Money Talk for Women

How to Write a Business Plan

by Monica Rasso for Elegant Plus Magazine

Your dream might be to start your own fashion design company or open your own clothing store, but you don’t know where to begin!  The first thing you need to do is sit down over a period of weeks, even months, and do a bit of careful planning.  Chances are you will need to find investors in your dream, but even if you have the capital to start a company with your own resources, it’s best to have a solid business plan.

A business plan is vital to the success of your business. It is your roadmap to success! You wouldn’t start a long road trip across the country without a map! Why would you start your business, your dream, your hope without a plan? Besides being a directional and motivational tool, a business plan is important for obtaining financing from banks, venture capitalists and other start up funds. 

So where do you start? In writing a business plan, there are four main questions to consider: what, how, where and why. 

WHAT

1. What is my product or service? To answer this question, describe in detail exactly what you will be offering your customer. Describe the product or service in as much detail as you can. How is your idea unique? What value can you provide your customer? Why is this product or service needed?

1. What compensation do I offer any employees I may have? When do I plan to hire employees? Having a plan for when and if you will need to bring in employees can help your in organizing your business. You may site examples of when you would like to begin hiring.

1. What sources of help are available to me? It is important to know that help is available in planning your business. The local/state government, local college business advisors, Small Business Administration, and women business owners associations are all examples of service administrations available to help you financially and emotionally.

HOW

1. How do I pick supply and service vendors? What help can these companies provide for your business? For example, if you are starting a clothing store, where will you get your merchandise? How much time does a vendor need in order to get their product/service to you? You may begin to price the supplies necessary for creation of your product or service so that you can begin a budget. 

1. How do I fill customer’s orders or requests?  Will you provide a basic service or can customers do special requests? Who can you rely on to meet these special requests? 

1. How will I advertise my services?  Will you use local or national advertising? How much will all of this cost? What is the most effective use of advertising for your product? How do companies similar to yours advertise? 

WHERE

1. Where will I buy or lease an office/store? How big of a space do you need? What technology do you need? How will you transport, package, and/or deliver your product or service? 

1. Where will I get start-up funding? Bank, personal capital/savings, borrow from family/friends, or venture capital? You may want to look into possibilities of development capital from the Small Business Administration or women-owned business loans/programs or grants. 

1. Where do I want my business to be in five ten, fifteen, twenty years? Will you have more than one location? How will your business grow to be more profitable? Who can help you make this happen? 

WHY

1. Why should I choose a sole proprietorship, partnership, limited liability company, or corporation? What are the advantages/disadvantages of each? This question will require the assistance of a tax advisor. 

1. Why should I go into business anyways? What is driving you to open this business? 

Now that you have a business plan, what are you going to do with it? This plan should be used as your roadmap to start your business but also as a tool to look back on as your business grows and changes. Keep in mind that your success relies on your passion, commitment, and determination to reach your goals. Set goals and follow through! Put your dream on paper and make it happen! 

More Resources

Popularity: 18% [?]

Plus-Size Fertility

by Brette Sember for Elegant Plus Magazine

The decision to become a parent is an exciting one. You and your wonderful man are going to create new life together through the power of your love. It’s a heady feeling and one that definitely can bring you closer together. But if you’re a plus-size woman, you may worry about what kind of impact your weight will have on getting pregnant.

Schedule a Pre-Conception Physical

Make an appointment to see your gynecologist before you toss that birth control out the window. It is now recommended that all women have a pre-conception check up to discuss medications, lifestyle changes, and any possible stumbling blocks to conception that they might face. As a plus-sized woman, one of things your physician will likely discuss with you is weight. Being overweight can cause irregularities with your cycle and suppress ovulation. It’s likely that you’ll be encouraged to get close to your ideal weight by your doctor (according to body mass index charts), but losing even 10 pounds can have a significant positive impact on fertility for many women. Diet drugs are an absolute no-no though when trying to conceive.

Losing weight is a personal choice (and for many women, a difficult path), so be sure to weigh your own feelings into the decision. It’s also important to note that too much weight loss too quickly can make it difficult to conceive.

Discuss Major Causes of Fertility Problems

When you see your physician, it is a good idea to ask about two common medical issues that impact the ability to conceive for many plus-size women. If you have never had your thyroid tested, ask for a complete thyroid profile (the traditional TSH test is NOT enough because an underactive thyroid sometimes is only detected with thyroid antibody levels). An underactive or overactive thyroid can impair fertility and also cause problems during pregnancy. Overweight women are most likely to experience an underactive thyroid since the failure of thyroid to function properly can lead to weight gain. Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, the most common form of underactive thyroid, is five times more prevalent in women than in men. 

You should also discuss Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) with your physician. Between five and ten percent of all women of childbearing age have PCOS, which is a complicated metabolism and hormone imbalance. Symptoms include infrequent or irregular cycles, acne, facial hair, high cholesterol, thinning hair, skin tags, and sleep apnea. PCOS is a leading cause of infertility in overweight women (and there is a higher incidence of it in overweight women), because the imbalance of male and female hormones makes it difficult to get pregnant.

Some women find they have both of these problems, creating a double whammy. These disorders are things that many physicians are not as aware of as they should be, so asking to be tested for both will offer you peace of mind about your own fertility.

Make a Trip to the Drugstore

Your physician will prescribe prenatal vitamins for you, an important way to make sure you will have a healthy pregnancy. While prenatal vitamins are important, there is some research to suggest that the typical prenatal vitamin does not contain enough folic acid to provide protection in overweight women against neural tube defects in the baby. Some physicians believe plus-size women should take additional folic acid supplements (since it is a harmless vitamin) along with their prenatal vitamins in order to obtain full protection. Ask your physician about a higher dose of folic acid.

Track Your Cycle

While trying to get pregnant can be a romantic and exciting proposition, there is a science to it. Learning how to maximize your cycles can mean getting pregnant more quickly. Start tracking your basal body temperature each morning before you get up. Talk to your physician about how to read this chart (essentially you’re looking for a temperature drop, then an increase of at least .4 degrees, which indicates ovulation). Over the counter ovulation predictor kits are also a valuable tool. The key is to try to have sex at least every other day during the five days before you ovulate and the two days after. For more information, see www.FertilityPlus.org.

Stay Positive

Feeling good about your body and keeping a positive outlook will not only ease stress (which has been shown to have a negative effect on fertility), but will help you stay happy as you begin trying to get pregnant. Many women hope they will get pregnant right away, but in actuality there is only a 25% chance of getting pregnant each month, so you may have a long road ahead of you. Make time for your relationship and for yourself and try not to let all your hopes and happiness ride on that monthly pregnancy test.

Staying positive about your body is key, because many full-figured women often have low self-esteem. This is the time in your life when you should appreciate the amazing things your body can do, and learn to love it for what it is.

When to Seek Help

According to the CDC, 55% of couples get pregnant within three months, 72% within six months and 85% within one year. The standard advice is to try for a year before seeking assistance, but overweight women should seek assistance sooner, since weight can impair ovulation. If you do not ovulate (based on your basal body temperature chart or ovulation predictor kits), you should call your physician immediately. If you are over age 35 you also should not wait a year, since your window of opportunity is getting smaller.

Recommended Books

About the Author

Brette Sember is a plus-size mom of two and co-author of Your Plus-Size Pregnancy: The Ultimate Guide for the Full-Figured Expectant Mom (Barricade Books, 2005). Her web site, www.YourPlusSizePregnancy.com, contains a section on plus-size fertility.

Popularity: 31% [?]

Obesity Contagious! Beware of Fat Friends and Other Nasty Headlines

from Elegant Plus Magazine

In a week that saw the opening of the delightfully fat friendly, feel-good movie Hairspray and the celebrated third installment of Mo’Nique’s F.A.T. Chance self-esteem and size-acceptance television special on the Oxygen Network, a study of an entirely different nature reared its head in the esteemed New England Journal of Medicine from researchers at Harvard and the University of California.  Within hours of the related press-releases stating “Obesity is Socially Contagious” hundreds of articles had appeared and news outlets across a variety of media picked up the story.

What raised the alarm bells first for me was realizing that unlike many “stories” that make daily appearances in our culture in the infamous War on Obesity, this one had more legs than most.  Thoughtful news shows like Jim Lehrer on PBS and columnists at the well respected New York Times took up the story, while more tabloid type outlets gleefully declared that you should beware of fat friends and family members because they could make YOU fat!  Yet not once did I hear any real examination of the science behind the study, NOR a consideration of the implications such thinking might have on the lives of large individuals who are already targets of bullying and ostracization.

As an academic who has been trained to cast a critical eye on scientific methodology and underlying assumptions  before accepting the conclusions of any study as fact no matter from which institution it comes,  the media’s tendency to embrace every study that comes out of a laboratory as fact with a capital F has always disturbed me. Perhaps especially so because of the prevalence of hype and sound bytes throughout all types of media in the United States today.   Equally disturbing is the frequency of Junk Science and statistic manipulation used for a whole host of agendas, not the least of which is the support of the diet and pharmaceutical industries.   My first inclination was to contact NAAFA (National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance) to see if their health experts had addressed this specific study and invite them to write a guest article for Elegant Plus.   I received a cordial reply and the press release they had prepared on the subject which didn’t seem to really target this specific study, but more the general underlying hype surrounding the media’s War on Obesity, with the promise of a Guest Article if I wanted one.  I encouraged the latter option and sincerely hope one comes.  I am very interested in  publishing an educated and well informed rebuttal from someone equiped to take a critical look at this study for our readers.

So far, the only clearly argued discussion that refutes the specifics of the study based on data and methodology that I’ve seen comes from Sandy Szwarc’s blog Junk Food Science.  She’s a nurse with a biological science degree that equips her better than most to think about health related studies critically.  I highly recommend reading her article “Oh what a tangled web we weave” to begin to bring the hype on this particular obesity study into a balanced perspective. 

But regardless of the rightness or wrongness of the science there is another very real and dangerous repercussion from this type of media spin, especially on women.   Many of the lead drummers in this charge to “fix” what they view as a  looming public health crisis, fail to take into account the impact of their language, rhetoric and social messaging.   Screaming headlines like “Obesity is Contagious” and “Fat Friends Could Make You Fat”  does not effectively guilt anyone into changing lifestyle patterns, which is their purported intent.  It only makes people feel worse about themselves, lowers self-esteem and now piles on the guilt of harming the people closest to them.  How could this be a positive and productive state of affairs?

 In fact equating weight with lifestyle is one of the dangerous underlying assumptions permeating society.   The two are so enmeshed in popular thinking that fat, obese and unhealthy lifestyle are considered interchangeable synonyms (as are the equally false thin, slender, healthy lifestyle) , the first two the current synonyms of headline choice.  We, as a society, somehow think that simply by looking at (or weighing) an individual we have the ability (and sadly the right to judge) how well they take care of themselves.  But the fact is weight and obesity are far more complex than that, with some individuals naturally heavier than others, others suffering from medication side-effects and a host of other medical reasons.  There are women who eat healthier than most and run marathons who will never be slender.  There are skinny minis who eat chips and soda and junk food every day, and rarely lift so much as a  toe to get any exercise.   Simply, you cannot tell by someone’s weight alone what kind of lifestyle choices they make. 

 Think how differently the emotional impact of this research would read if the headlines said “Unhealthy Lifestyles are Socially Contagious”.   That truly is a different meaning than the one currently screaming across our media sphere, since not all fat people have an unhealthy lifestyle and many thin ones do.  Not only would the scientific data have a better shot of upholding such a theory which is already debatable as junk science, but the social implications would be less damaging to individuals already judged strictly by their body mass.  This leads to a downward spiral of social and self-loathing that adversally affects an individual’s mental health.  Now add in other’s fear of just knowing a fat person and we have a recipe for permissable discrimination.  I don’t think that is the path most of these so called “health advocates”  truly had in mind.  But it is the one we, as a society, are fast going down.  

Popularity: 24% [?]

Wide-Calf Boots Guide

by Elegant Plus Magazine

How To Measure for the Perfect Plus-Size Boots Before You Order

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NEW!!  Click Here for  Elegant Plus Boot Picks  

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Boot season is coming up fast and every fashionista lusts after the perfect pair of stylish boots.  But, for those of us with plus-size calves that match the rest of our curvy bods, shopping for wide-calf boots can be among the most disappointing and frustrating experiences.  Fortunately retailers are getting savvy and beginning to carry more plus-size boot solutions.

But take care!  Average boot shafts are usually 14 -14 1/2 inches around. This means that boots as slender as 15 inches around can be referred to as “wide calf boots”.  But often 15 inches is still much too slim for the fashionable full-figured gal.  The good news is that 17″, 18′, 19″ and even the occasional 20 inch around boot is becoming more readily available.  Some are referred to as “extra wide” or super-size calf boots, but not all, with terms and descriptions inconsistent from shop to shop.  

So how do you know if a plus-size boot will fit you?    You might find that your leg fits at the low, middle or high end of that size range causing a boot ordered in a simple “plus-size” or “wide-calf” fit to be too snug, too loose or as Goldilocks used to say, “Just right.”   But nobody really wants to go through the whole long process poor Goldilocks went through to get to that last feeling of success.

Here are some tips for finding the perfect pair of wide calf boots and guarantee a good fit, right at the time of order!

1. Know your own calf measurement:

If you are to make sure that you can find a wide calf boot that fits you, you must know your own measurements first.   The measurement you need to have is the fullest part of your calf.

The easiest way to figure this out is to use a flexible measuring tape used by seamstresses. This inexpensive item can often be bought in the notions section of the supermarket, the sewing section of stores like Walmart and of course, sewing stores.  Place the measuring tape around the fullest part of the calf and make a note where the measuring tape overlaps. Then round to the nearest inch.  If you round down, look for boot styles with gussets or slight stretch for that added little give needed to get you the extra little bit.

Don’t have a measuring tape?  Take a piece of string and measure the widest part of the calf. Mark just where the end overlaps. Stretch it out against a ruler or yardstick.

2. Look for calf measurements in the boot descriptions:

 If the description states “wide-calf boots” or “plus-size boots”, always look for an actual shaft measurement.  The term “wide calf” covers a range of sizes beginning at a mere 15 inches in circumference all the way up to 23 inches around in super wide calf styles. Your boots should fit snuggly around the calf, without cutting off circulation. If a measurement is not stated, do not assume that it will fit you. If a boot’s shoe size is stated as  ”wide” or “extra wide”, do not assume that this also means that the boot shaft will also be wider also.  Some are, some aren’t.  Unless the description specifically states that wider widths include a wider boot shaft chances are it won’t fit you right.  Some boot shafts also gradually enlarge with shoe size. But again, this cannot be assumed. Always look for exact boot shaft measurements and compare them to your own measurements. They should be close.

3. Tips & Tricks:

Need to get an extra few centimeters? Some styles have a little more give than others. Look for lacing, side and back stretch gores, and stretch styles.  If your calf size is in the 15-16 inch range you should be able to wear stretch boots comfortably.  If your calves are wider, this style will not be comfortable and will feel too tight. Lacing offers the most comfortable option, but be careful that it won’t leave gaps. Those with 15 inch calves should be able to wear lace up boots with regular width shafts successfully, while wider calves shouldn’t rely on this feature in a non-wide calf style. Side zippers also make getting boots on and off much easier, especially for curvier calves.

4. Where to Shop

In an ideal world we would all have a shoe shop near or in our town that carried wide-calf boots, but this is even rarer than a plus-size clothes shop.   More and more cataloguers and internet retailers, however, are carrying a greater selection of wide-calf boots than ever before.  Stylish and fashionable boots are becoming more readily available at affordable prices, allowing full-figured women to indulge in boot fashions.  Follow the measuring tips above to minimize order disappointments at the shops listed below (some carry boots all year, while others only carry them in the fall and winter shopping seasons). 

Shop early for the most fashionable styles or the more difficult to find sizes.  Plus-size boots tend to fly off the shelves at most of these retailers and back-orders are not infrequent.

• Anna’s Place Wide Widths

• Audition Shoes

• Cloudwalkers (on Avenue website)

• Eddie Bauer

• Footsmart

• Jessica London

• Roaman’s

• Silhouettes

• Torrid

• Woman Within

•  Zappos

 Keep those boots walking!

Popularity: 93% [?]

Plus-size Swimwear Figure and Fit Guide
brought to you by ElegantPlus.com

Best places to shop for plus-size swimear:

For the most up-to-date plus-size bathing suit options please visit our main website at:

Elegant Plus Plus-Size Swimwear  Shopping Directory

Elegant Plus Editor’s Pick Plus-Size Swimwear

Popularity: 49% [?]