By Michelle Joseph

I, like most women love fashion.  I too flip through fashion magazines and dream about owning funky pieces and buying the hottest must-have items for the season.  But truthfully, I just want to look good!  My only issue with fashion is the shopping part.

As my title suggests I am a curvy petite girl, which almost sounds like a contradiction.  Although I am a shorty (I am 5’1”), I have plenty of curves—which I’m not afraid to flaunt!

When most people think of a petite person, they think of a skinny, waifish girl, but I am proof that petites come in all shapes and sizes.

I’m actually cool with the fact that I am not a size 0, or a size 5 for that matter; I love my womanly hourglass figure.  The problem lies in the fact that when I shop, I have the hardest time finding stores that cater to women with similar shape issues.    The voluptuous petite is a somewhat untapped market.  While there is a burgeoning market for plus sized women, that market normally caters to average height women (*there are some stores that cater to fuller petite women, but these stores are few and far in between).

Since I don’t fall under one category, it makes shopping extremely challenging.  When I am on the hunt for new clothes, I have to search for clothing that not only meets my height “issues”, but can also make its way up my healthy hips!  Believe me, I have struggled with plenty pairs of petite pants.

I am fully aware that it’s almost impossible to find clothes right off the rack that fit.   I’m just hoping that in result of my “rant”, store owners and designers will consider my niche market—the curvy petite girl.