A couple of muggy days

I'm doing surprisingly well at wearing my wardrobe at the moment. I guess it's the excitement of being able to wear my lovely summer dresses... I have so many I really don't need to buy new ones (lets see how long it lasts eh?!).

 I went to visit my best friend & her tiny new baby yesterday, and it was so freaking hot!

 

I'm so happy to be able to wear this dress again, it's one of my favourites!

 It's vintage and is a really lovely lightweight fabric, non stretch with lovely shaping to the bust.

 I feel old fashioned sexy in it!

 Today was thankfully not as unbearably sweaty as yesterday, so I wore my one and only home-made dress. I am a shit seamstress so it's pretty shoddy work, but I was compelled to make it anyway!

 Basically I got a huge oversized scarf from Primark last year, and the more I looked at the print the more I thought 'I wish I could get a dress like that'. At this point I realised that if I bought another one I'd have enough fabric to make a dress, so I did! The sandals and cardi are from Primark too.

Terrible seams, but the scribbled pen & ink drawings on the fabric are sooo cute!

I've been a bit of a miserable bugger today, so I cheered myself up by trying on shoes in TK maxx. Generally I don't end up buying anything because normally all the good shoes are size 5. Today though, joy! These delicious leather Brako shoes fit like a glove, and were only £30 (Brako are normally £80+ so I was super chuffed!). It also makes up for the fact that I had to return my lovely Dorothy Perkins nude brogues because they were too big for me.

I'm a bit more cheerful now. How superficial! xx

You can't always get what you want....

Like all other plus size bloggers I was really excited about the Simply Be blogger collaborations. The dress that I thought was the most 'me' shape-wise was Em's peacock print dress. There were so many pics put up on twitter that I just had to try it (despite really not being able to justify buying yet another dress!) so I ordered it in a size 24. The 22 had sold out and I often wear a 24 in Simply be dress made of this fabric. It's called jersey but it's not how it think of jersey... it's the stuff they make the Anna Scholz range from, which is stretchy but bounces back (rather than my idea of jersey which tends to loosen up after a bit of wear!). Be warned... no makeup!

This dress has made me realise something; I'm taller than I thought! I've seen this dress on loads of girls, but Becky from Does My Blog Make Me Look Fat and Lauren from Pocket Rocket Fashion stand out for me..... the dress hits them in all the right spots, the waist band sits just above their hips, and it's just under the knee. They look curvy and amazing in it! I'm sad to say that on me the waist band is just under my boobs, which would be fine if my boobs were close to my waist, but I'd say it's and inch or two too high to get any definition on my waist.

I feel a bit shapeless because of this.... I tried a belt but mixed with the heart shaped neck and shortish sleeves it just makes me look like a wrestler! Of course the belt also shortens the dress. I'm not saying 'oh my god this dress is so short', it's just that I tend to go for knee length or longer so I can have naked legs OR well above the knee so they're short enough to go nicely with leggings. This length just doesn't work on me, and I think leggings would destroy this lovely dress.

So, ignoring the fact that I'm too tall for this dress, I'm impressed with the quality of the make - it's actually better made than most other items I've bought from Simply be (including the Anna Scholz dresses) so it's been really well priced. The print is beautiful and colours are lovely. If Simply be offered different lengths I think this would have been a keeper for me, but as it stands I'm just not comfortable in it :(

Nice work though Em, I've seen so many girls looking amazing in this.... shame I'm too long for it!

Any way... on to my OOTD

 I've basically been cleaning all day, so I only just got dressed, and I'm feeling all relaxed! I noticed that ASOS Curve currently have a jersey floral jumpsuit, so I thought I'd wear their old version (this would probably be ankle length on a normal woman!). I'm wearing a ex-asos curve stock dress (from ebay) as a jacket.

I just liked the gathering at back of this dress! The sandals are from Dorothy Perkins last year.

I just couldn't wear the dress as an actual dress because it's really short and it's a bit low thanks to the heavy zip pulling it down at the front!

 I'm thinking I might take the zip off and add a hook & eye at the top so I can just wear it as a jacket.

The Liebster Awards

I hope that I'll be able to do this correctly (It's been a fun project while my boyfriend is watching the tennis!). Here Goes nothin'..........

Rules:

• List 11 facts about yourself
• Choose 11 bloggers with less than 200 followers to nominate (not including your nominator)
• Ask 11 new questions for the bloggers that you nominate
• Answer the 11 questions given to you by your nominator
• Thank your nominator and give a link to their blog

Facts…. 

1. I’ve worn the same perfume since I was 16 (Les Belles De Ricci, Liberty fizz) and when it was discontinued I spent about £200 buying up every bottle I could find – luckily it doesn’t go off the way some perfumes do. I’ve only got 2 bottles left and I’ll be devastated when it’s gone, it’s such a part of me! I’ve tired countless perfumes in preparation for ‘the change’, but nearly all of them made me feel sick.
   
   The only one I can abide is Ombre Rose by Charles Bouseau so that will become my perfume in the not-to-distant future. Btw, if you can smell your own perfume your wearing too much, and you’ll be giving people like me a headache… flower bomb is the worst!
   
2. I really don’t like those hi-top trainers with the inbuilt wedge… trainers are supposed to be comfy FFS.  I also can’t look at women walking in them, because I think they look like they have back to front ankle joints (like deer legs or something) and if really freaks me out!
3. I can’t imagine my life without music. Music is the most powerful art form, it is truly universal, utterly primal. That was a pretty wanky thing to say, but hopefully gives you an idea of how important I think music is!
4. I have had my heart broken by more female ‘friends’ than boyfriends / lovers.
5. I have no words for how much I hate baseball caps.
   
6. I’m a massive atheist. I like Science.
7. I’m realistic about my health. For instance I know I’d have fewer problems with my feet / back if I weighed less.
8. I Love love love comedy. Stand up, sitcoms, sketch shows, radio shows… everything. My DVD collection is testament to this obsession!
9. I have some eyeshadows that are about 20 years old. Can’t bear to get rid of them…. maybe more to do with childhood memories than wanting to actually use them.
10. I get extremely angry with people who call themselves vegetarians and then eat fish…. Err that’s a pescetarian mate! Don’t even get me started on so called vegetarians who sometimes eat chicken!  As for Vegetarians who don’t eat meat on cruelty grounds and then wear leather….. 
    
11. I’m obsessed with men’s shoulders. They don’t need to be muscular, but I like square shoulders (sloping shoulders are a real turn off for me!). In fact my favourite scent comes from the skin on my boyfriend’s shoulders.

 Desi's Questions for me......

1. Who is your favorite band/artist? I just have no idea how to answer this! I have a favourite artist per genre / per decade etc so it’s almost impossible to choose!  I think Stevie Wonder is probably a good shout. I bawled my eyes out when I saw him in concert…. he is beyond inspirational. In my humble opinion you can’t call yourself a music fan until you’ve really sat and listened to Talking book & Songs in the key of life. Even if you don’t like the style of music you have to appreciate the production! There is a reason why he has been sampled over and over again.  
2. What is your favorite food? Another question that is almost impossible to answer! I am such a foodie, I love food from all over the world! Both my parents worked in the food & catering industries and we’re all obsessed with food & cooking. Hummmm…… I just think I will have to plump for something super English and say Sunday Roast. I even enjoy shit cheap roasts. Please excuse my huge ego here, but I think my own roast is my favourite…. It’s basically Christmas dinner minus the devils on horseback / pigs in blankets! Roast chicken is my favourite, and it’s got to have all the trimmings…. roast spuds, parsnips & carrots, stuffing,  a green veg… normally savoy cabbage or broccoli, Yorkshire pudding,  my mums home made cranberry sauce with port, bread sauce and what has come to be known as my ‘restaurant gravy’…. which basically means that I use all the chef tricks to make a strong and rich gravy which is tasty enough to drink on its own! 
3. Do you have a current favorite TV show? Again, very hard to answer… I feel bereaved at the moment because we have finished Game of thrones, Louie & Arrested Development…. Hopefully True blood will fill this void for a while. Recently  I’ve really been enjoying the Tudor season on the beeb… Elizabethan England was always my favourite subject (plus I love history programs!) 
4. What is one fashion item that you've been coveting recently? Last month I’d have said Miista holographic brogues, but at the moment I’m massively over excited about all the oriental prints on the catwalks, because they’ll be turning up on the high street soon…..ASOS curve already has a dress, but I’m holding out for something with a better print / shape!.  
5. Name three of your favorite stores to shop. Asos Curve is top of my list. I shop at Primark loads to get cheap basics & accessories. In all honesty Ebay is the place I shop most regularly though… I’m a bargain hunter at heart! 
6. What is the greatest thing that you've learned since starting your blog? The thing that I’ve been really amazed to learn is that so many of the other plus size bloggers have struggled to accept being fat, or have grown up hating their bodies. It’s really made me think about why I’ve never had such body issues despite being fat for pretty much my whole life. It’s also made me appreciate how lucky I am that I’ve never suffered from bullying  / mental illness / eating disorders etc…. I was always a confident girl (or a show off as my sister would say!), and I grew up into a confident woman. Personally the only disadvantage I’ve ever suffered because of being fat has been not being able to buy the clothes I want in my size…. but that is less of an issue as time goes on! 
7. If you could be any villain from a Disney movie, who would you be? I’m not really a Disney sort of person…. Pixar is technically Disney now though right?! I’ll go for Charles Muntz from Up…. he has an army of talking dogs which would be amazing! 
8. If you wanted to, what is one thing you could change or improve about your blog? I’d like my boyfriend to learn how to use a camera so he could take the pics for me! Also I might go back to the beginning one day and improve my labels / tags so that if people specifically want to look at jumpsuit reviews (for instance) then they can just click the label. I was a bit confused when I first started using blogger, and I focused on company names rather than clothing types!
9. Best book that you've read recently. ‘Snuff’ by Terry Pratchett definitely. I’m a massive discworld fan to be fair, but Snuff really did crack me up… I couldn’t put it down. 
10. What is your dream job/career? I’m sort of doing my dream job to be honest. I guess I’d like to have some minions as I’m a bit of a one woman department & I wish it paid better, but doesn’t everyone?! I’m not going to go into specifics while working under my alias (!) but I work in Arts & Culture. 
11. If you could try anything new, what would it be? Full on lesbianism. Nahhh…. joking, that ship sailed a long time ago! Anything new…. I’d like to travel more, so I’d like that to become financially viable one day!

My nominees.... In all honesty I don't know what 'less than 200 followers' means, so I'm going purely on blog 'members' from Google friend connect!

1. Michelle from Fat.Budget.Bitch. Possibly my favourite ever blog title!
2. Val from Blog to Be Alive who has been a firm favourite of mine since before I started the blog.
3. Sian from Sort life out; buy milk wears crazy outfits that make me want to give her a round of applause!
4. Launa from Welcome to Wowsville has a Harry Potter / Deathly Hallows tattoo.... 'nuff said!
5. Kathryn from Miss Kathryn's Mistakes - Who cares what her mum says, she looks good in short skirts!
6. Becky from Does My Blog Make Me Look Fat is my honest review buddy!
7. Aisling from A Plus Size Pony Pal has extremely good taste, which she proved by buying a dress from my blog shop!
8. Nicola from 2 Many Cupcakes share my love of swing dresses and is so beautiful smiley in her pics!
9. Charlotte from Apple Charlotte has created some plus size togs that make me dribble!
10. Sahra from Sarah Smiles is a plus size pin up babe who caters to my vintage leanings!
11. Megan from The Closet of Megan Faye - I've been enjoying watching Megan accept her body and try out more 'look at me' clothing. It's a heart warmer!

Okay Ladies, sorry to do this to you, but here are your questions....

1. How old is the oldest item of clothing in your wardrobe?
2. Why did you start your blog?
3. D you have any personal 'fashion rules'?
4. What frustrates you most about plus size clothing / stores / ranges?
5. What is the sexiest song in the world?!
6. Do you think you’re beautiful?
7. What would your last meal be?
8. Do you have any addictions?
9. Which is chocolate is better, Cadbury or Galaxy?!
10. What’s your favourite beauty product (I mean an enduring love, not a fleeting infatuation!)?
11. What would you wear to the Oscars?!

Big thanks to Desi from Dollface Beauty for nominating me, check out her blog here xx

If only....

..... I was going somewhere today.......

 I started the day in a little dress as the sun was shining. Had to change thanks to the sudden down pours and howling wind!

I actually do quite a bit of customisation to my clothing, which this outfit proves rather well....

Polka dot shirt - Vintage (removed from the skirt section as it was drop-waisted, which looks revolting on me, I actually put the skirt on when I got home yesterday as my legs were on fire in my jeans... 2 items for the price of one!!)

Trousers - Asos Curve (I wish they weren't so seethrough, never mind!)

Booties - K ankle boots from Clarks... well old! (I cut the top section off, and sewed the belt from my Ruby Rocks lotus print skater dress round the ankles to make them more interesting!)

5 days

 This week has been a confusing one... hot / cold all the time and I've got a minor stress fracture in my foot so I've been hobbling a bit! Anyway, here are my outfits from this week xx

 First time I've worn this dress out... so comfy, I really recommend it!

Dress - Simply be

Leggings - Primark

Shoes - Crocs

 I couldn't walk in anything other than flipflops on Tuesday, so I wore my Ipanemas despite the rain!

Top (new) & Cardi (old) - Primark

Jeans - New look

flipflops - Ipanema

I love this oversized eternity ring, it was my first ever forever 21 purchase!

 

Wednesday!

Cardi (old) & handbag (new) - Primark

Denim dress - New Look Inspire

Leggings - H&M

Daps (currently on sale!) - Dunlop via Dorothy Perkins

 

I managed to get a new moonstone ring, a nice big one! Basically I want a Lalique gemstone ring, but as they cost hundreds of pounds I will live with a less bulbous version for £15!

  I actually bought 2 of these because I didn't know what size I'd need. That means I have a size O which is too small for me and is now for sale on my blog here if you want it! 

 

Thursday (I don't know why this particular pair of leggings are so short!)

Dress - Marks and Spencers

Leggings - H&M

Shoes - from charity shop

Friday!

 

T-shirt - Primark

Jeans - Dorothy Perkins

Shoes - Dorothy Perkins (they're not online, but I've seen them in loads of stores and they're on sale for £10 in both nude & grey! xx) 

 Oh and I found these amazing unbranded floral fabric booties today in a shop in Butterfly Walk (Camberwell Green) where everything was £5! They're a bit tapestry-like up-close.... LOVE these! Can't wait to wear them out and about!

xx

A new look

Hi all! I got my new look parcel today (and another sneaky little parcel from somewhere else!) so here is my review....

How cute is this dress?! Good old new look! Only £19.99 and I just love it! I sized up to a 24 in this (there is a little bit of give to the denim but it's not stretch) and apart from being slightly snug on my boobs it's actually a pretty nice fit. It's above the knee on me but happily not too short. Already looking forward to wearing this one!

I'm really quite pleased with it.... I was so sure it wouldn't fit. Go buy it while it's still available, it's a great summer buy!

I was sure that this bralet top would be too short, but in reality it's actually just much too tight on the bust (even thought I sized up to a 24 again due to the non-stretch fabric) and I'm a bit gutted really because it's a cute top. I really think New look inspire need to sort their sizes out - my breasts really are in proportion to the rest of my body so I shouldn't have these problems in a sized 24 top! Oh well, if your belly is bigger than your boobs then this top would be perfect on you, it's just no good for me!

I tried on these jeggings but there's no picture because I couldn't get them on. I went for size 22 and although the waist was massive they were SO TIGHT on my calves and thighs that I couldn't pull them up..... and they were no way near stretchy enough to be proper jeggings! If you have a big belly and slim legs though, these may be for you!

Last but not least I got this beauty. I saw it and had to have it because I so love the print. The fact that it only cost £17.99 was a bonus! It's from xclusive fashions which sell clothes from size 14-32. They sell lots of the 'AX Paris' stuff and have a really good range of cheap bodycon dresses. I managed to stick with just the one despite wanting about 4 of them, but if your tempted to buy from them then use the code new20 to get a 20% discount on your first shop.

xx