Aussie Curves - Military

Military? What the heck?

That was my first thought when I saw military on the list. I was stumped. I tried to think of what I could wear. Cargo pants and I are not friends. They do nothing for my already wide thighs.

Military jacket? Years ago I owned the most DIVINE military style coat. It was a full length, latte colour, with a high neck and double breasted brass buttons. Sadly, I put on weight and can no longer squeeze my arms into it. My mother gleefully claimed it, and I must confess it looks better on her than it ever did on me. She loves it because during winter she can pop it on over anything she is wearing and pop into the shops and look chic and stylish.

I do however love the colour 'army green'. As a matter of fact, I refer to my eye colour as being 'army green'. It is the closest colour that matches the shade of green in my eyes.

Top - Avella by Big W

Skirt - Target

Boots - Williams

Hat - Sportsgirl

Necklace & Bracelet - Lovisa

After some thought I came up with this look. I think that is what is so exciting about Aussie curves challenges. They make you rethink fashion, and put together different looks. I always try to shop my wardrobe, and have never gone out and purchased anything other than accessories to fit in with a theme. It may help that I have a huge wardrobe, which no matter how often I downsize still seems to be bursting at the seams.

For this week's look I used my top as the starting point. I was going to pair it with skinny leg jeans, however it was a sunny day and I was going to wear the outfit while grocery shopping. I swapped the jeans for a denim skirt, popped on some boots, a military style cap and some some accessories. I actually really liked how the whole look came together and think it has a definite military feel to it.

Do you have a piece of clothing that you adored, but can no loner wear? What was it and why did you love it?

Be sure to check out what the other AC ladies are wearing this week!

Aussie Curves - Retro

Oh dear....

I have been really quite behind in updating and taking part in the Aussie Curves challenges lately. I have no real excuse other than time running away from me each week. Never mind, I have managed to get this weeks theme done by the skin of my teeth!

I found this dress during the New Year sales and knew that it would be perfect for retro week!

The cut of the dress is beautiful. The tie up bust is really flattering for my small chase size. The length is also perfect. I love the cherry pattern as well.

My only problem with the dress is the back. It was a lovely cut out back, however I am a little short-waisted and so the stretch panel at the back does not sit right. It sort of folds out a bit.

I am not too worried though, as I love everything else about this dress.

Dress - City Chic

Shoes - Rivers

Bangle - Secondhand

Earrings - Handmade

I put this outfit on and headed out for lunch with some friends when tragedy struck! My shoes broke! The stitching on one of the buckles popped off, making hte shoes completely unwearable. My Husband was sent off to find me a pair of shoes as I could not walk in them. There was a multipurpose discount shop nearby so he dashed in there and picked up a pair of sandals. They were not really he kind of shoe I would normally wear, but they were only $3 and definitely better than walking shoe less!


So tell me, have you been out and had a wardrobe malfunction? Were you able to find a solution?

The versatility of a scarf!

Accessories really do make or break an outfit. If you look at any 'wow' outfit that a woman wears, it will often feature an accessory, or a few of them. In our post about Polyvore we noted how often an outfit was pulled together by the accessories.

Recently I have been having a love affair with scarves. Not the thick wintry type (although I do rather love those) but colourful, patterned varieties. If I see a cheap scarf with a great pattern or colour I just have to snap it up.

I noticed a woman at work would often wear a scarf with her outfit. She has a polished but casual style that I envy. I commented on how great she always looks. She pointed out that she actually has quite a limited wardrobe of clothing, but she mixes it up with a scarf. I realised she was right, the basics were often the same, but she looked like she was wearing a new outfit because of the scarf she was wearing.

My scarf wearing obsession was further justified when I was searching for my celebrity copycat in the recent Aussie Curves challenge. When I googled 'Casual Celebrity style' I found many of the outfits featured jeans, a scarf and some sunnies. Celebrities seem to understand the instant glamour that a scarf can bring an otherwise plain outfit.

This particular outfit has recieved multiple compliments everytime I wear it. It's the scarf I tell you!

Here are a few tips I have learnt:

- Scarves come in a variety of textures, shapes and sizes. Each style can be used to create a different look.

- Don't be afraid to mix prints or colours. I will often wear a striped top with a scarf with a pattern on it. I find it will work if it is either the same shade, to break up the pattern, or a contrasting shade to add some interest

- A scarf can be used to disguise a 'flaw' in an outfit - Top seems to baggy and dull? Add a scarf. Cardigan doesn't quite do up? Open it up an add a scarf.

- It adds colour and texture to a plain outfit - A pair of jeans & a plain top. On its own it's a bit boring. I add a silky scarf and it looks 'wow'!

- Want to elongate your torso? Drape the scarf around your neck but don't tie it up. Want to draw attention to your face? Wrap the scarf around your neck and knot it.

- Experiment with different ways to tie your scarf. There are so many different ways to do it, and each one can change the way your outfit goes together

Here is a great example of the many different ways scarves can be used. The website http://www.scarves.net/ has tutorials on how to create each of the featured looks.

 

 

Do you have an obsession with scarves as well? Or do you have another 'go to' accessory to liven up an outfit?

- Sister Pear

Welcoming sunny weather!

Pants - Big W

Top- Katies

Cover up- Kmart

Shoes- Rivers

I am delighted that sunny weather is starting to emerge. I generally love winter clothing as I adore boots, scarves and cardigans. However this year I am really ready for the weather to brighten up and bring along a bit of warmth and cheer.

On this day the weather was glorious, sunny but not too warm. I was feeling like wearing something more colourful than my usual winter attire. I was going to a friend's daughter's first birthday so wanted something casual but still pretty and feminine.

For this outfit I chose my black 3/4 length jeans that I bought from Big W (current). I have worn these pants a few times already, only having bought them recently. They are great because they are a thick enough denim to hold you in, but still have good stretch. I especially love that they have a thick elastic band waist and no zipper. I find this is more comfortable and also is smoother across my tummy. Often zippers bulge out making my stomach area look bigger.

I teamed this with a navy blue ruched top. This top is from Katies. I love the way this top ruches at the front. It also has the ruching in three panels. Have the ruching in 3 panels lengthwise elongates my torso, while also hiding my bulges. I had my daughter 16 months ago and have found my tummy is much softer. So much so that pants tend to make it bulge over the waist more than before. This top disguises that. Lastly, sometimes when ruching goes straight across in width it can just make me look thicker across the middle as it sags. The panelling in this top prevents that.

I like to cover my arms where possible. Last summer I found shops started stocking these colourful, sheer cover ups. I have seen that they are coming back out this season. I really love these, as they add colour, cover my arms, but are light enough to wear on the hottest days. Plus they are just so pretty!

After adding a chunky necklace and a shell bracelet my outfit was complete.

What do you like to wear on sunny days? Are you looking forward to coming sunny days?

- Sister Pear

Aussie Curves - Celebrity Copycat

When we saw that this week's theme was celebrity copycat it seemed easy enough. Until we tried to think of a celebrity whose style we wanted to recreate. Whose fashion inspires us enough that we wanted to copy it? Sadly, neither of us could really think of a celebrity that actually inspires us all that much.

We can honestly say that over the last few years our fashion inspiration has come from bloggers. It has been a delight to see REAL women wearing REAL clothing. Beautiful, curvy, fashionable bloggers have encouraged us to develop our own confidence and style. For us they are far more inspiring than any A- Lister who has stylists to guide them on what looks good and what to wear.

However, we did think of two T.V characters whose style inspires us.

The first is Jenny Gross from Winners and Losers, played by Melissa Bergland. For starters, how refreshing is it to see such a vivacious plus size actress on our T.V screens? As for her wardrobe - unreal! Jenny's style is an awesome blend of on trend fashion mixed with rockabilly retro. We tune in to look at the latest outfit being styled on Jenny as much as to watch the storyline unfold.

It seems we are not alone. On the website for the series they feature a gallery each week showing some of the outfits worn by the characters and where they were sourced from. Clearly many people are lusting over the stylish outfits that adorn the characters each week.

So what do we need to recreate her style?

- A rockabilly swing dress
- A cute, short cardi
- Accessories and lots of them - A brooch to pin on the cardi, a scarf or headband for the hair,  A belt to cinch in the waist


Our next inspiration is Nina from Offspring played by Asher Keddie. This may seem less obvious as she is not a 'curvy' actress. However this just shows that fashion inspiration does not have to just come from other plus sized women. There is no reason why you can't mimic the style of a 'thinner' person.

We love this look because it appears so effortless yet chic. Nina has a slightly hippie style, but still very fashionable

Again, it seems lusting over the style of this character is common. So common that there are several articles from Michael Chisholm the Offspring Costume Director where he explains how he puts together Nina's look http://www.mamamia.com.au/entertainment/behind-the-scenes-with-the-offspring-stylist/.

His tips are:
-You need a good pair of jeans
-Several colourful tank tops
-Scarves
-A great pair of boots
-Fitted denim jacket
- Antique jewellery

So, without further ado, here are our looks:

Sister Apple ;) inspired by Jenny Gross

 

Shrug - Rockmans

Dress- City Chic

Shoes - Spendless Shoes

Bracelets - Diva/ Lovisa

Brooch -  Vintage

 

Proving that in some ways my sister and I think alike, Sister Apple rocked up to my place with this dress accessorised in red. I started to laugh, as I wore the same dress in black to a high tea a few weeks ago (Posted here ).

 

This dress is the navy blue version, so we decided a quick switch to hot pink would work great.

We thought this outfit ticked all the boxes for Jenny Gross.

- Cute Cardi/ Shug

- Retro style dress

- Bright colours

- Cute accessories

 

This is definitely a look that both of us would happily wear. It so colourful and playful. What we both love about the retro styling is that it celebrates curvaceous figures. They are designed for women with a bit of flesh. Love it!

 

Next up is our take on Nina!

 

Sister Pear inspired by Nina Proudman 

 

Top - Big W

Skirt - A pop up stall at the shops brand unknown

Scarf - Big W

Belt - Taken off a dress from Crossroads

Necklace/ Bangles - Dive & Lovisa

Boots - Sara Ezibuy

 

 



I went through a stage where I had a bit of a love affair with these skirts. So much so that I own about 8....

 

These particular skirts are meant to be able to be turned into many different styles, although I confess I have only successfully managed about 3 looks with them. That perhaps deserves a post of it's own one day. The colourful, flowy style instantly reminded me of Nina, so that's where I started.

 

Again I think the outfit ticks all the boxes

- Flowy skirt

- Great boots

- 'Skinny' scarf (Could be skinnier but it was the best I could find)

- Antique (looking) jewellery

 

I definitely would have loved a denim jacket to throw over the top, but alas I don't own one. Also, originally I had the dress ankle length, but you couldn't see the boots. I decided having the skirt at more of a 'midi' length was more 'Nina', so I pulled the second layer up a bit



 

 

What we can both say is that these challenges are already proving to be a lot of fun. It is nice to have a reason to experiment with your look. One thing that we both concluded as a result of this challenge is that accessories definately maketh the celebrity! Both of our 'celebrities' use accessories to accentuate and compliment their look.

 

Leave us a comment and let us know what you think of our look. Do you have a T.V character who inspires your own fashion?

 

Be sure to check out the other Aussie Curves ladies. I think this challenge will be quite an adventure to see what 'celebrities' are going to be copied this week. You might also want to play along yourself.

 

 

 

Plus Size Polyvore

I have been opened up to a new world of fashion inspiration though the Internet. I often wish that some of the current social networking sites were around when I was younger. It took a while for me to develop my own sense of style and learn what looked best on me.
Two that have changed the way I interact with fashion are Pinterest and Polyvore. Both of these sites have shown me that there is a world of beautiful fashion available to the plus sized woman. In this post I want to talk about the influence Polyvore has had on me and the way I dress.

For those who are not already familiar with this site, Polyvore is  'the web's largest fashion community site, where users are empowered to discover their style and set trends around the world'. On this site users can put together inspiration boards that depict an outfit. You can use a catalogue of clothing and accessories that is on the site, or you can add images from websites for any brands not in the catalogue. You can also browse sets that other users have created.

This site is not necessarily aimed at plus sized fashion. However I have found it a great source of inspiration. Here is how it has helped me:

Browsing through the sets of outfits of other users has shown me how important accessories are. I have always known that adding a necklace or earrings can really lift an outfit. However through Polyvore I have seen that they can also be what pulls an outfit together, and makes it go from nice to wow!

I have learnt new ways to put together some of my pieces of clothing. I really love it when I come across a set that uses a few pieces of clothing that may be similar to items I already own. This then shows me a great way I can pull together a new outfit using items I already have in my closet.

pink flowers by htotheb featuring a full zip hoodie

( This outfit is plain unitl you add the bag, necklace and bangles!)

I have discovered new brands. When I see something I love I often check what brand it has come from. This leads me to a new brand that I may not have heard of before.

Given me new direction when buying clothes. I am learning to identify what pieces might be able to work in a variety of ways to put together different looks. I also am able to attempt to find the 'look' for less. This gives me greater direction, and discretion, when I am out shopping for new clothing. Now I look at an item and try to think of different ways I can wear it with other pieces I already own.

Because not everyone is size 0 by jayneann1809 featuring stackable rings

(I own items similar to this outfit, so I can recreate this look)

I piece together my own boards, which allows me to further explore my own sense of style. I have started putting together my own inspiration boards. I am slowly building my 'library' of items that resemble items that I already own. Then I am able to put together outfits using mostly what I already own, as well as some other items I don't own.

Wedding Chic by janna-xerri featuring stone necklaces

(I used this set to 'brainstorm' an outfit I wanted to wear to a wedding)

If you haven't checked out Polyvore make sure you do. I hope it inspires you as much as it has me!

- Sister Pear