Aussie Curves - Celebrate!

As I dressed this morning I realized that the outfit I was wearing was perfect for this weeks AC theme. Not because I was heading out to a party, I was just going shopping. I realised I had different reasons to celebrate.

Let me explain.

I have spoke quite a few times about how wonderful I have found participating in the plus size fashion blog hop. I have seen my style evolve. I try on things that I never would have looked at twice, and I am opening up to a whole heap of different brands I never would have known existed.

So, what is there to celebrate about this outfit? (Yes, I realised later i needed to clean the mirror. Damn toddlers and their grimy fingers)

Tunic - Belle Chemise 

Leggings - Dorothy Perkins

Boots - Target

Cardigan - Millers

Firstly, the leggings. These are 'wet look' leggings. I the past I would NEVER, EVER have looked twice at them. I would assume that my tree trunk legs would look awful in them.

 Truthfully, I definitely need to wear them with a tunic, as they look less than flattering on my bum and upper thighs. However, the fact I bought them in the first place is worth celebrating. They are a symbol of how much I am evolving. They show that I am open to trying new styles. I also tried on a few other tops while shopping today, and was delighted to see they looked great wit the leggings.

Then there's the tunic. I am a little in love with this tunic. I picked it up on the weekend at some local markets. It is handmade, designed in Australia by a business called Belle Chemise . The lady, Jean Hines, had actually only just made the design that week, and had sewed them ready for the market. It is sleeveless, with a cowl neck, and is made from a  sheer fabric.

 I am celebrating the fact that even market stalls are embracing the plus size figure. I am proud that I saw the tunic, decided to try it on, and when I saw it looked exactly as I wanted, I bought it. In the past I would have assumed it would not fit, would not look good, and also would not spend the money on myself, because it was $50.  Instead, I have learnt that you must try things on. I also knew that this was worth the money. It is an unusual item, but offers versatility. Plus the colours were amazing. The tunics are not loaded on her website yet, but if you like it I urge you to send her an email. There were a heap of different fabrics and colours ( I am wearing 'Free size - plus').

So, I am celebrating Aussie Curves. I am celebrating the Plus Size community, and I am celebrating another wonderful year where I am inspired and challenged each week :)

What have you go to celebrate this week?

Plus Size Maternity Fashion Series - #1 - Work your wardrobe

I am currently expecting my second child, due mid November. Maternity fashion can be challenging, with your body expanding and your old wardrobe rarely working well with your changing body shape.

Being Plus Size and Pregnant  Even more difficult. It can be hard for a plus size lady to find nice maternity clothing that fits. Many Maternity brands only go to a 16 - 18, so if you are a size 18 + before falling pregnant it can be difficult to find maternity clothing that fits.

However it isn't impossible. Over the coming weeks I am going to share with you my own maternity wardrobe and share some tips and tricks that I am learning along the way :D

he very first thing you should do is have a good look at your wardrobe and make a list of what clothing you have that you think will be able to be worn through the pregnancy, or at least until the third trimester.

Things to look for are:

Dresses
- Maxi dresses in a stretchy fabric
- Empire line dresses that are stretchy or have a full skirt

Bottoms
- Maxi skirts that have stretch
- Pencil skirts that have stretch
- Pants that have a fold down band or elastic waist
- Jeans that are elastic, stretch or are able to have a belly belt attached
- Leggings - Especially full styles that may go up to your belly or higher.

Tops
- Look for tops that are flowing from under the bust
- Tops that are stretchy and long
- Tops that may have ruching on the side or under the bust
- Any tunic tops

Can we see a pattern here? Check if it has stretch!! If it is stretchy, you will get a bit of extra wear out of it. If you have some (or all?) of these items then you are well on your way to building a maternity wardrobe. You can extend the wear of some items by doing some of the following

Turn shorter dresses into a tunic/top. Sometimes your dresses appear to be shorter on you because more fabric is being taken up by your expanding belly. Sometimes you can then wear that dress as a tunic instead. Try seeing what it looks like with some leggings or skinny leg jeans.

Use a belly band. You can undo the buttons/zip on a pant or skirt, but then add a stretchy belly band on over the top. I will keep the item from falling off, while giving you room for your expanding belly.

Undo the first few buttons of a button down top and wear a singlet underneath, or open the top up completely and wear it like a jacket.

Shopping your wardrobe will definitely help you keep costs down when you are trying to put together a maternity wardrobe. After all, you only really wear it for about 6 months (given that the first 3 you can usually squeeze into your normal clothing) so you don,t want to spend a fortune on it.  However, you DO want to feel and look good. It is an exciting time, but your body goes through so many changes, feeling like you LOOK good definitely helps.

Do you have any cost saving tips for maternity fashion?

Aussie Curves - Leggings

This week the Aussie Curves challenge was 'leggings'. This seemed to be an easy task as we both practically live in leggings during winter. Although,  we both sit firmly in the 'Leggings are not pants' camp. The only exception to this rule is a tunic top that sits below the bottom.
For myself (Sister Pear) I have also become very opinionated about this since becoming a High School teacher. I am constantly horrified to see teenage girls turn up to school in leggings (grossly out of school uniform!). They are almost always super thin, cheap ones where you can see through the leggings too! I can tell you right now, they DO NOT look good. SIGH....

Anyway, rant aside, we still love leggings. Our preferred way to wear them is under a dress or skirt with boots. This is a staple look for both of us through Winter. Leggings also come in use during the warmer months as mid calf ones can also be worn beneath a shorter dress or skirt with a pair of flats.
This year patterned and coloured leggings have come out, with a greater amount of them coming in plus sizes. This has allowed us to stray from the usual black leggings.

Top - Katies

Skirt- Autograph

Leggings- Target

Red flats- Rivers

Boots- Ezi buy

Here is my 'look' with my patterned leggings. I decided to show you how they look with flats as well as with boots. I think either way looks great. It also shows how you can still make leggings work for you into spring. Having the patterned leggings really takes a quite plain outfit and adds a bit of wow factor.

Make sure you check out some of the other great ways that the other Aussie Curves bloggers are wearing!