Diamonds and Daggers, Daxon and a VERY big disappointment!

Gizmo Dog wanted to get in on the action this week whilst I was writing!

Ello lovelies!

Well, it's officially all over, Christmas done, and the new year is in full swing! Definitely my least favourite time of the year, although I have a few exciting things planned over the next few months which I'm keeping in good spirits for! One of them being Plus London 2! If your a blogger and you haven't heard about it, go and check out the details, this year it has been arranged by Claire of A Monkey Fatshionista and promises to be another great little event for the Plus Size Community. Check out my posts about last years event!


In other news, I've had a couple of new bits and pieces which I wanted to post and share with you all! First of all is my gorgeous heart pendant from Diamonds and Daggers! I am a sucker for anything sparkly and this was well up my street....

Love Shines Pendant - £15 Diamonds and Daggers

The lovely Hayley hand makes these little treats and sends them out in fab sparkly packaging. When mine arrived yesterday I was thrilled with it and can guarantee it will be worn all the time! I've had lots of compliments on it already! She also does some other items, including amazing shoes, brooches, phone cases and customises items too! Go check her out, she's currently offering free shipping!

I was recently approached by Daxon and asked if I would be interested in choosing an item from their range to review. I must admit, I am not particularly familiar with the brand and had only ever seen it before being sold through OneStopPlus.

I have to be honest on first glance of their website I wasn't sure there would be anything for me, it does seem to be aimed at a more mature audience, lots of frilled maxi skirts and blouses, not really my cup of tea, but after a bit of a mooch I noticed the site is good for basics. I opted for a pair of denim look leggings, which lets be fair, you can't really go wrong with, and they aren't too bad at all! I ordered a 26-28 which are a great fit around my waist, tummy, hips and thighs but I unfortunately have found them to be a little bit baggy around my lower leg, which is an issue I find regularly with plus size leggings, I am big around my bum and tum but I have quite toned, slim legs in comparison to the rest, just another of those perils of being plus size, our shapes all vary so much that being catered for is difficult! A great example of this is shown by my gorgeous Lorna Face friend whom has recently started blogging and putting her thoughts out there from a pear-shaped plus sized girls perspective over at The Ginger Peardrop!

Denim look leggings - Courtesy of Daxon Plus Size Clothing

Anyway, I put them together with a slouchy Heart Tee from Very (onto that in a mo), and some sequinned flats from New Look.

Heart Tee - £18 Very
The State of my face and hair - Priceless! :/

So, onto that Very big disappointment! I decided to treat myself to a few new tee's from Very just to put with jeans and leggings etc, one being this Heart Tee! Now, I know it probably doesn't look too bad on the pics, but when it arrived I wasn't happy at all. The finish of the item had threads left undone, the material was cheap and more annoyingly than anything else, the fit was well off! On the model on the pics the tee is made to look like it is super long, I love a long slouchy tee, so I was sold! When it arrived, it barely covered my crotch even though I sized up for extra slouchyness! This is what infuriates me when clothes are modelled on women whom are nowhere near the dimensions of who the items are marketed at!

Unfinished threads Heart Tee

I understand that my boobs are going to take away from the length a little, but I even had to put another top on underneath this just to give me some coverage, I'm not ready to be part of the VBO crowd yet (visible belly outline) and this item was ready to throw me into the gang at full speed! I do like the tee but I am disappointed and it is definitely not worth £18! The So Fabulous range looks great online, they are really trying to offer us great trend led pieces, but now I have ordered a few bits and pieces I have to say, I'm not thrilled with the price in relation to quality offered.

More exciting things to talk about soon, but for now lovelies I'm off to give Gizmo some cuddles and eat pizza!

Big Love
xoxoxox

Simply Be & Simply Yours SS 2012 Launch

Hi lovelies!

I wanted to put a little post together to tell you about the recent event I attended for Simply Be & Simply Yours! I was invited along for a preview of their 2012 Spring/Summer ranges for both of the brands and couldn't say no!



I am a massive fan of Simply Yours lingerie, with a mahooooooosive 46G bosom myself, I find they are one of the very few brands whom deliver a decent range of underwear to hold my badboys firmly in place and looking lovely!


The range had some really cute quirky pieces such as the Union Jack set which pays homage to the up and coming 2012 Olympic games, exclusive to Simply Yours and there was also a massive nod to much more girly vintagey type pieces which were beautiful.



The Simply Be range was also no disappointment! My favourite pieces being a really fun and floaty yellow star print tunic, which of course, I cannot wait to get my hands on and this beautiful chiffon floral dress, simply stunning for a summer night!




There was a huge emphasis on the colour-blocking trend through their accessories, such as the oversized pink and turquoise clutches and these amazing strappy heels! A great trend all year round, any piece from this accessory line will last you FOREVER! I am primping for the oversized turquoise clutch to put with that amazing yellow star tunic!



But my overall fave part of the collections showcased was the swimwear! SO MUCH UNDERWIRE! YAY!!!!!!!!! As I was being shown the railing of sample swimwear I was so excited to see so much of it with underwire, this is a big thing for me as so many plus size retailers get this so, so, so wrong! The amount of swimwear pieces I have bought in the past which contain padding (I know! WTF!) or no support what so ever is unreal! My size 28 frame needs support for my 46G boobs when undertaking a good old breast stroke, nevermind making me looking like Katie Price or giving me droopy spaniels ear boobies!


My absolute fave two pieces were the leopard print tankini in this fabulous colour scheme, and the gorgeously retro/pinup-esque polka dot mock 2 piece! I honestly cannot wait for the catalogue to come out so we can all have a good old lust after all the fabulous items coming our way! Hurry up Simply Be!



Amongst enjoying coo'ing over gorgeous clothes, I managed to get my mani on, gossip with other awesome blogger girlies and have a good ol' chat with the oh so lovely Charlotte of the Simply Be team! Oh and got mega embarrassed after seeing myself on the promo vid on screen, which was taken after far too many glasses of champagne at their Liverpool store opening (my accent is appalling! Ohdear!).

Thanks for an awesome day Simply Be and Simply Yours! Cannot wait to see more!

Big Love

xoxox

My Health, My Business!

Where do I start?

My, my, my those Daily Mail readers are an interesting bunch aren't they? They'd have you believe that they are all absolute visions of health, obviously all non smoking, non drinking, people with absolutely no problems or vices with perfect BMI's! How do you guys do it all and still have time to trawl through Daily Mail articles and heckle other real life, living human beings about how they look and live their lives?!

Where has this come from Naomi I will hear some of you say? Well, the good old Daily Fail decided to run an article on plus size women. It featured 5 women between a UK size 16-22, styled up, looking fabulous and talking about how they have accepted themselves as plus size women and are happy as they are. Click here to read the article. One of the women featured is a very close friend of mine, I have spoken about Lorna on here many times. She is a gorgeous girl with bags of positivity and confidence all packaged up in a perfectly plus sized body which she loves! She had mentioned to me a few months ago that she had taken part in the article, amongst the excitement there was the worry. Being plus sized women we are well aware of the bad rep we get, it is VERY rare to ever see anything written about being plus size or fat without it being full of the usual crap. Yeh, you know what I am talking about ladies.

Surprisingly I didn't think the article was bad at all. I have seen much, much worse written about us plus sized girlies! But I made that age old mistake of reading the comments section and this is what brings me on to my point.

Time and time again, whenever there is an article written about fat or plus size or positive body image etc, etc it always brings out the trolls! I am always in absolute disbelief at how vile some of these self-righteous arseholes can be about other humans. So, I just wanted to clarify a few things about being fat that I think some of these cock-knockers miss:

1. Contrary to popular belief, I am fat and shock, shock horror, I work! I pay my taxes, I do my bit and I am more than entitled to the benefits of society that everybody else has. Being fat does not mean that I am sat at home, watching Jezza Kyle claiming benefits and cooking Iceland crap in my deep-fat fryer! It also doesn't mean that I should be expected to sit in my house and never darken society with my presence. Many of you believe even plus size clothing stores should be closed down so that ladies like myself shouldn't even be able to access clothing, I mean that is just ludacris? I honestly believe some of you would rather have a society full of junkies then anybody be larger than the 'norm'. Since when did being fat become a crime? Where people should be shunned and outcast if they do not instantly want to hit the latest faddy diet? I despair!

2. I am not here to promote obesity as a lifestyle choice. I am here because as you can all see, I am a fat girl, I have been fat for as long as I can remember. I have dieted, I have yo-yo'ed, I have hated myself and you know what, right now I feel good about myself (No believe it or not I am not in denial!). I get so upset seeing women constantly feeling bad about themselves because they do not look how society would expect them too. I am here to hopefully inspire other women of all shapes and sizes that no matter what size you are, small, medium large, XXXXXLarge that feeling good is allowed no matter what and we should never let anybody dictate to us how we should feel about OUR bodies! We are allowed to have a voice and a platform and my god I am going to have one! I live a life as a fat person, however you all live your lives is up to you. Live and let live in my opinion!

3. My health, my business! I am sick to death of all of this 'Oh you are fat so you MUST be unhealthy, you are most certainly going to keel over and die of heart disease any second now!' Are you my doctor? Are you even a health proffessional? Just because fat is visably there for all to see, it does not mean that you have the right to judge anybodies health based on how they physically look! Lets be fair, you don't give a shit about the health of these people, you just want to put your oar in and have a dig. Do you do it to every smoker you see on a street corner or every drinker you see in a pub? I am guessing not because you sit at home hiding behind your internet connections, and to be fair if you did you obviously have far too much time on your hands! Get a life! Look after your own health and I'll look after mine!

I honestly just do not understand why people think it is acceptable to treat other people the way that they do. I actually pity you, why don't you go out and exercise that grey matter in a much more productive way? Do you talk to the fat people in your life the way you viciously attack these ones through a computer? If so, you must be very unpopular. I think people forget that these people featured in these articles are real, they have real feelings and real lives and feel just like you do. How would you feel if one of those people was your mum, sister, aunty, grandma?

Anyway, I am ranting now and I need to step away! So, in an effort to break the bad atmosphere here are a few pics of my birthday night out wearing my fave Evans leopard print shirt!





Anyway, I'm off to Euston to get my train home and encroach on some fat haters seat space or something like that! Remember people, be good to each other, live and let live. We are all human and we are all entitled to life no matter what size we are! Never be scared to be who you are!

BIG LOVE

XOXOX

Simply Be Store Launch!

Hi All!

So, on Thursday 22nd September was the exclusive and much anticipated opening of Simply Be's first ever high street store!

I was thrilled to be invited along and it was also a few days before my birthday so me and my gorgeous friend Sarah took full advantage and used it as an excuse for a lovely girly day out!

We headed up on the train and our first stop before the event was cocktails and much needed dessert! Yum!

After that we headed over to the Liverpool One shopping centre to the new store and were greeted by champagne and a gorgeously warm reception in a beautifully furnished new store!

The fabulous Powderpuff Girls were on hand to buff up our nails, the amazing fitting room 'Magic Mirror' was in full use to snap away at your glorious new outfits and the amazing Simply Be store staff were on hand to help you with anything you needed! From fitting you for some sumptuous new lingerie, advising you on what your calf width is for your new winter boots or just being on hand to give you some girly style advice and be your personal shopper, the place had it all!

Steph, Me and Rosie playing with the 'Magic Mirror'

Sarah getting her nails done by the fab Powderpuff Girls!

Myself and Sarah playing with the 'Magic Mirror'

Myself and the gorgeous Laura

The store was opened by Lisa Riley and Katie Kavanagh (Corrie) and Liverpool's Radio City were instore giving away goodies and getting the crowd all excited! A big thanks to them for giving me a fabulous on the spot prize of my choice of any Zandra Rhodes dress I wanted from the collection! *Eeeeeep!!!* I was thrilled to choose a gorgeous, kimono style beige maxi dress, great little birthday present!

The new Lauren's Way clothing line (Only available at Simply Be!)

The gorgeous Zandra Rhodes maxi dress I chose!

Anyway, make sure you pop along and check it all out! The store is now officially open in Liverpool and their second store will be opening in Bury, Manchester on October 7th! I am thrilled to have a new plus size clothing retailer on the high street and cannot wait to see more stores open!

(P.S you will be able to use your Simply Be accounts instore!!!!!! Fab!)

Big love!!!!
xoxoxox

A girl my size shouldn't......

Evening my lovelies!

I haven't forgotten you at all! I promise! I know that Ive been a bad girl and neglected you, but I promise (I know this is the second promise I have made) that I will be better this time around. For any of you who follow me on twitter, you will know Ive had a lot of personal stuff going on just recently, which has led to me being severely uninspired and a bit run down to be honest. But I am back now, and I ain't leaving you! Pinky promise! *bats lashes*

Anyway, first of all last week I went out into town for a few drinks for a friends birthday (as you do). I got myself all ready and descended downstairs to the dreaded lounge. Now, I say the dreaded lounge because you can guarantee, mom is going to be sitting there waiting to give the 'critique' out, and my, she'd have given old Mr Cowell a run for his money this time. I stepped into the living room and waited for it, nothing was said. So I turn and say "So, what do you think?" I wish Id never asked, the response...

"Don't you think you should put some tights on? A girl your size shouldn't be wearing a skirt that short!"

'A girl your size shouldn't', 'A girl your size shouldn't'. I kept turning those words over in my head 'A girl your size shouldn't'. Wow, I thought, just wow! To be honest, I couldn't even answer her, or respond in any way what so ever. Luckily my taxi pulled up and I slicked on a on a smile and flounced off. I'm not going to lie, those words stuck in my head and pretty much permeated through every nerve of my brain. But it got me thinking, who said a girl of size shouldn't wear X,Y, Z? Who actually made up that rule? Why do we endeavour to live by some bull shit code of what we should and shouldn't wear? How we should and shouldn't look? Who we should and shouldn't date? Who we should or shouldn't be? Who said so? WHO?!

Do people not realise that there are worse things going on in the world than 'OMGZ'ED A FAT GIRL IN A SHORT SKIRT!?!?!?' I mean really, I am not so self-absorbed as to believe that if I go out, bare legged and wearing something that, dare I say it, is above my knee that everyone is actually there giving a fuck about it and me. I don't care and neither should you or anyone for that matter. So I suppose, in essence what I am trying to say is for gods sake, life is to short to care about who thinks you should be following some invisible fat girl code of conduct, trying our best to swamp ourselves in swarms of tent like fabric in efforts to not draw attention to ourselves. I refuse to and so should you. Don't pander to that self fulfilling prophecy of 'they think I'm ugly so I will be ugly', stick two fingers up and just be you ladies. Please, for gods sake, lets just start breaking moulds instead of living in them...

So, mom, I love you, but when it comes to your 'A girl your size shouldn't...' code of conduct, please stick it somewhere the sun does not shine.......[and breathe].

There, I said it, the rant that has swamped my brain for the past week, now, on to the offending outfit. Here I am, wearing, 'dun dun duuuuuuuuuuuuuuun' a skirt that barely hits my knee, sacriledge....

Skirt - ASOS Curve (Last season)
Cardigan - George @ Asda £10
Vest Top - H&M BiB £7.99
Belt - Evans £5 (Winter sale)
Wedge Heel Court Shoes - New Look £14.99
Bag & Necklace - Primark £1 and £3

I haven't linked to anything today because it is all stuff from past seasons, nothing is current, you may find it knocking about in a sale somewhere or on good old eBay though! I have to say, if it hadn't been for my dear old Mom putting her two pennies in, I didn't feel too bad in this outfit. But meh, mothers aye!!

Oh, so, after ranty ranty, next thing on my agenda to talk about is my fabulous win from the lovely Valerie over at Blog To Be Alive! I entered her recent blog giveaway and was thrilled to have won a $100 gift certificate for the fabulous plus size store Lucie Lu!

I have to say, I had never heard of the store before, but after discovering it through Valerie's blog I was pretty much smitten with it. I really really love some of their dresses and I am currently torn over which one to splash out on with my voucher, what do you think? Here are the options I am mulling over....

Lace Party Dress - $78


Taryn Tunic Lace Print - $48


Temple Dress - $36 (Sale Price)

I must say, I am coo'ing over the lace party dress, It called to me as soon as I saw the image, it is so me and so feminine and girly and just beautiful. I remember seeing one similar in Simply Be a couple of years ago and kicked myself for not getting it, so when I saw this one I was like 'OMG, I love!' but I know it'll end up as one of those dresses I only wear on a night out or something, so I am debating getting one of the other two as I think I'd get more wear out of them? What impressed me is that their sizing run to a 5X and also each individual item has its own size chart and a description of if it runs true to size, small or large etc. Which I thought was a brilliant idea and a great help! Anyway, check out Lucie Lu, and as soon as I order and receive I will let you know what I think! I am really loving independant boutiques at the moment, it's a shame we don't have a few more! Along with Lucie Lu I am totally loving Domino Dollhouse, I am yet to order from them but can't wait to try them out, espesh after seeing the lovely Tiffany Kaelin from On The Fatwalk doing a fierce pin-up style shoot for them!

Right, I am gonna bow out, but I will be back soon! Promise! Oh actually, before I go, I wanted to say, I am proper lovin' the blog She Likes Shoes! Check it out, love this girls style!

Thats enough from me,

BIG LOVE AND NIGHT NIGHT BLOGGIES!
XOXOX