come together to use their collective voices for change! And thanks to the many must-follow lists so many of them kindly included me on, I have a brand new group of readers! That said, I wanted to take the time to say hello and welcome to those of you who are new to GWC, and reintroduce myself to those of you who are already part of the community. So without further ado, here are 10 things you may not know about me:

I started Girl With Curves in 2011 as a creative outlet outside my former career in the tech industry. Very early on, I received countless messages from women all over the world saying how inspired they felt seeing someone with a similar body type embrace her curves with such confidence. That’s when I decided to put a mission behind GWC, to show women they can look and feel amazing at any size. As of this past February, I’ve been doing my part to empower confidence through style for over 9 years.

I started this blog at the age of 30, just a couple years after starting my journey of recovery from a long battle with eating disorders and unhealthy self-esteem that started in my early teens. It wasn’t until I injured my knees so bad I could barely walk, that I had a major wake-up call and learned to accept my body in its natural, curvy form. You can read more about my journey to self-love and acceptance on my About page.

I’m a multi-racial American – mostly West African from my father’s side, Caucasian descent from my mother’s side, and my husband of almost 10 years (who just so happens to take all of the images you see here and across all GWC channels) is Indian, from New Delhi, India. 

I’m a proud mom of three – a little boy named Narayan, age 6, a little girl named Madina, age 2, and an English Bulldog named Kingston, age 8. I’m also the eldest child of 6! I have 4 younger sisters and a brother. 

I live in the San Francisco Bay Area in the same small town I was born and raised in.

I’m typically a size 14/XL/1X on top, a 12 in skirts, 16 in pants, and I’m 5 feet ten inches tall, with tall girl size 12 feet.

My hair is naturally curly and I fully embrace my curls, however, I didn’t accept them until I was 22, after I met a girl with hair similar to mine who inspired me to embrace my own. You’ll probably notice pretty quickly that I rarely go straight.

I have a degree in English from UC Berkeley (go Bears!) and I’m a licensed Esthetician (which I pursued after deciding I didn’t have the patience to attend Medical School to be a Dermatologist).

Although today I’m a confident, outspoken businesswoman, I’m a total introvert at heart, who grew up painfully shy and insecure. My work through GWC continues to challenge me every single day, providing a public platform to voice my opinions and share my life in a way I would’ve never ever thought I would.

Building the GWC brand and clothing line has been the most rewarding, yet most challenging endeavor of my life, and I wouldn’t have it any other way! I love connecting with like-minded women from around the world, because no matter where we come from, what age or size we are, we always have so much in common. 

I encourage you to browse around here on the site and my instagram – there’s a vast collection of content on both, with tons of outfit ideas, style tips, my personal approach to beauty, wellness and more.

x,

Tanesha