we are large, people

OOTD: The daring haircut

2012-02-10T17:48:00.000-08:00

Here it is:

And the other side:

The back:

The front:

Outfit details:
shirt: avenue
cardigan: target
black skinny pants: torrid "source of wisdom" - (order 2 sizes down, these stretch out)
oxfords: target

The top:

I'm still feeling a bit unsure of how to style it. I think I'm going to get it way thinned out on the top because it's kind of like a big hair loaf right now :). I love the back and sides though! Just the top and front need.... taming.

I definitely like it better than the last daring haircut I got!

Have any of you ever gotten a daring haircut, or made an otherwise daring personal style decision? How did it go?

Beauty at 100, 200, and 300 pounds

2012-02-06T13:06:00.000-08:00

Hello lovelies,

Last Thursday, hanging out at Liberte's, we were talking about how there are so many different ways to be beautiful. How bodies don't come in the same sizes. And then we realized that, between the three of us (Janessa, Liberte, and me), we represented beauty at 100, 200, and 300* lbs.

This was a fun way to change the way we typically (or at least, I typically) think about bodies and beauty. I think, too often, we compare ourselves to each other to see where we fall short, how we can be different and thus "better". But just sitting around and talking about ourselves and what we like about our bodies and our style, rather than being wistful about changing ourselves - it was so great and so freeing.

What Liberte is wearing:
Blazer: Nordstrom Rack
Top: Encanto Ballard
Cords: Fred Meyer Izod (yes! Izod!)
Flats: Resoul
earrings: Red and Me (local designer)
brooch: antique victorian butterly wing (ebay)

What Janessa is wearing:
bdg sweater (urban outfitters)
shirt: H&M
pants: miley cyrus (thrifted)
oxfords: target (thrifted)

What I'm wearing:
dress: Asos curve
Cardigan: old navy
floral leggings: fatshionista sale
boots: Joe Browns (from simplybe.com)

Also, this week at I had an unexpected accessory - Lincoln, Liberte's new puppy:

Don't you die to look at his puppy eyes? I DIE.

*I don't actually own a scale, and haven't for years, so I'm guessing, but probably pretty accurately since I'm good with numbers. :)

Upcoming post, also, even shorter hair ideas!

2012-02-03T23:19:00.000-08:00

Hello lovelies,

I've got a great post in the works that shows three beautiful ladies (ok, I'm one of them :) and how beauty comes in all sizes!

In the meantime, I've made a hair appointment for Monday, and I'm going to go even shorter on my hair. I don't know why I'm so drawn to this idea, but I think I'm going to get an undercut! I made a pinterest board with some of my inspiration pics if anyone would like to check it out!

Do any of you have super short hair? If so, please link a pic, I'd love to see it and hear about how you love it (or if you don't love it, tell me that too!).

OOTD: more house shopping

2012-01-30T09:21:00.000-08:00

Hello lovelies,

It's been busy-ish around these parts lately. We're still house-hunting! I can't believe it, I really thought we'd find a place and it would have all worked out by now!

Here's what I wore to tromp around looking at largely disappointing houses in the rain:

Outfit details:
Sweater shirt: Macy's, clearance, $20! It's a linen blend and I love it.
Jeans: z cav's, torrid, awhile back
old lady boat shoes: grasshoppers
hat: target

Yesterday, as we were going to yet another open house, the annoyingly chipper agent asked us why we hadn't "pulled the trigger" on a house yet. Well, the truth is, lady-that-I-don't-know, we HAVE. FIVE TIMES. Just none of the offers have worked out for reasons outside of our control, like the house inspection revealing catastrophic problems, or a short sale going badly after months of waiting, or being outbid by other offers, etc.

We're understandably more than a little frustrated, and more than a little ready to be done with the search. So the chipper agent-lady-we-didn't-know? Said, and I'm not kidding, "Well, you've really missed out on those historically low interest rates by not finding a house yet". Yep. Way to kick us while we're down. Thanks, lady. **

I smile to hide the tears.

Anyways, sorry to vent! I never do that on here. How are all of you doing? Tell me something good that is going on for you!

**ETA: This wasn't our agent! Our agent is great! This was just the agent at one of the open houses we dropped by.

.... and we're back!

2012-01-18T22:44:00.001-08:00

Thanks to everyone out there that signed petitions, read more about SOPA and PIPA, and longed for wikipedia all day :)

stop SOPA

2012-01-17T17:56:00.000-08:00

This blog will return to regularly scheduled programming on 1/19/12. If you'd like to learn more about SOPA and why this blog is joining thousands of other websites on strike:

Stop SOPA (craigslist)
SOPA blackout template (reddit)
sopastrike.com

OOTD: Thursdays at Liberte's

2012-01-12T20:59:00.000-08:00

Hello lovelies! On Thursdays, I work out of Liberte's Skin Wellness studio. It's a fun change of pace, and she's an utter delight. If you're ever in the Ballard area, please stop by to say hi! I'm usually there from 11-4, and it's a great chance to catch me in person to give fashion advice or to book one of my packages.

Here's what we both had on today:

Lovely Liberte:

Outfit details:
dress: Horseshoe Boutique
Leggings: H&M
Socks & Booties: Market Street Shoes
Earrings: Grow Salon
Bracelet: Antique jade, China, c. 1950 :)

And me:

Outfit details:
Cardigan: Target.com
Ponte knit pencil skirt: Lane Bryant, clearance, $12!
Floral print t-shirt: estate sale, $3!
Tights: Avenue
Oxfords: Target
Brooch: clothing swap

I'm hoping to make these posts a weekly thing - it's so tough to get good pictures during the darker months here, so having Liberte to take my pic is a real blessing :). Plus, I just love her style and am happy to be able to share it with you!

OOTD: Museum of History and Industry

2012-01-06T15:05:00.000-08:00

This past week, Bob had a day off, so we did one of our favorite things - checked out a local museum! Our favorites are the oft-overlooked, the ones that smell a little musty. Perhaps there is dusty taxidermy with patches of fur missing. The ones that usually only have 1 or 2 other people in whatever room we're in. So we decided to go to the MOHAI (museum of history and industry), since it is moving into a snazzy new facility later this year. We wanted to catch it in its pre-move decrepitude, so to speak.

We took advantage of the rare sun to get an outdoor! picture! omg! Those have been light on the ground here at WALP for the past few months, I know.

It was kind of chilly! Also, I love the way the top of my head looks with this haircut. So stylish, top of head. Good on you.

Outfit details:
dress: avenue (one of those amazing cotton sundresses that I have three of. This one was only $9 since I got it on clearance with a coupon!)
Boots: Target, 2009
Cardigan: Target, 2006
Scarf: H&M

Do any of you love visiting museums, old or otherwise?

2011 In Review

2012-01-02T21:23:00.000-08:00

Wow, what a fantastic year 2011 was for me!

I did some huge things - by far, the biggest was quitting my corporate job and devoting myself full-time to my dream job, being a Personal Stylist!

Here are a few more highlights from 2011:

January: I talk through how to take better blog pictures.

March: I discover the hairstyle that I'll wear almost exclusively for 10 months

April: We take a fun day trip with our pup!

June: I recap our amazing trip to England where I met Claire, Kirsty, and a whole bunch of other awesome bloggers!

June #2: I was featured as a Blogger "Blog of Note" - super exciting!

July: Kirsty and I take Portland by storm.

July #2: I quit my day job to pursue my dream job!

September: I get a sweet blog makeover from a friend!

October: We put an offer on a house (it, unfortunately, fell through).

November #2: I get my hair cut short again (and I love it!)

How was your year? I hope it was wonderful, and that you have a fantastic 2012!

PS: I also just wanted to say how thankful I am towards everyone who stops by this blog and reads and comments - you all make my day!

OOTD: Holiday cheer!

2011-12-20T15:04:00.000-08:00

Howdy sweet blog readers!

Well, this household has come down with the seasonal cold/flu, so I haven't left the house, except to go to Walgreens to buy more sudafed, for days. It's an exciting existence, let me tell you! Also, let me tell you that chicken bouillon is disgusting all by itself.

But, last week, I got all gussied up for a party, and wanted to share (especially since I've missed the other parties I had been planning on looking fabulous at).

Check out how well I match the wall! Also, that dreamy quality is due to Bob's extended battery on his phone - it pops out too far for the camera to take normal pictures!

Whatevs, work with what you got. And work it!

Outfit details:
Dress, avenue, deep clearance (plus they have a 50% off code right now). I was shocked at how well this dress fit and how fabulous it looks!
belt: target, ages ago
cardigan: target.com
petticoat: thrifted
shoes: seychelles
sweater clip: gift from husband

I seriously was so surprised at this dress - I love it so much! It's comfortable and fits really well. Plus the green polka dots mean it can work for the holidays, but also other times during the year. I can't wait to wear it some more!

me, acting like a dork in my white fancy coat.

Tell me - have you gotten to dress up fancy for the holidays yet this year? Please share links if you have!

OOTD: Rosie Thomas Show

2011-12-14T12:50:00.000-08:00

Hello lovelies!

Last night we had a lovely double date with Danae (of Gather & Hunt) and her fella. We went to the Triple Door (one of my favorite venues here in Seattle) and saw Rosie Thomas (who was a delight!). Danae even got to go on stage and be part of the choir for a few of the songs! It was awesome.

We also wore awesome outfits, of which I didn't get any pictures. But I did get a picture of us in our coats. Isn't her yellow coat divine?

Tell me, what fun holiday things have you all been up to?

Open Thread: Spread the Small Business Love this Holiday Season

2011-12-05T10:25:00.000-08:00

Hey lovelies! When I posted about my gift certificates the other day, I realized that many of my awesome readers also have etsy shops, small businesses, etc.

Would you like to leave a comment with your shop/website, a blurb about what you make/sell, and any seasonal offers you may have running? It doesn't need to be fashion related!

I was hoping this could be a way for us to interact and share in each others' success for the holidays!

Feel free to do something similar on your own blog, or link back to this post! You can even use this button/banner if you'd like!

Holiday Gift Idea - personal stylist packages!

2011-11-30T15:54:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone,

I'd be remiss if I didn't mention that I now have gift certificates available for personal stylist packages (both virtual and in-person packages are available!)! Exclamation points!

------------
The Emergency Outfit Assistance package has been a blog reader favorite! Perfect for a friend or family member, or for you to heavily hint at a friend or family member to buy for you... not that I do that sort of thing in my own life at all, nosiree, nope.

Buy the Emergency Outfit Assistance Gift Certificate now if you'd like:
--------------
The $100 gift certificate is more open-ended and allows the recipient to spend $100 on any of my packages - in-person or virtual!

Buy the $100 Gift Certificate now if you'd like:--------------
This gift certificate is the most customizable of all - you can buy for any amount to be put toward in-person or virtual stylist services. I can also help you tailor a custom package for the perfect gift.

These are just some of the options - email me if you'd like to do a different amount!
--------------
The fine print:
- These gift certificates are for clients in the US and Canada only, though you may buy them no matter where you live (perhaps you have a friend in the great white north that you want to buy one of these for as a gift? etc.).
- The gift certificates are valid for 1 year. The recipient needs to contact me to schedule time to work together by 12/31/2012.
- The gift certificates are refundable, but only by January 31, 2012. After that date, they are non-refundable.

Would you like to get in this crazy fashionable train of gift certificate goodness? I thought you might. But if not, that's cool, really! And if you're not comfortable clicking the Paypal "buy now" button on this post, just shoot me an email and we can work something out!

OOTD: baby poo cardigan! Also new haircut!

2011-11-21T22:23:00.000-08:00

Happy almost-Thanksgiving everyone! I just have to share about this cardigan that I got from Target.com. And it is on sale! And it is the awesomest shade of 70s baby-poo green (sorry, I know that doesn't sound appealing, but I honestly can't think of a better way to describe it). Also, it is soft.

Outfit details:
Cardigan: target.com
dress: evans, back in may
petticoat: thrifted
boots: target, last year
sweater clips: gift from hubs
glasses: framesdirect.com

See? Cute, right? I've been looking for a medium-weight v-neck cardigan for awhile. When these went on sale, I nabbed this green and also a navy blue.

Oh, what's that you say? Why yes, I did get a haircut.

At first, I was afraid I looked like the Bieber.

But then I realized that I actually look pretty damn hot.

Even with "skeptical face".

I feel so much more positive about this haircut than I did about the last time I decided to go short. I think it's the swoopy bang. Honestly, I like it a lot! Fat girls can totally rock short hair.

Reader question: simple skin care/makeup routine?

2011-11-11T20:26:00.000-08:00

Hello lovelies,

For the past few years I've noticed my skin has wanted to be a little more high maintenance. It seems duller and more prone to blotches and I also sport the dark under-eye circles! I've stuck with my Olay cream cleanser and Neutrogena oil-free spf moisturizer, and it works, but I'd like to do more.

Does anyone out there use the Clarisonic cleanser (or any of those new-fangled electric brush face cleaners)? Do you love it/hate it/feel meh about it?

I've been pretty anti-makeup my whole life, and I still don't wear any makeup of any kind. Mainly because I have ultra-sensitive skin (eczema, psoriasis, keratosis, you name it, I have it), I don't tend to try new things very often because they always have consequences.

All that said, I'd like to perhaps start using a tinted moisturizer and some lip stain or something. I dunno. I'm 31 years old. I want to know how to wear that kind of stuff. I feel like it's a lady ritual I'm missing out on!

So, do any of you have pretty minimal skin care and makeup rituals and have recommendations for me? I'd love to hear what you use and love (or what you tried and hated)!

This week in "WTF?": the target clearance "hood".

2011-11-09T12:13:00.000-08:00

I put "hood" in quotes because, seriously, this thing was half-halloween-costume and half smelly acrylic knit all rolled into one.

Seriously, what the? I felt like one of those gigantic tube-worms from the remake of King Kong. I couldn't find a picture, but if you've seen the movie you know what I mean because it will HAUNT YOU.

TUBE WORM!

I will say that I like the flecked brown color and the IDEA of this. It's like a cowl/infinity scarf. But in execution, the head-hole was so tight that it wouldn't comfortably fit around my neck. Also, it was offgassing something fierce. It smelled like latex gloves.

What do you think? Ever seen horrible things in the name of knitwear?

Real quick: things I've been enjoying lately

2011-11-07T08:32:00.000-08:00

Hello! We've been having a gorgeous fall and I've been loving it!

Here are some things I've been enjoying lately:

Hot chocolate:

(source: google images)

Wearing my husband's plaid shirt (this thing is seriously soft):

Pop that collar!

How cute our pup is:

The fact that Land's End let me return a dress THAT I HAD ALREADY WORN because I just didn't like the way it fit. In fact, I was wearing it when I called them to ask if I could return it. They then shipped me a different size free. Also, it had gone on sale so it was $30 cheaper. Woohoo!

Also, we're moving forward with buying a house! The offer was accepted, we've had the inspection, now we're just waiting on the lien holder as it's a short sale (so those take awhile). Pretty exciting and adult stuff, huh?

(source: google images)
(actual house may differ)

So tell me, what have you all been up to lately?

PS: Also a reminder - my giveaway over at Rachele's blog ends on 11/9. So go enter! If you'd like to.

Enter my giveaway at The Nearsighted Owl

2011-11-03T12:01:00.000-07:00

Hey lovelies,

I'm giving away an Emergency Outfit Assistance package over at The Nearsighted Owl!

Head on over to enter - the giveaway ends on 11/9 at midnight!

Real quick: I'm selling some of my clothings

2011-10-31T14:23:00.000-07:00

Hi all - if you want a piece of this (this being my closet), head on over to my sales post! I'm selling lots of things, many of which have been pictured here. Like this dress:

If you see something you like, leave a comment here or there.

Reader question: Your favorite piece of clothing?

2011-10-27T16:43:00.000-07:00

Hello readers!

I must admit, I've been leaning more towards the comfortable side of my closet lately. Whenever I want to look presentable but still be comfortable, I reach for this cotton sundress that I got at Avenue years ago:

It's starting to wear out, but I still love it and it's one of my favorites because of its longer length, the fact that it is cotton and more comfortable to me than synthetic fabrics, and because the subtle pattern makes it match lots of different cardigans.

So I wanna know - do any of you have a favorite piece of clothing? Why do you like it?

OOTD: new winter coat

2011-10-23T23:22:00.000-07:00

Thanks everyone for your responses on my last post! From the responses, it sounds like you all appreciate replies to your comments, which is great, because I really enjoy replying to your comments! So we'll keep this crazy comment train going.

I've been looking for a wool coat with a hood for awhile, since my awesome green toggle coat from Target went to that great hall closet in the sky. Simply Be was having a sale, so I grabbed this great basic camel-colored coat and it came in the mail last week.

It's a little boxy, but the hood fits nicely, and it has these fur bobbles at the ends of the hood ties that are super fun.

Unfortunately, all the buttons fell off within an evening of wearing the coat. What the heck, Simply Be? Lack of quality control? Buttons are easy to sew back on though, in fact, I may replace the buttons with some vintage ones from my stash. Because I'm hip like that. I think I'm also going to sew some lace around the bottom to give it some extra length.

Outfit details:
Coat: Simply Be
hat: target, 2010
mittens: I forget!
scarf: nordstrom

Have any of you found amazing winter coats recently? Do tell! Perhaps you've had better luck with the button-sewing quality than I have?

Question for my dear readers: do you like it when I reply to your comments?

2011-10-18T11:49:00.000-07:00

Hello lovelies!

Since I installed disqus a few months back, I've really enjoyed being able to reply to each comment!

But, I wanted to ask the commenters out there - do you come back by and read the reply to your comment? Are you sad if you don't get a reply?

I must admit that often I don't get around to revisiting posts on other blogs that I've commented on to see if there's been a reply to my comment. So that got me thinking - should I reply to every comment or use that time to do other bloggy things?

What do you think?

OOTD: A dress from my readers!

2011-10-14T21:59:00.000-07:00

Hey there!

Remember back a few weeks ago when I shared an eShakti discount code with y'all? (it's $20 off your purchase with the code WALP0811). When I shared it, I also let everyone know that I get $10 in eShakti credit whenever anyone uses the code.

And you guys really used that code! (which is good until 10/31/11, btdubs).

You used it so much that I was able to buy this dress with the credit!

So, thank you! Because this is my new favorite dress!

It was actually pretty cold out, so I had to layer up!

Outfit details:
Dress: eShakti, no longer in stock
cardigan: alloy, 2009
scarf: nordstrom, 2010
boots: target, 2010 (they are falling apart but I love them!)

Y'all are the bestest! Thank you!

OOTD: teriyaki and dreary weather

2011-10-08T21:28:00.000-07:00

Hello lovelies,

This dress is the twin to the black dress from the last post. I like it a lot! The print reminds me of pearl necklaces. Yes, I'm aware of what urban dictionary says that means. No, I didn't have to look it up after someone giggled when I said "pearl necklace" out loud the other day.

Anyways.

Outfit details:
Dress: Old Navy, 2010
Yellow peeps: target spring 2011
bag: latico, years back

Get used to more indoors pictures as the weather has turned to pacific northwestern drear.

It'll all be okay. I've got my trusty "touch side of hair" pose to get us through these next few months. :)

What do you all do to combat relentless dreary weather? I use a sun lamp and it REALLY helps.

ps: I know I'm wearing sunglasses in these pics. I think it was actually sunny the day these were taken, but it's been mostly dreary, I promise!

OOTD: house hunter extraordinaire

2011-10-04T21:39:00.000-07:00

Hello lovelies,

Posts have been light on the ground here because we were house hunting like mad house hunters (I'm no good with analogies). The house hunting was mad. MAD, I TELL YOU.

The good news is that we actually found a place last week! Eek! The past few days have been a mad dash starting the process towards buying it! Now I understand terminology like "locking in" mortgage rates, amortization, fixed rates, escrow, etc.. I'm not sure if I'm glad about this newfound understanding, but I am really excited about our new house!

Outfit details:
Dress: Old Navy, 2010
Locket: gift from brother and sister in law
yellow-peep-toes: Target

I never wanted to buy a house, but it was so difficult to find a new apartment with reasonable rent in a neighborhood we like, I started looking at houses. And we found one!

So, I present to you one stressed but excited first time homeowner:

A big part of this process has been learning to deal with stress and anticipation. I get stomach aches when I get really stressed out, so this week has been full of chamomile tea and star trek: next gen (well, most weeks are full of next gen, who am I kidding) as I try to relax in the evenings!

What do you all do to relax when stressful things are happening that are mostly out of your control?

Thursday* Links

2011-09-29T11:48:00.000-07:00

Hello lovelies!

Some links for you today:

Sal talks about one of my core tenets - you get to decide what looks good on you - no one else does

Apparently this stuff is amazing for getting stains out of clothing (I can't believe I find this exciting enough to blog about, but srsly, oil stains? the worst.) via notmartha

Is anyone else out there totally "meh" about Facebook? I try to get into it, but I think I'm just too lazy to really use it very often. Their recent changes seem to have people up in arms though!

We're house-shopping (eek!). Houses are, apparently, a LOT of work.

Go check out what Ragen is up to - she's amazing and taking her awesomeness on tour!

I hope you are all having an amazing week so far!

*Thursday links may or may not be posted on Thursdays. This time they are! yay!

Hey new followers from my guest post!

2011-09-25T22:19:00.000-07:00

To my already-reading-readers: I did a guest post over at the Blogger Buzz blog on tips for new bloggers - feel free to check it out!

And to everyone that's made their way here from that post: welcome! Thanks so much for stopping by! Feel free to poke around - there's a list of my most popular posts over to the left and down, and there's more about me in the aptly named "about me" section - just click on my picture to the left!

And if you're interested in working with me virtually or in person, just drop me an email!

Sneak Peek: new Virtual Stylist packages available!

2011-09-23T05:00:00.000-07:00

Hello lovelies!

I wanted to let you know that I'm fixin' (there's my Southern roots) to launch a new set of virtual style services! Why? Because I'd love to work with anyone in the US, UK, or Canada who wants to revamp their style!

I'm telling all of you wonderful readers first because you are wonderful and delicate flowers! And I'd love for you to be the first to try out these new packages! Exclamation points!

So, where can you find out about these new hotnesses, which include style coaching via video chat, "virtual shopping buddy" services, and more?

Right here!

Also, keep in mind that blog readers get 15% off!

*this heavy-on-the-excitement post has been sponsored by caffeine.

OOTD: Let's talk about Talbot's

2011-09-21T14:48:00.000-07:00

Let's talk about Talbots, shall we? This store used to conjure up images of structured, shoulder-padded, double-breasted, 80's pantsuits, unfortunate elastic waist situations, and that vibe that Lane Bryant used to put out - which was that, even if you were a 20-something, you had to dress like you were much older if you were fat. Does anyone remember what I'm talking about? Unfortunate stirrup-pant choices abounded.

But as I was putting together an Emergency Outfit Assistance package the other day for a client*, I began to take notice of Talbot's for a different reason - they actually had stylish and appealing pieces! No one is more shocked than I, I'm sure.

Anyways, I found lots of great stuff there! Especially in their sale section, which is the only place I'd shop given how high their prices normally are.

And one of the things I found I just had to have for myself - this pale green cardigan. It was marked down further - it was only $22 when I bought it, but is back up to $44 now. It is luxurious. It is so much better than any cardigan I've ever bought at Target. It's natural fibers, people! NATURAL FIBERS! Put that in your pipe and smoke it and it will actually burn instead of melt. That's what I am saying.

oh cardigan that is superior in every way, hold me

Outfit details:
Cardigan: Talbots
Eyelet Dress: H&M Inclusive (courtesy of my UK insider, Claire)
Leggings: duo maternity, but they ripped in the crotch so I have to replace them and I can't find them anywhere!
boots: payless

Has a brand ever surprised you? It's rare that I get something that I've ordered in the mail and I'm this excited. Tell me that I am normal in the comments. Or that I'm abnormal, that's okay too. I have been spending a lot of time alone lately.

*which I could do for you, too! Interested? Email me!

Things I've been enjoying lately

2011-09-15T15:39:00.000-07:00

Summer's winding down. Here are a few things I've been enjoying lately.

This gigantic scale was in the hugest bathroom ever at the Macy's in downtown Seattle. The bathroom was seriously like a temple to consumerism and restroom comfort.

We went to a drive-in movie last weekend - I had never been to one before! The snack bar was straight 60s.

I've never seen a coke dispenser this old:

The cups barely fit underneath it!

I've been carrying my really nice bag lately - all leather, supple and buttery soft. I got it years back. I'm also not the only one who's a fan of it.

How are y'all winding down your summer? I'm sad it is over. Though I'm glad to be breaking out my boots again!

Real quick: eShakti $20 code extended to 10/31/2011

2011-09-15T14:57:00.000-07:00

So if you are lusting after something eShakti, now you have longer to shop for it!

Just use the referral code WALP0811 for $20 off!*

Here are some of my favorites right now:

eShakti wishlist by wearelargepeople on Polyvore.com

disclosure:
*I get $10 off at eShakti every time this code is used.

Real quick: gigantic bun is gigantic

2011-09-11T12:28:00.000-07:00

I really want to cut my hair. You know, when you spend so long growing it out, then finally one day, it's like "ENOUGH! I MUST CUT THIS!"? Well, last time I did that, I really hated the results.

So I'm trying to keep myself interested in my long hair by trying out new hairdos. I present to you: Gigantic Bun.

I used one of the many bun sock tutorials out there (here's one), though I took each piece and pinned it in place one at a time. Also, I didn't use a sock :) - I used an old pair of bike shorts rolled up into a donut, because I wanted a GIGANTIC bun, not a sock-sized bun.

Edit: I just looked again at the thing I used inside my bun... I thought it was bike shorts, but I ended up using a tank top rolled into a donut :). See, I don't really know what I do with myself all the time. I'm a free spirit. A confused free spirit.

In fact, I barely had enough hair to do it:

o hai i see u

Here's what I wore to accompany the gigantic bun:

details:
dress and cardigan: forever 21
necklace: whiteowl.etsy.com
black flats: evans.co.uk

Have any of you been bitten by the short hair bug? Or grown out your hair for years just to lop it all off? Do tell!

Need a style boost?

2011-09-07T16:56:00.000-07:00

Hello lovelies!

I have openings in my September schedule for new clients, and would love to work with you as your virtual stylist! My Emergency Outfit Assistance package is the perfect way to give your style a boost as we head into fall.

a face you can trust

More about the Emergency Outfit Assistance package:

Do you have a hot date, a charity dinner, an important interview, a vacation, or another special event, but you have no idea where to shop or what to wear? Even if there's no special event and you just want to give your style a boost, I would love to help!

Just drop me an email and I can put together 3-5 looks for you, complete with shoes and accessories. Then you can choose the outfit that's best for you! I can also help find a single piece, such as a pair of knee-high boots that will fit a wide calf, etc. I love a challenge, and I love to help!

Emergency Outfit Assistance is conducted via email only - no in-person meeting is needed, so it can work for anyone, anywhere! Prices start at $60 for 3-5 looks or a 7-10 variations of a "special challenge" item.

Drop me an email or just leave me a comment with your email address if you're interested! And remember, blog readers get 15% off, so this package is only $51!

Ok, that was a LOT of exclamation points. But I am very excited. So I think they were justified.

Product review: eShakti gold maxi dress

2011-09-04T11:36:00.000-07:00

Hello lovelies,

eShakti approached me a few months ago about doing a product review for them. I didn't want to tell them that I'm already a pretty avid fan, since I have lots of their dresses already. I was afraid they'd rescind their generous offer!

But I told them anyways :). And they still wanted to send me a piece of my choosing.

I think I chose well, no?

This dress - it's just about everything I wanted in a maxi dress:

It's 100% cotton jersey - and a thick jersey, one that doesn't wrinkle or rumple and isn't sheer, so I can wear whatever bra I want, thankyouverymuch.

It doesn't have narrow straps.

It has a fuller skirt.

It's yellow! My favorite color ever!

It's long enough!

As with all eShakti items that I own, it is impeccably constructed. Very sturdy. It was a little big, so I washed it on hot and tumble dried it on hot as well, and it still looks great without a single loose thread on it.

It has a great thick tie-back that makes a bridesmaidesque bow in the back.

Now for the honest bit: ordering from eShakti used to be hit-or-miss, but I think they've worked out their issues, and I've had nothing but good ordering experiences with them lately.

Sometimes they are, ummm, overzealous? in their fabric choices? Like, they pick a really nice and thick poplin to make a lot of their dresses, and sometimes it makes them stiffer than you'd expect a sundress to be, for example. But I'd rather a company err on the side of better construction and more durable fabric than flimsiness.

Also, sometimes their site goes down (when I initially wrote this post, I couldn't get it to load, for example).

Sometimes their customer service is unresponsive, like when an item is out of stock and I have a question about when it will be back in stock... sometimes those questions are never answered.

But! I have, I think, 6 eshakti dresses? Maybe? It could be more. I get compliments on all of them every time I wear them out.

Their differentiation point is that all of their pieces are customizable (sleeves, neckline, length, etc.). Their sizes run from 0 to 26W and it's the same price no matter what size (which I love, because it makes me feel welcome).

So, all in all, I'm super pleased with this awesome new dress!

Also, it's the first piece of clothing I've ever gotten completely free just because I write this here blog! So that was a trip.

But enough about me. Would you like to get in on this eShakti action? They've offered me a promo code for my blog readers - that's you! It's WALP0811. You'll get $20 off your order**, but it's only valid till 15th September, 2011, so get cracking!

- I wanted to note, for my international readers, that they only ship to the US and Canada at this time.

Disclosures:
*eShakti did not pay me in any way for this review, other than to provide the dress for free!
**I'll get $10 for every time this code is used.

OOTD: belated birthday

2011-09-01T10:41:00.000-07:00

Hello lovelies!

Back in early August I had a birthday! I was also on a blogging break. So I saved these outfit pictures for today.

The umbrella? Is courtesy of a mai tai. A birthday mai tai with a delicious brandied cherry from my favorite local bar King's Hardware.

Outfit details:
dress: Evans cotton prom dress
shoes and bag: target

What you can't see is, underneath, there's a big old nasty bandage from my final tattoo session for my leg piece. Yep, that's right, I went and got tattooed and then went to a bar in a fancy dress. I know, alcohol isn't good for tattoo healing. I know. (but it healed fine, actually).

I hope you are all enjoying the last of sundress weather! Though I plan to wear this particular sun dress year-round with some cardigan and boot action.

Welcome September, and a new layout to celebrate!

2011-08-31T11:55:00.000-07:00

I'm back from my break! I scaled mountains (in my car) and went on international (well, canadian) adventures and traveled by rail (to Canada!) and enjoyed my time off immensely!

And now, to celebrate September, I now have a beautiful blog makeover! We're all about style and beauty here, and my poor blogger template blog was feeling a little unsnazzy. But not any more! Rachele (the Nearsighted Owl her very self) was such a dear and completely revamped my blog for me!

Please go check her out, she is amazingly stylish AND a great designer. If you are interested in a blog makeover of your own, talk to Rachele, because you will be super impressed with her!

I just love my new layout. Be ready, because I'm probably going to talk about it more, and point out new things (like the cool stuff on the left sidebar, my new "about me" section, etc.).

A birthday and a summer blog break

2011-08-09T09:15:00.000-07:00

Hi lovelies,

This is the face of a newly-31 year old.

(ok, half a face)

Also, summer weather has arrived in Seattle, so I'm going to take the next month away from the blog to enjoy myself and improve my speed Scrabble technique:

(as you can tell, I'm already quite advanced at using Q)

I hope you all have a great August! See you soon!

Real quick: check me out in Kimberly's August inspiration calendar

2011-08-05T02:27:00.000-07:00

Do you need some inspiration on what to wear for the month of August? Kimberly over at Fab Finds Under $50 puts together a monthly calendar with outfit ideas, and I'm pleased as punch to be included this month!

I'm the look of the day for 8/20 - "solid dress with a statement necklace"

Kimberly's blog is pretty fantastic - full of polyvore sets and reader questions and ideas for how to achieve great looks for less moolah. Go check her out!

Threading, sweating, wrinkles

2011-08-03T08:18:00.000-07:00

Hello lovelies.

Does anyone else out there get threading done? I discovered it a few years ago when I lived in the San Francisco area and it's become a favorite way to get my brows and lip done for a few reasons:

I have really sensitive skin and the application of almost ANY ointment or soothing cream or wax or sugar leaves me with tons of tiny pimples.

It's usually cheaper than waxing or sugaring.

On the downside:

Threading usually only lasts me 2-3 weeks before there is regrowth, whereas with waxing or sugaring I tend to get about 4-5 weeks before the return of the hairs.

Though I've heard otherwise, for me at least, threading hurts worse than waxing or sugaring. It's about on par with tweezing, but magnified since lots of hairs get ripped out at once. It always leaves me sweaty and with tears streaming down my face!

I hadn't been able to find a place to do it here in Seattle until recently, but yesterday I tried out a place at the local mall and was super pleased with the results!

(not that you can really see them in this picture!)

Also, I just wanted to add that I don't believe hair removal is necessary for a woman to be "womanly". I don't find facial hair on women to be freakish or unsightly, and I believe in body autonomy - i.e., everyone gets to decide what they do with their own bodies! For me, brow shaping and lip hair removal is a way that I pamper myself and provide self care, but it definitely isn't this mandatory thing that all women need to "take care of" in order to be beautiful.

I'm all wrinkly because it was HOT and because threading - pain sweat.
(outfit details: shirt and cardigan: old navy, skinnies: torrid "source of wisdom", platform sandals: target)

Another thing I've discovered, to get real for a mo', is that I'm getting hairier as I move into my 30s. The past 2 years have seen a marked increased in the amount and dark color of hair on my face and body - it's actually kind of fascinating (in a discovery-channel-documentary kind of way) to see how my body is changing, and how rapid some of those changes can be!

My friend Stephanie called me up a few years ago to talk about this concept of aging, and introduced me to the Japanese term wabi sabi. Basically, without appropriating the rich meaning behind this philosophy, wabi sabi is about accepting imperfection and transience. Steph and I talked about it in the context of not getting plastic surgery (not that there's anything wrong with that - remember, body autonomy and respect for folks to make their own choices!), but I wonder sometimes if hair removal is somehow violating this idea of accepting imperfection and celebrating the changes our bodies move through as we age.

What do y'all think? Do you have any favorite hair removal rituals? Or do you feel like women shouldn't have to remove their body hair? Do you feel slightly conflicted, like I do?

OOTD: gratuitous cell phone self shots

2011-07-31T23:15:00.000-07:00

I don't get dressed up as often now that I don't go to work. So here's a real quick post - I got this dress when I was in London a few months ago and really love it!

However, I need to dig out the tripod and not try to take pictures of myself like this. It's like my blog circa 2009 up in here today.

shoe shot:

zoolander face:

werq it baby.

legs:

tattoo, which I haven't shown a very good picture of yet:

Outfit details:
dress: Marks & Spencer
shoes: Dansko rory pumps
necklace: polymath, via urban craft uprising
tattoo: started in 11/10, Christy Brooker, Damask Tattoo

Thursday Links

2011-07-28T04:39:00.000-07:00

Art & Craft:

Awesome art made from paint chips (via How About Orange)

How to make an ombre (dip-dyed, for those of us not in the know) t-shirt (Cotton & Curls via Craftzine)

Some of the most beautiful tattoo work I've ever seen (I especially love this one) (find more Thomas Hooper here and here)

Body Image & General Fattery:

"If I am to value myself, and my intelligence, and my contributions to the world, I must also value the vessel that enables me to engage with that world, and that helps me to experience everything that makes me the person I am, no matter how anyone else may try to tear me down."
(from Why The Worlds Needs Fat Acceptance by Leslie Kinzel)

Surprisingly insightful discussion happening in the comments on this post about feminism and dieting (via SocImages)

"It's okay to feel really ugly sometimes. Being body positive all the time is hard work." A reminder to let ourselves off the hook. (via Eat the Damn Cake)

Creative Living:

Great post on making space for creativity that's especially timely for me and my new venture! (via Kyla Roma)

Anyone else out there read (or write!) any super great posts this week? Leave them in the comments!

Wish List: eShakti & Swedish Hasbeens

2011-07-26T17:20:00.000-07:00

I talked the other day about not buying expensively into a trend that I'm not sure about. Well, if I were to buy into the wooden clog/platform trend... Swedish Hasbeens would be the ones I'd buy!

My monthly check of eShakti's offerings also gave me a few items to lust over. If only I hadn't quit my job! Oh well, it's worth it. :) I can enjoy these beauties from afar.

eShakti and Swedish Hasbeens by neffbot

Do any of y'all have a pair of Swedish Hasbeens? If so, do you like them? Have any of you ever bought expensive shoes only to regret it later?

Etsy shop update: Lowered prices!

2011-07-25T02:44:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone! I'm clearing out my etsy shop to prepare for lots of great new finds.

So, if you're in the market for midi skirts (like this one, or this one) or an awesome lace blouse, I just lowered prices!

I'm especially drawn to the blouse - won't someone give it a good home?

Also, blog readers get 15% off, just convo me beforehand and I'll adjust the price for you.

Thrifting pro-tip: get that "vintage" smell out of non-washable items

2011-07-23T02:59:00.000-07:00

The other day I scored this awesome straw purse from a Goodwill outside of Seattle (the ones in the 'burbs are always better than the ones in the city since they aren't as picked over!).

It was only $3 since it was 50% off.

Unfortunately, it's a little stinky. Not too bad, but it definitely has that "vintage" smell, if you know what I mean...

But never fear - because there's a way to get out that smell!

What you'll need:

2 dryer sheets

A large ziploc baggie

What to do:

Put one dryer sheet inside the purse

Put one outside the purse

Fold the purse to fit inside the kind-of-too-small baggie

Wait a few days

Enjoy a fresh smelling new-to-you purse!

Also, umm, tear the tag off before you take it out with you. Not that any of us are forgetful in that way, nosirree, nope.

Do any of you have any tips or tricks for making thrifted/secondhand items smell better? Share them in the comments!

OOTD: To celebrate my last day at work

2011-07-20T14:43:00.000-07:00

I'm back! And now I can tell you some big news.

I quit my day job.

That's right. Last week, prior to setting off into the Florida sunset, I ended my corporate employment and am now self-employed (more on that after the pretty pictures).

the look of stylish self-employment

Bob was such a sweetie and took me out for a date night to celebrate.

We went to Palace Kitchen, and it was delicious. I had three different kinds of pork, because one kind isn't enough. Also, I had ham for lunch. Because I love the flesh of the pig, apparently. And who doesn't? Well, lots of people, probably.

outfit details:
sheer cream dress: asos.com clearance (no longer available)
under dress: Target, ages ago, it's a heather grey jersey number
black wooden platform wedges: Target
bangle: H&M

Anyways, "my last day" you may be wondering? Why am I quitting my job and what will I be up to? Well, as some of my old school readers may recall, last year I launched a fashion consulting business. It's my dream to help women find their personal style.

If you're interested in working together, or perhaps have a friend or relative you'd like to refer, I'd love to talk to you! I give a 15% discount to all blog readers, so let's get this party started!

Off to Key West, regular witty posts and comments will return in a few days!

2011-07-14T00:21:00.000-07:00

OOTD: Cheap and cheerful sandals

2011-07-11T02:39:00.000-07:00

Hello my lovelies, how's everything?

Me? Well, I've been enjoying the sunny weather, and, strangely, wearing heels! I know, who am I and what have I done with the other Rebecca, who is every bit as beautiful and witty, but more sensible in footwear choices?

I've just been inspired lately by all the short summer dresses paired with chunky platform sandals, so I had to go get in on that action.

My preferred method of easing into a style that I'm not too sure of (in this case, wooden platform sandals) is to buy it cheap at first, then invest later if the trend sticks with me.

I found these sandals at Target and they definitely fit the bill - cheap and cheerful, the perfect way for me to try out the platform look.

Outfit details:
Dress: Asos.com, 2010
Necklace: Whiteowl.etsy.com
Platform sandals: Target

I also tried Stephanie's headband hairstyle again to much better effect (here's the last attempt). My longer hair worked better and required far fewer bobby pins! As my British friends may say, result!*

All in all, a good day with a good outfit and good hair. And, I must say, this dress paired with this lovely lace necklace I got from White Owl is really becoming my equivalent of a power tie. I feel fabulous every time I wear it.

Do you have an accessory or a combo that transports you to feelings of fabulousity about yourself?

*Claire, am I using that correctly?

Thursday Links

2011-07-07T12:56:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone! Time for another semi-regular Thursday Links!

Here are a few posts I've enjoyed lately -

Never forget that you are awesome! (Sarah Neuburger via Design Is Mine)

Crafty:

Beautiful pictures like these really make me want to try to make a home succulent garden (via Rachele at Nearsighted Owl)

Luckily, Kyla Roma posted on how to make a container succulent garden, so I can make my dreams of keeping plants alive* come true (via Kyla Roma).

I've modified vintage dresses before, but I really want to try something like this (Addi Enne via Low Budget Diva)

From the "why didn't I think of this before? archives: Embroidery Hoop Laundry Bag (cornflower blue via Craftzine)

Body Image and General Fattery:

“How many fatties does it take to screw in a lightbulb? Uhm, actually, as a rule fat people don’t screw in lightbulbs because they’re too busy smashing normative standards of beauty, being fancy as fuck, looking totally badass, making out with each other, eating delicious snacks, walking around on the streets, taking off their tops, making children cry, shaking their bellies at people, mooning people and uhm yeah, so fat people don’t ever actually screw in lightbulbs, you’ll never see that.” (via Majestic Legay of Glitter Politic via Rotundlr)

Sal over at Already Pretty says it so well: Happiness is the point. Style is just a way.

One of my favorite blogs, honestly, on how she 'bucks the mainstream' (via Dances With Fat)

Fat Dialogue in Love (Mitten Paws via Weesha's World)

*in my defense, I've been able to keep a dog alive, which is more rewarding than plants anyways.

Kirsty and I take Portland by storm

2011-07-05T02:38:00.000-07:00

This weekend, Bob and I headed down to Portland for a day trip for the special occasion of seeing Kirsty and Alex! They are in the states for a bit, and we wanted to head to Fat Fancy together and take them to Powell's. And look at beards. You know, Portlandy things.

Bob and Alex headed off to the Starbucks across the street while Kirsty and I tried on amazing vintage dresses.

Like so:

(I think this was handmade from a bedsheet. Amazing)

And voila:

(we called this dark confection the "Edwardian Power Ballad")

The next stop was Powell's, where we exchanged a suitcase and a backpack full of books for an always-amazingly-high amount of store credit (I feel like Powell's is really generous in that way). I picked up a book I'd been wanting for awhile, Alicia Paulson's Embroidery Companion.

Then we headed over to an arcade that I can't remember the name of, where I sweat. A lot. It was unbearably warm inside. I hate sweating.

Outside the arcade, two sweaty hot babes pose for the camera:

After that, Kirsty and Alex had serious jetlag to contend with, so they went on to relax for the rest of the evening and Bob and I rounded out the triumvirate of every Portland trip we take by going to Pine State Biscuits, where my Southern heart was melted by sweet tea in mason jars.

We always order the same thing: THE REGGIE!!! A biscuit with fried chicken, bacon, sausage gravy, and cheddar cheese.

Bliss.

What were your plans for the 4th of July weekend? Did anyone do anything fun?

Internet lovin'*

2011-07-01T13:21:00.000-07:00

(This was one of the first images that came up on Google Images for the phrase "internet loving". I'm not really sure about the tie in, but I needed a pic for this post and, well, surprised cat is pretty adorable.)

I have so many favorite blogs and find so many bloggers inspiring that I wanted to do a post to highlight just a handful (a handful!) of blogs that I've been faithfully reading for the past several months.

If I can be counted on to be consistent (which I can't), I think I'd like to make this a ~~weekly~~ok, let's not kid ourselves, monthly feature. Because, seriously, the internets are full of great blogs.

Here are a few of them - please enjoy!
a monkey fatshionista
pretty penny mae
tall girl blogging
bearly on earth
a curious fancy
fatty unbound
a well rounded venture
the nearsighted owl

*not that kind, though if you are into that, I say go for it!

All the Blogger bloggers, all the Blogger bloggers (to the tune of "all the single ladies")

2011-06-27T14:33:00.000-07:00

.... If you like it then you could give me some feedback.

Ok, so maybe that doesn't work with "all the single ladies"... it doesn't really sound right :)

However, I know that many of my dear readers and commenters use Blogger.com to power their blogs. I have a unique opportunity to give some feedback to a community manager at Blogger, and wanted to reach out to see if any of you have criticisms/feature requests or compliments/praise for me to pass along?

Here is what I want to bring up so far:

1) Reply-to-comment functionality. This is the number one thing that I really want, and wordpress offers it. It's a big enough deal for me to seriously consider switching over! I want to be able to reply to comments that folks leave on my posts, rather than just commenting on the post itself.

2) Better template design functionality: auto-resizing of banners, more variety and better customization (a la wordpress).

3) Google FriendConnect/blogger "follow" button integration with Google Reader. Now, when I "follow" a blogspot blog using the "follow" button, it puts it in a folder in my reader automatically. I can't move it from this folder (if I do, it stays in the folder, as well as moving to the new folder, so it is in my reader twice, which I find annoying).

4) A better android app. The official one has very limited functionality, and there are no good unofficial ones out there either.

Any other feedback on Blogger.com functionality and features from my Blogger.com-using readers out there?

Welcome all ye from the "blog of note" post!

2011-06-26T01:40:00.000-07:00

My, my, such a spike in traffic and commenters and followers over the past few days! For those of you wondering where all the new folks have come from - I was featured as a "blog of note" by the blogger community managers on Friday, which is very exciting for me!

It's great to have so many new folks around here. Make yourselves at home! I try to respond to all my comments, that may not be possible for the surge I've seen in the past few days but hopefully I'll be able to! If not, please know that I appreciate all of the comments so much!

Also, I've gotten a few comments and emails asking me to promote or do link exchanges. I actually don't do link exchanges or promotion of other blogs in that way - BUT I love finding new blogs and following back the blogs that I find interesting. Also, I definitely love mentioning posts that are really special or a cut above or that are funny or that I relate to and think my readers will relate to.

I've also gotten some emails from new bloggers asking for advice, which I think is funny since I still feel like I barely know what I'm doing when it comes to blogging and am definitely not a pro! However, here are a few things that have worked for me:

- finding a community of bloggers that I identify with
- reading a bunch of blogs regularly and commenting with insightful comments (rather than "hey, nice blog, follow me please", which doesn't really make people want to follow you)
- Having good pictures on your posts
- Posting pretty often, but not too often (2-4x/week works best for me)

For more advice on how to build up a reader base as a new blogger, I came across a great article the other day - here it is if you'd like to check it out!

hugs and kisses!

Getting my home-making on

2011-06-24T15:30:00.000-07:00

Dear readers, I must tell you, last weekend I home-maked like a BOSS.

I made JAM!!!!

Made from peaches.

That were food-processored.

Then packed up to give to friends.

It was my first time making jam, I was inspired by this recipe but followed the instructions on the sure-jell pectin (which I'd recommend, they are easy to understand and it turned out great!). Other than the fact that we got sugary peach slurry all over the countertop when trying to pour it into the jam jars.

I started to hand-write the labels on post-its-notes, but then I thought "if I'm effing MAKING JAM FROM SCRATCH I can get out the typewriter like a respectable crafty person."

Also I made bread! From scratch!

We don't have a cooling rack, so I use a metal trivet. Resourceful, I am. And, judging by the smiles from my friends, they thought the bread and jam turned out pretty good.

OOTD: in which I wore my hair down for the first time in MONTHS

2011-06-19T01:39:00.000-07:00

Today, we lazed about the house until dinnertime. I actually blew my hair dry today and decided to wear it down. It's been forever since I've done that - it's getting really long! I like it.

After hair drying adventures (as if anyone needs any more adventure in their day), we went to Target to buy hangers (what can I say, my clothing collection is getting a bit out of control), then to dinner, then to see Thor.

Isn't this husband adorable? We, through no effort of coordination, wore the exact same shade of green.

All in all, a fine evening.

Also, I have to share, even though this is in no way fashion related... We got Waffles a summer haircut.

From this:

To this:

Isn't she adorable? She's a lot smaller underneath all that hair than we thought she was! She looks like a little bear cub!

What's been going on with you lovelies this early summer? Any summer haircuts for yourselves or your pets? Do share in the comments!

We're back! (and have been for awhile, sorry!)

2011-06-12T11:21:00.000-07:00

We had an AMAZING time in England! It was so so wonderful. The best part was meeting Claire in real life and hanging out with her and her husband Rob.

But a close second was the the awesome Big Beach Bums meetup that Kirsty put together! I didn't bring my camera with me for that (not a suave blogger move on my part). Luckily, Ragini and Claire (part one, two) both took pictures and posted them. We all looked smashing, I must say.

Here are some pictures of the rest of the non-meetup things we did whilst there.

the Doctor Who experience was amazing!

Dover Castle (super, super windy and cold, but still awesome)

Brighton Pier (claire took this pic!)

My new Evans dress, outside our hotel, about to go meet Claire and Rob for dinner.

My favorite british dessert ever, I only was able to find them on my last day.

Hilarious flyer in a shop window in Greenwich. "The solemn promise that you will practice like the devil"

And, after 10 days walking around various parts of England, it was time to retire the old lady boat shoes. They were good shoes. I'll probably do a retrospective post or something, I've seriously worn them nonstop for more than a year. Best $9 I ever spent.

Oh, thank you all for your comments lately - I've read every one of them, I just haven't had time to respond. Hoping to get back on the responding bandwagon soon!

I hope you are all enjoying your pre-summer days!

Off to jolly olde england(e?)

2011-05-23T10:16:00.000-07:00

By the time you read this, we'll be enjoying englandy things like pints and cherry bakewells prior to the Big! Beach! Bums! meetup on 5/28.

Let's see: quid, arse, "happy christmas" and "grab your coat love, you've pulled". I spent months in England and that's all I remember of british colloqualisms. Not a linguist, nope.

Mars bars, digestives, coronation chicken, tesco finest, wine gums, crisps... You can tell I was paying more attention to the food than the language :).

Don't rob our house while we're gone!

It would make Waffles very sad if you did!

Be back in early June!

New laptop love!

2011-05-20T14:58:00.000-07:00

This is a bit of a departure from my normal posts, but I wanted to write about the new laptop of my life, which arrived yesterday. I guess it relates to the blog because... I'll use it to blog? That's weak, I know. Sorry!

I decided on a PC because, well, as much as I want to be the kind of person that uses a mac and enjoys the really exotic raw sushi rolls and always knows how to pronounce french words... I just didn't like using a mac (nor am I into really exotic sushi, nor can I pronounce french words very accurately).

I had my macbook for about 3 years and, the whole time, basic things like rotating a photo, or installing new software, would totally confound me. And I'm pretty smart I think. I just didn't enjoy using it. So, I'll try to still keep my creativity street cred even while using a PC :).

I chose the HP dm4x because I really like a 14" form factor - anything smaller feels like a netbook and is too small to really use, anything bigger is just a monstrosity with tons of wasted space and is too huge to carry around. I also liked that it came with a reputable graphics card and a big hard drive and an option for lots of memory.

My Macbook that I had used for the past 3 years died a horrible, gasping, expensive death wherein we replaced it bit by bit and still had it crap out. I traded it in for scrap and at least got a little bit of store credit out of it!

The unboxing*:

Start here? Well, okay, since you are between me and my new laptop.

Pretty simple, though I think a non-column layout would have been more clear, because I read it as "take your stuff out of the box... then connect via wireless!" because I'm a left-to-right reader, column breaks be damned.

Look at you, snazzy thing in your snazzy plastic baggie.

Further snazzy things in baggies that weren't a pain to open, which was nice. No blister packaging for me to injure myself with in my haste.

Oooh, even the tape has the "hp" logo on it! Fancy tape. I want tape with my initials.

Power cord plugs into the side - I prefer the back (ha, that's what she said?) so I can sit cross-legged without it poking me (that's what she also said? sorry.)

Pristine keyboard that is appropriately clicky and tactile. Comfortable to type on.

I like the layout, it isn't too wide and there's not vast tundras of unused space on each side of the keyboard like with larger laptops.

First boot:

whaa? Was bummed this was the first thing I saw upon booting up. Was it tampered with? Did it crash as they were building it? Will everything load ok?

Everything seemed to load okay, and the default background was really beautiful! I wonder if HP profiles its customers so that if you order and have a female-sounding name, they put a pretty background. And if you're a dude, they put, like, a truck or something. I don't know. A grill?

"Sir, take me to THE INTERNET". I laughed out loud (lol, as the kids would say) at this oversimplified way of putting it.

The first thing I did - download Chrome. IE is terrible, HP should include other browser options! I had to use IE to download Chrome and it made me feel dirty and confused.

Also removed the Bing bar - guess HP and microsoft are so entwined that no other options make it onto the computer.

Was super excited that Evernote was included - I've been wanting to try it! I mean, it's free to download, so it's not like it saved me any money that it was on the computer already, but it was nice to see preloaded software that wasn't bloatware!

Anyways, enough of this, which is basically just me gloating that I got a new laptop! I'm super excited to use it! Expect... bloggier blog posts? I dunno. Something? Yes.

*wherein I try to take enticing photos of me basically opening a box and taking things out of it. Try to contain your enthusiasm. I know it was difficult for me to do so.

Thursday Links*

2011-05-19T10:58:00.000-07:00

Folks, I wish I was making this up: Florida OB-GYNs set weight cut-offs for new patients starting at 200 pounds and turn down women who are heavier.

Frances taking on Cosmopolitan Australia with a great article on fatshion.

Fat Dudes = Hot. Yes.

I died. FAQ for students: Rapture edition

Photography: How to make your own bokeh shapes. The cow one is my favorite!

*Let's not pretend this is more than it is. We all know that I abandon recurring posts like a... thing that abandons things alot**. Yeah.

**the abandoning alot leaves things everywhere!

Things I'm enjoying lately

2011-05-17T14:00:00.000-07:00

1) Big Beach Bums is next weekend! I've been enjoying the anticipation - we're heading out early and I'm so excited to meet everyone, especially Claire, who has been super kind to help me with my travel plans and is just all around awesome.

2) Bubble tea. It was a staple of my bay area existence but there aren't any places in my neighborhood here that have it.

3) This hilarious interaction with a advertising banner for a travel company, next door to the place where we got bubble tea. Especially poignant given #1!

4) Nilla wafers with peanut butter = favorite snack forever. Plus, I recently got a new huge yellow mug on sale and it's perfect for the large amounts of tea i like to drink in one sitting. Also, books.

I'm a favorite thing!

2011-05-16T09:28:00.000-07:00

How sweet is Rachele from The Nearsighted Owl for featuring me?

Very sweet. If you haven't seen her awesome blog already, go check her out!

OOTD: to Target and beyond!

2011-05-13T14:59:00.000-07:00

This is the face of a person that went to Target and found an awesome shirt on clearance.

This is also the face of a person who really loved her outfit that day.

I went to my first estate sale a few weekends ago and scored this awesome yellow cardigan. I felt a kindred spirit to the lady whose belongings were being sold - she had 100 cardigans, all of them my size, none of them wool. She must have been allergic to wool like me!

Outfit details:
dress: asos curve, 2010
cardigan: estate sale, vintage, AWESOME
petticoat: made by me (here's a tutorial)
lace necklace: whiteowl.etsy.com

Have any of you been to an estate sale before? What did you think? I felt torn because it is sad to rummage through the remnants of someone's life... but also glad that these garments and items were getting new life and being repurposed...

OOTD: For 6 hours on planes

2011-05-08T21:11:00.000-07:00

Folks, I had been awake since ~3am when these were taken, and had slept in my french braids after drinking, oh, about 14 margaritas for cinco de mayo. Then, I got on planes to make my way home from Austin. And I think I looked awesome even with the lack of sleep and questionable hygiene!

(I used to have an animated gif here but the site I used for it is causing a broken link so I took it down)

Outfit details:
Dress: fatshionista LJ swap
Belt: Target, men's section. It's braided elastic and super comfy!
Brown cardigan: Target merona xl, from 2005 or so. They don't make em like they used to.
Scarf: AA circle scarf
shoes: toms. I'm hopeless trendy.
tattoo: almost done!

Also, check out the awesome new-to-me bag I got at the farmer's market last weekend. It's vintage, but never used! I desperately needed a new laptop/carry all bag since my H&M one was disintegrating and leaving a trail of chartreuse-colored vinyl flakes everywhere I went.

When I travel, I love wearing dresses because they are lots more comfy than pants for me, and I feel like I look nice while wearing something comfier than sweatpants. I feel like I'm fooling everyone that thinks I dressed up and am SOOOO uncomfortable, because really I'm super comfy.

Also, being dressed up is extra armor for me, because flying whilst fat can be trying since I don't fit into the seats very well and am always prepared to be met with unkindness from fellow passengers or flight crew. When I feel like I look nice, it's easier for me to feel good about myself even if other people don't dig me.

What do you all like to wear when you travel?

Mother's day gift FAIL, courtesy of B&N

2011-05-07T10:35:00.000-07:00

Soc Images has a great post on mother's day gifting today, noting that the mother's day "gift guide" from Barnes & Noble lists a diet book as the top suggestion for a gift for mom.

From the article:

Weight-loss related items are, generally, problematic gift ideas. They put the recipient into the position of having to acknowledge in front of anyone watching them open the gift that their weight is considered unacceptable, and that the person giving the gift agrees with that. Even if a person wants to lose weight and is actively trying to do so, they may not wish to have their weight brought up unexpectedly and opened up for public discussion.

I couldn't agree more. My mom was on diets often when I was growing up, but I still can't imagine a diet book being an appropriate gift for her. Aren't there so many other things that make up her life and personality than this one aspect? I think so - my mom is a great lady with many other interests and hobbies and a rich inner life, she's so much more than her desire to diet.

Anyways, what are your thoughts on this? Will you be getting your mom a gift for mother's day?

Show some love!

2011-04-29T12:49:00.000-07:00

Just want to show some love to all my fellow bloggers and tumblrers and, of course, my readers! You are all amazing and inspiring and don't you forget it for a single second.

(What a great idea Rachele!)

(it's an old valentine's day pic, but it still counts!)

Blogger.com improvement that's pretty cool - Dynamic Views for readers

2011-04-25T15:14:00.000-07:00

Hi all,

Blog content has been light lately. I haven't taken any outfit pics lately since I'm recovering from a pretty serious run in with bug bites from a trip to a cabin three weeks ago! 230 bites means that my arms and legs still look pretty gross, so I haven't been inclined to do outfit pics lately. Hopefully soon!

In the meantime, I wanted to share this awesome new feature launched for blogger/blogspot blogs. It's called dynamic views, and anyone with a blogger blog can use it for their blogs! Basically, just append /view to the end of your blog url, and you'll get all these options:

Flipcard: available at [blogURL]/view/flipcard
Mosaic: available at [blogURL]/view/mosaic
Sidebar: available at [blogURL]/view/sidebar
Snapshot: available at [blogURL]/view/snapshot
Timeslide: available at [blogURL]/view/timeslide

My favorite is Flipcard (seen above), but I also like Mosaic a lot, and also sidebar. Really, the only one I don't like is Snapshot.

Have you Blogger bloggers discovered this feature yet? Which one is your favorite?

Warning: vacation photos ahead - Fort Casey

2011-04-16T12:05:00.000-07:00

Back in February, we headed over to Whidbey Island to check out the awesome Fort Casey.

It was a beautiful day, and we explored the nearly 500 acres of concrete towers, tunnels, crumbling iron railings, old artillery storage cubbies, massive anti-naval guns - there's even a lighthouse!

Ft. Casey was built in the late 1800s as a naval defense fort, but rendered obsolete before it was finished by the invention of the airplane. Even on a bright and sunny day, it was still a little creepy! There are no safety barriers or areas that are roped off - it's all just available to be scampered over by kids, adults, and dogs alike.

If you'd in the Puget sound area I totally recommend going there - it's free to get in, and we spent hours walking around.

On our way over there

multiple levels of concrete bunker walls made me feel like I was in a video game

the only concession to safety - signs stating the obvious

one of the 5 or so guard/lookout stations. See waffles poking her head out?

super labyrinthine

they look ready for anything, don't they?

she really photographs well in the sunlight

love this picture

the gun embankments all had names - I'm guessing the guns themselves had names. I think there were about 10 guns there at one point.

here's one of them - huge!

This is just a small part of the entire set of fortifications - I couldn't get it all in one frame.

We had such a great time - I just love exploring old buildings and places, especially when there are no limitations on where you can go!

Big Beach Bums!

2011-04-12T20:44:00.000-07:00

Uber exciting news! For me anyways! Next month I'll be flying to England and meeting a bunch of awesome bloggers at the Big Beach Bums meetup on May 28th!

Huge thanks to Kirsty Lou for planning this day of thrifting and beach fun in Brighton.

I'm also beyond excited to meet Claire in person! She's being such a sweetie and helping me out with all my London traveling questions too :).

So... if you are in London (or want to make the trip) - this meetup is open to anybody and everybody! Head on over to Kirsty Lou's blog to find out more info and rsvp.

Also, I'd love to know your favorite londony/englandy things to do, if you are a local or have visited before. I've been to London a few times but am always looking for new, off-the-beaten-path suggestions of things to do! Feel free to comment or email me at rebecca at we are large people dot com.

Yay!

My faves from the blogosphere lately

2011-04-10T00:35:00.000-07:00

March and early April have been so busy that I've constantly been playing catchup on blogs! Here are some of my recent favorites:

love yourself from all angles - Beej

Sal puts it so well - the health of a stranger, fat or thin, is none of your business

Kirsty's post on how to thrift as a fatty

Childhood obesity PSA misses the mark - Sociological Images

Wearing revealing clothing = asking for it? Absolutely not. - Lesley Kinzel

“Based on the statistics, most of the charges saying that obesity caused various diseases or that obesity caused thousands of deaths were simply not supported. Yet consistently, these pseudofindings were promulgated as fact.” - via hey fat chic

An amazing outfit and an amazing sandwich

2011-04-05T18:46:00.000-07:00

It's like these two things were made to go with each other:

That's right, it's a mac-n-cheese SANDWICH. Grilled cheese with shells and cheese inside.

Just about as awesome as this outfit, which is my very most favoritist outfit from the past few weeks:

the picard maneuver.

So sassy.

Wearing a cardigan buttoned is a relatively new thing for me, but I think I like it! Only a few of my cardigans will work this way without getting all bulgy/straining at the buttons from my absolutely fat-tasticness :)

I found this blouse at Value Village a few months ago. I will probably end up selling it on etsy eventually.

The pics are blurry because it was dark outside, but soon! Soon my friends! There will be outdoor pictures. Daylight savings time is my friend, now the rainy/windyness just needs to stop.

Outfit details:
Skirt: Lane Bryant clearance, $12!, size 22. It's a really great ponte knit that is so comfy.
blouse: thrifted
Cardigan: Target merona, xxl, years old
Sweater clips: gift from husband
Shoes: Faryl Robin, years old

Do any of you enjoy wearing cardigans buttoned up? I'm surprised that I like it so much, normally I like to hide my tummy in loose flowy fabric, but it's really working for me.

Guest post/crosspost: I refuse to be afraid of visibility

2011-03-31T19:14:00.000-07:00

Hello lovelies,

I've never directly crossposted another blogger's post before, but Eryn's post from two days ago really spoke to me, so I asked her if I could crosspost it here.

And if you aren't familiar with Eryn's blog, go check it out! She is an amazing and thoughtful writer, she posts DIY sewing tutorials every once and awhile, and is just in general one of the highlights of my blog roll!

-----------

I refuse to be afraid of visibility

(original posted by Eryn on her blog)

I’d written a long, detailed explanation about why “doing you” is the most important thing in the whole world. I attempted to get all political, because breaking the cycle of shame and silence about how people have treated you because of the way you look is political. I’m comfortable saying owning your body for exactly what it is- is radical. But, the process of writing about the experience of being 300 pounds and owning it, was like the first time I drove a stick-shift (I stalled, into infinity). Yet, shoving my experience into gear gave me some well deserved clarity about why I choose to curate my own image and why I think everyone else should.

I think most of us grow up being told what to do, all day, everyday. Its my personal belief that this behavior closes off the infinite possibilities to us as individuals and as a collective. All of us get categorized, pigeon holed, and stereo typed- even those who are holding the clip boards and disapproving gaze. Somewhere in there, we either learn to conform to who we are supposed to be, or when we can’t or don’t want to conform, we are shamed. I believe this is a cultural fundamental that is reflected in our collective attitudes towords women, people of color, transgendered and queer folks, children, old people, immigrants and the poor. Based on our own perceptions, which are molded by arbitrary ideals and standards, we are convicted in our right to police who people love, who people fuck, how their bodies are supposed to look, how people should dress, and how people should conform themselves to how we think they should be. Let me say that again- We, as a Western Culture, behave as though everything around us should change to conform to standards established by elite and powerful white men.

I don’t want to get hung up on the whats and the who’s, and instead offer my own solution. I know I’m supposed to keep my fatness all quiet, and full of shame because, you know there’s some obesity epidemic I should give a shit about instead of questioning the mental and emotional anguish of hating my body. “Doing me” means wearing what I want, and taking pictures of that, and plastering them all over the internet and crossing my fingers that someone else will see them and question their own body hate. “Doing me” means loving the most I possibly can in life, and believing that any body is entitled to their choices in life as well. “Doing me” means taking an appreciation for my body that wasnt given to me.

Take an appreciation for the body you have right now, especially if no one has given it to you. Take it, and run with it, and do you.

Because I mean what I said, I'm hooking you all up with a photo I took for a thesis project someone was conducting on tumblr. Y’all should know I look so much like my late (and nutty) grandmother in this picture, its scares me!

-----------

Thanks so much Eryn! There's plenty more awesome where that came from.

Stylish Sunday swap - Sonia from Anomalous Allure

2011-03-27T23:25:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone! This week, Sonia from Anomalous Allure and I decided to feature each other for her weekly "Stylish Sunday" feature. So, if you really want to know more about me (and who doesn't?), head on over to her post.

I've been a big fan of Sonia's style for the past year - she's actually the one that got me into wearing floral prints!

Here Sonia is, in all of her adorable Canadian glory:

(seriously, what a cutie)

On to the interview!

Tell me a little bit about yourself: where you’re from, what you do...

I’m Sonia, an 18 year-old university student with an undeclared major. I’m hoping to major in visual arts and minor in math or women’s/gender studies. Eventually, I’d like to get a Master of Library and Information Science degree and work in a public library. I’m really passionate about pottery and have been smitten with clay for the past three years. I was born in Inuvik, NWT (the farthest north you can drive in Canada on a road!) but have spent most of my life in Alberta. I call Edmonton how, although right now I live in a dorm in a small city, and go to a university that has fewer students than my high school did!

How long have you been posting photos of your outfits online? What made you decide to start?

Long before I was aware of fat acceptance or fatshion, when others were likely using LiveJournal, I was using Nexopia. I guess I always chose Nexopia over LiveJournal because Nexopia was created and is based in Edmonton. Aside from keeping up with friends – and making new ones – Nexopia was great for forums. I initially was posting in a forum for self-proclaimed “picture addicts” but after receiving a lot of fat hate I quit posting. I eventually found some forums for beauty & make-up that were frequented by a group of really lovely girls, and it was there that I first started posting photos of my outfits. That was in grade 10, so in 2007. About a year later, after dealing with a lot of mental health issues I deleted Nexopia and took a break from the internet altogether. A link on the Feministing community sent me to Fatshionista.com in early 2009 and in the summer of 2009 I discovered the Fatshionista LiveJournal Community. I started posting older outfit photos of mine, and eventually became confident enough to start taking outfit photos again. I received a lot of positive feedbacks and decided to start a fashion blog on September 2009. Now, I post outfit photos all over the internet.

Who inspires you the most?

I’m inspired by fierce fat femmes who work to live life as fabulously as possible. I could name multiple names, but in general I am just inspired by other people whom I can relate to in some way or another.

What are your feelings on style versus fashion?

To me, fashion seems all business and, to be quite honest, totally goes over my head. The world of high fashion leaves me clueless. I’m not so naive to think it doesn’t affect my clothing choices, but fashion isn’t really something I’m interest in. I feel that style, on the other hand, is this really personal thing that allows people to express themselves, their personality and their politics. To put it simply, fashion is bought and style is found.

How does the country in which you live affect your clothing choices, both with regards to personal style and access to clothing in your size?

Canada has very limited options for plus-size clothes. Penningtons and Addition-Elle would be the two most obvious but they’re sister store, over-priced, and don’t have a lot of clothes for younger people. Shipping from international retailers, even places in the US like Torrid, can be ridiculously expensive. That being said, I have access to more than enough clothing because I can fit into a size XXL at some straight size stores, but in general Canadian plus-size clothing is seriously lacking. Living in Alberta definitely influences my personal style, though it’s hard to pinpoint exactly how it influences me. In general Albertans dress practically, quite casually, and have a prairie/cowboy/western thing going on. It’s very easy to feel over-dressed, and if you’re not dressed for the cold weather you’ll get a lot of disapproving comments.

What do you love the most about living where you do?

Edmonton definitely has its downsides, but I really love living here. The summer brings endless outdoor festivals, and it’s a bit of a “small world” in that you can go for a walk or for coffee and bump into friends and acquaintances (which is especially special for a large city). Plus, Alberta has bits and pieces that are ridiculously gorgeous. The Rocky Mountains are a sight to see!

What is your favourite item or clothing and why?

My favourite item of clothing is my black floral skirt that I thrifted as a pair of shorts and altered, by hand, into a lovely skirt. This was just before I started my blog, and the skirt made me feel all fabulous and confident. It also made me realise that I can make clothes work for me. The skirt has a brilliant print and a very nice shape. It’s quite worn out but it’s still my favourite, and I’ll continue mending it and wearing it (and mending it and wearing it) for a long time.

Where are your favourite places to shop?

I like shopping at thrift stores, Old Navy, and Ricki’s the most. I also buy clothes from Walmart and Penningtons/Addition-Elle. I’m not much for shopping online, but I was happy with my clothes from Faith 21+ and Domino Dollhouse. In general, I much prefer shopping in person.

What is your favourite fashion rule to break?

I break every fashion rule. I wear horizontal stripes, wear skinny jeans, mix prints, pair black and brown… If it’s a rule, it’s meant to be broken. Mixing prints a bit obnoxiously would have to be my favourite rule to break.

Is there anything else you’d like to say to readers of We Are Large People?

Wear clothes that make you feel good, work hard at loving yourself, and allow your personality to show through in your clothing choices.

Thanks so much Sonia! Be sure to go check out her blog, Anomalous Allure.

If you'd like to see how I answered the same questions, feel free to head on over to her interview of me!

French braid madness! MADNESS I TELL YOU!!!

2011-03-24T13:52:00.000-07:00

My hair is finally getting long enough to braid! I'm so excited. I've been wearing it in messy french braid pigtails or variations thereof for the past several weeks, and I'm so pleased with it and with myself.

I'm practically smug with hair awesomeness.

Let me share with you.

really messy french braid pigtails:

French braid across top half of hair, brought to a messy bun underneath:

Neater french braid pigtails with ends clipped under at the bottom:

One smug and satisfied long-hair-haver:

See, I told you I was smug. Can't you just see the smugness radiating from my scalp?

I think I'm going to try this maiden braid tutorial next!

Do any of you have favorite hairstyles, or find yourself wearing a fave hairstyle for weeks on end?

Happy late valentine's day!

2011-03-22T13:43:00.000-07:00

I wore this on valentine's day, to enjoy dinner at home with my super cute husband. I think it's my favorite new outfit, and nothing on it is new except the tights.

Outfit details:
Dress: fatshionista lj swap
Belt: Target
Cardigan: Old Navy, with the buttons replaced by moi
Patterned fishnets: Torrid
Shoes: Pikolinos

I love these chocolate brown patterned tights I got at Torrid recently!

Should I eat this one?

Or this one?

Nah, I'll eat them both!

Looks like someone else is interested in the chocolates too...

I hope you are all enjoying the change in season. I am so ready for springtime - rain rain, go away! Outdoor outfit photos will soon be a reality.

What's your favorite thing about springtime?

I've been away, but I still love you all!

2011-03-18T11:07:00.000-07:00

Hello my lovelies,

I was out on vacation for the past week, and slowly catching up on all your wonderful blogs. In my journey of catching up, I came across the lovely Beej, who did an outfit inspiration post based on one of my outfits! Go check her out, she is amazing and lovely and fierce.

As always, thank you all for reading my blog and being generally awesome!

Animated gif playtime, brought to you by me and a hasty internet search for an animated gif tool

2011-03-07T22:26:00.000-08:00

Make gif

Outfit details:
shirt: avenue clearance 22/24
jeans: source of wisdom grey skinnies, torrid 24
cardigan: target xxl, ages ago
brooch: from my husband's family

Ever try to get the right picture and end up with a ton of sequential pics in which you barely move but make funny hand gestures?

Me either. I am too, umm, cool for that. All of my pictures are super styled and awesome on the first take.

Yeah.

:)

Some things I've been liking lately

2011-03-04T17:21:00.000-08:00

1) This bread box at Target:

2) The new coat I scored at 50% off at Macy's (see above picture - don't you love the gold enamel buttons!?!)

3) the "build your own sampler" at Taphouse:

4) Gifflar treats from IKEA:

(it said there were 11 rolls inside, but there were 14! THAT'S THREE EXTRA ROLLS!)

5) This shade of nail polish (the polish itself was kind of crappy, it went on horribly and took 3 coats):

6) Monkey's new hair color!

7) My commenters! You guys rock, srsly.

The wonders of IKEA

2011-03-02T17:11:00.000-08:00

I think I need an IKEA tag or something, we go there not super often but I always end up blogging about it when we do. This was from a few weeks ago.

I also need an adorable husband tag:

So strong!

We got lost on the way back, as we often do, since it's buried in an industrial/office park and we always think we know a better way back to the interstate.

Any other IKEA lovers out there? Or people that like to disturb store displays like we do? :)

Etsy shop update - black woolen pleated skirt

2011-02-22T13:31:00.000-08:00

Today I added this beauty to my etsy shop! Just a reminder, blog readers get 15% off items in my etsy shop. Please convo me before ordering and I will apply the discount!

I've got a few great calf-length skirts right now, one that's a 5x, so if you are in the market for a longer skirt, come check them out!

I also wanted to thank everyone for the awesome comments and engagement lately - on my 6 Questions post and my trends that don't work post. It's been great to read all of your comments and I enjoy interacting with all of you so much!

For more insightful responses to the 6 Questions, head over to my favoUrite Monkey as well as Rachele at Nearsighted Owl (*she also made a fabulous banner to use if you decide to answer the questions yourself!*).

It's great to have so many friends! I *heart* my commenters!

Round peg, square hole: fashion/beauty trends that don't work for me

2011-02-20T23:36:00.000-08:00

So at this here blog I am all about unlimiting myself, and I really do hate it when people say "oh, that? That doesn't work for me." because I really think everyone should try new things and get outside of their fashion/beauty comfort zones.

That said, there are a handful of things that really don't work for me.

Makeup.

Used to be that my youthful skin was glowing and I just looked effortlessly awesome. I would say "I never wear makeup!" and the response was automatic and unanimous: "Your skin looks amazing! If I had skin like yours I wouldn't wear makeup either!". That all changed with one somewhat bitchy comment by an Ulta store employee. Now I think I look old and haggard. But I still won't wear makeup. It makes me itch and break out and yes I've tried lots of different kinds and honestly? I'm just not that interested in it for me.

Heels higher than 2.5 inches.

I try, I really do. I buy heels. They languish in my IKEA hanging fabric shoe racks, the fabric bulging and bowing under the weight of so many different sorties into the field of heels. I think heels look awesome! I want to look awesome in heels! The best I can manage is slightly awkward. I just can't walk in them.

Sweating.

Ok, I know that's not a fashion/beauty trend, but I felt like I needed 3 things to make this a worthwhile list, and I REALLY hate sweating.

What about you, dear readers? Are there any things you've tried, or have seen on other and want to try, but feel like it doesn't/wouldn't work for you? Do tell!

6 questions to ask yourself about body image

2011-02-17T01:05:00.000-08:00

I came across this article a few weeks ago and it really challenged me. Basically, it's 6 questions to ask yourself about your body image, and I had an amazingly difficult time filling them out. I wanted to share my answers and perhaps get a little blog-chain going, so if you feel inclined, perhaps answer them as well and post about it? Definitely let me know in the comments if you do!

(pensive blogger is pensive)

1) What’s a simple activity that consistently contributes to your positive body image?
Having sexytimes with my husband. Also, secondarily, clean laundry.

2) What’s something you know now about body image that you didn’t know when you were 18 years old?
I don't need to be thin or thinner or different in any way to enjoy the way I look, or for others to think I look awesome. Also, being fat won't keep me from getting married. I am lovable just as I am!

3) Is there anything you find yourself doing repeatedly that gets in the way of your body image?
Lack of contentment. Comparison with others. Wanting more than I have or different than I have. Tweaking.

4) Is there a body image mantra or motto (or any kind really) that you’ve found very helpful?
I'm not fooling anyone that I'm anything other than fat, so why dress to minimize? Dress to look awesome, not thin. I think I heard this first from Xtina, but my memory could be incorrect.

5) Have you always felt about the same level of body image, or have you been through a period when you felt exceptionally better about your body and yourself as a whole – if so, why? If you were unhappy with your body or yourself, how did you become happier?
When I first discovered Fat Acceptance via the fatshionista flickr group and fatshionista.livejournal.com, it changed me by changing the way I see myself. I saw all these beautiful and confident and stylish women being daring and edgy and out there and realized that I didn't have to hide or apologize for being fat. That being fat and enjoying the way my body looks was an option for me, the two were not mutually exclusive. This opened up a world for me of questioning diet culture and the guilt put on women and men to conform to a thinness and beauty ideal. I could go on and on.

Lately, perhaps over the past year, I have been feeling back down in the dumps about my appearance, and I'm not sure why. I think part of it was declaring to friends and family that I did feel confident, and also starting to plan for my fashion consulting business, made me feel vulnerable in some ways. I've also gained some weight and changed shape quite a bit over the past year, which has left me outgrowing some of my favorite clothes and also wondering how to dress my new body shape.

6) Have you ever been surprised that something you expected would make you feel better about yourself, didn’t – or vice versa?
I am continually surprised - like, to the point of 'insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results' - that buying new clothes doesn't make me happier or make me feel better about myself. I think I still subscribe to the notion that just a little tweak, a new dress, a different silhouette, will change things for me. It doesn't, and it never has, and it won't.

What about you, dear readers? Care to answer the 6 questions?

A scarf! For free!

2011-02-15T00:08:00.000-08:00

Before we get to the real point of this post, I wanted to point out that I had my eye on the (now sold out) Beth Ditto oversize/batwing jersey dress from Evans for awhile. And then it was on clearance for 10 pounds! So here it is, on my body.

It's also a very good dress for bowling - it cuts a dramatic silhouette against the still-standing-10-pins since I'm terrible at bowling.

And now the point:

You may be asking "where did Rebecca get that effing awesome scarf?

Well, I'll tell you - I won it for free during a blog giveaway over at Mamushka Marie (who is just a doll, you really must check out her blog, I just love her style!). The scarf was made by Rachael and is from her etsy shop Softspoken. The scarf is vegan - aka, not wool - which thrilled me to no end since I am allergic to wool. Her shop is chock full of amazing knitted and crocheted goodies that are styled super well and, in my opinion as someone who has crocheted scarves as gifts, very reasonably priced.

Additional awesomeness:
Rachael also sent me a hat, even though it wasn't part of the giveaway, just because she is so nice and awesome!

Even better, the hat fit my really huge head, which no hats ever fit.

Thus, I am declaring 2011 "The Year Of The Hat" here at large people HQ.

The awesome cape of awesome

2011-02-13T23:48:00.000-08:00

A few months back I acquired an amazing green wool cape from Fat Fancy in Portland.

It was one of those moments, haven't we all had them, when time stands still and that perfect garment just leaps off the rack into your trembling arms?

Ok, it wasn't really like that.

Actually, Fat Fancy was super crowded on that Saturday afternoon and there was a little toddler girl running around putting mashed-up-slobbery-cookie all over everything, my husband included, so it was kind of a "hurry up and shop to get out of this madness" type of sitch. But, the green cape found its way into my hands and I purchased it and now it is mine as surely as that soggy cookie was the toddler's.

It's such an amazing green, and I love the arm flaps!

Bob says "do something funny" and, umm, elevator hitchhiking was the first thing that came to mind? Weird, I know.

I'm a dork. In the best possible way. And the cape trend that I was so eager to partake in since I made my very first floor-length cloak while I was in college so I could go to the SCA meetings and feel like I fit in? This is just a natural continuation.

Asos peter pan dress

2011-02-09T21:23:00.000-08:00

I was lucky enough to snag this dress in black before it sold out, and I'm so glad I did. This is not an intentionally gloaty post, really, I just super, super love this dress, and I'm bummed that they didn't make more of them so more lovely fats could enjoy it.

Here I paired it with a petticoat and my favorite tweed peep toes. The watch necklace was a gift from my husband's family, it was his grandmother's and I have been wearing it a lot - it goes with so much, plus it was such a meaningful gift. I feel closer to his family when I wear it.

I did my hair in a modified version of Syd's messy bun. I think she is adorable. My hair wasn't long enough, so I divided it into two ponytails and teased them both, then wrapped them around each other.

This past week was full of working a lot and being stressed, which explains the lack of blog posts and also the lack of commenting on all of your lovely blogs. I will catch up!

In the meantime, I leave you with this, which was my #1 tumblr favorite of all time (thanks nly!):

Taking better blog pictures: free editing tools and some things I've learned

2011-01-31T21:45:00.000-08:00

One of my goals in the latter part of 2010 was to take better outfit pictures.

Ixnay on the mirror shots
always using a tripod or having someone photograph me
trying to get pictures in outside light if at all possible (spoiler, it's not super possible with the winter weather we've been having here)

While I definitely don't think I have arrived at photo perfection, and there's LOTS of room for me to improve, when I look back, the progress is still very noticeable!

Here's one of my early OOTD pictures:

And here's a recent favorite:

I haven't even changed cameras (heck, I still use my cell phone camera much of the time).

One other way I've been trying to improve my pictures is doing post-processing - i.e., using image editing software. I am not into complicated things, and software like Photoshop just frightens me. There are free versions of image editing software, like gimp for mac, but it is also really complicated-seeming to me.

So, since I was already using Picasa web albums to store and organize my pictures online, when Picasa added Picnik on as a free image editing app, I started taking advantage of it since it was so simple to use!

One thing I always do with pictures is crop and adjust the exposure. Cropping helps take the focus away from the hallway/floor/countertop/desk/cars going by/photobombing pets and put it on you, the stylish blogger.

see the difference cropping makes?

Adjusting the exposure is a great way to salvage indoor photos that you just couldn't get to be light enough. This has happened to me a LOT this winter when outdoor photos weren't an option due to the rain and gloom:

so gloomy!

An outdoor picture in filtered sunlight is always going to look better than an indoor photo that has had more fill light added to it, but that doesn't mean you can't get a serviceable picture from an indoor photo session:

see, this pic isn't perfect but it's still sassy and shows the outfit.

Other than enabling cropping/exposure adjustement, Picnik has a wide variety of other free effects you can try. They are all under the "create" tab > "effects" category.

Here's the result of playing around with a single picture the other night:

Original:

Holga-ish:

1960s:

Vignette:

There are a couple other things I try to keep in mind as well:

Try to shoot at head level or lower to avoid the distorted "myspace angle", but not too low or you get exaggerated chins (which is the name of my band. Just kidding.)
There are lots of free, cool iphone and android apps to take pictures with effects (I recommend fxcamera for android and hipstamatic or camerabag for iphone). I will do that sometimes, but I often just shoot plain format so I can add effects later.
I decided I'd rather try to post less often and have better pictures than feel like I have to post daily.

What are some of your photo tips and tricks? Are there any photo pitfalls you see yourself falling into time and time again?

Etsy store update

2011-01-29T13:31:00.000-08:00

Hello fabulousnesses!

Were you thinking "How can I get my hands on some of Rebecca's awesome taste in clothing?"

Oh, you weren't? Well, now you probably are. Power of suggestion, that.

So, in case you are NOW wondering that, wonder no longer. Because I do, in fact, have an etsy store, where I purvey plus-sized vintage clothing items to buyers far and wide.

I'm listing things slowly. Come check out what I listed today:

The white spots you see in the pictures are rain. Because this is Seattle.

Mention that you are a blog reader in the seller notes and I will give you a 15% discount!

Do you not see anything you like in my shop? Check out the much more well stocked shop of Nly - suchmoonshiners.etsy.com.

Magical long-hair-land

2011-01-25T22:42:00.000-08:00

If you've been following the progression of my hairstyles through my outfit pictures (and admit it, who of us DOESN'T do that? It's FASCINATING! kidding, it's not fascinating, really), you'll notice that I'm growing my hair out. I'm super excited to have long hair that I can do elaborate braids and messy bun hairstyles with.

It will be a glorious future in which we will all have unicorns and castles and eat only the choicest of morsels.

But.

Until that day, I gamely try to make my hair seem bigger and more capable of updos. And I'm about to share one of my secrets with you all.

I tease my hair.

Exhibit A:

(something tells me I should NOT be putting this picture on the internets, but, Beej, you wanted more outtake pictures!

This helps embiggify it so that it looks better in updos. Also, it stays back better (otherwise, my hair is very slippery). It also requires lots less product (I HATE hairspray) to stay put, because the hair sort of grips itself, what with all the knots that I put it in with the teasing. (I like parentheticals, they are like hugs))

So, from that, to this:

lady blue steel!

I basically just braid small sections of it and bobby pin them in place.

I definitely like my hair up better than down. And this teased/braided amalgam is my new favorite hairstyle for sure.

Do any of you tease your hair?

When wind attacks.

2011-01-23T18:02:00.000-08:00

I posted the other day about the awesome hairband hairstyle that Stephanie did a tutorial for at Le Blog De Big Beauty.

I hinted at the awesome outfit that I wore to accompany it, and here is that outfit. I got the dress at Fat Fancy in Portland. It's pretty sheer, but I decided to wear it anyways and trust the overcast weather and fact I would be inside for most of the night to keep me moderately modest.

Starting to get windy:

Ok, seriously, let's turn off those photo shoot fans:

can't... stand.... upright...

help!

(mini) Pay It Forward 2011

2011-01-21T11:14:00.000-08:00

(graphic via Grace)

I promise to send something handmade to the first 3 people who leave a comment here. To be eligible, you must also post this in your blog, offering the same thing to 3 other people. The rules are that it must be handmade by you and it must be sent to your 3 people sometime in 2011.

I'm paying it forward from Curvy Everyday.

Please leave your email so I can contact you when the time comes.

I'm so excited! No restrictions on where I will ship, so int'l readers, feel free to sign up too!

A little late on the uptake, I was featured in Kimberly's January Inspiration Calendar

2011-01-19T21:52:00.000-08:00

get thee hence, I'm Ms. Thursday, January 20th (hey, that's tomorrow!)

An OOTD that was an effort, plus a hairband hairstyle (not that kind of hairband)

2011-01-18T23:24:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone!

I've been wearing clothes lately, but I also have succumbed to my third sinus infection in a month, so, umm, haven't been making much of an effort.

But! then I got tired of not making an effort and tried to make an effort.

Thus, here are my efforts :).

Worn tonight to go to the mall and eat at CPK. Sometimes I like to pretend I still live in the suburbs by driving to the suburbs and recreating there.

Dress: Asos curve, 22
Underdress: black jersey, old navy, ages ago, 1x
cardi: old navy, xl, 2010
boots: target, 11
scarf: AA circle scarf

I also stretched my ears up to 1/2" tonight, using my new silicone eyelets from Kaos. They say not to stretch with them. I'm not a good listener.

I think they look awesome! I know not everyone will agree.

Sunday night I tried Stephanie's awesome tutorial for hairband hair (not, like, Ratt or Poison "hair band", but headband/elastic hair band thingy "hairband"). I had to tease my hair, use bobby pins and hair spray, so it wasn't exactly as easy as I thought it would be, but I was pleased.

(I've got a better pic of this super cute outfit coming later this week)

"Mmm, I love it when hip new pie shops serve tea in ridiculous small and heavy brown diner mugs!" /whiny lady

their pies, however, are DELICIOUS.

I'm back, and my vacation was fabulous.

2011-01-13T20:13:00.000-08:00

From cruise christmas

We had such a wonderful Christmas break - seeing friends and family, being goofy, eating delicious food, and going on an awesome cruise together (my first cruise ever!).

The themes of the cruise were, in no order:
- general geekiness (provided by everyone)
- double chins (provided by me and Bob)
- bellies in bathing suits (provided, again, by me and Bob)
- towel animals (provided by our room steward, Arman)
- filet mignon every single day

I also had great fun hanging out in JUST A BATHING SUIT. IN PUBLIC. It was revolutionary. Also, I found a sun hat that, due to some manufacturing margin of error, fit me when none of the other (identical) hats on the rack fit. So that was a huge win as well!

I'm looking forward to catching up on everyone's blogs and hope you all had a fantastic break as well, if you got a break!

Happy Holiday, whichever the holiday you celebrate! And even if you aren't celebrating, I hope your days are happy anyways!

2010-12-20T12:49:00.000-08:00

Christmas is coming and my vacation is imminent (eminent? I think "imminent" is correct, my vacation isn't high and lofty, but rather about to occur). So. I won't be around these here internet parts until mid-January. I will miss reading all your awesome blogs and will try to catch up when I get back!

What are your plans for the holiday break, if you have one?

The husband and I are going to visit family and friends-that-are-like-family, take a short road trip to visit my old alma mater, and then go on a CRUISE! I am so excited. I will put together a "what I packed for my cruise" or some such post afterwards, because I'm honestly not sure what I'm bringing. I've never been on a cruise before! I am bringing a bathing suit. And, umm, clothes? Yes. That sounds right. Clothing.

And just so this isn't a words-only post, because who likes those? Here are some outfits I've worn over the past few weeks. There's also a bonus picture of my adorable husband holding a CHRISTMAS SHARK*!

Leggings as pants? Yes please!

Details:
scarf: crocheted by my friend Nat
white enamel leaf pin: from clothing swap
Sweater: Evans 22/24
Lace inset leggings: Asos curve, 22
Boots: miz mooz button-ups, size 10
at-the-last-minute-I-chickened-out-on-the-whole-leggings-as-pants-thing-and-put-on-a-black-slip-underneath: evans, came with my Beth Ditto polka dotted dress.

What I wore to the Urban Craft Uprising (which was Awesome!)

Details:
Dress: Cuddlebunny.etsy.com (I shorted the sleeves to cap sleeves)
Boots: Target Kaden, size 11
Glasses: eyebuydirect.com
sweatyness: brought on by combo of polyester dress in crowded expo hall.

I really liked this pic of me that my husband took:

And, as promised, CHRISTMAS SHARK!*

*There's actually nothing Christmasy about it, it's just a stuffed shark we found at Ikea.

71 followers on blogger?!

2010-12-18T13:37:00.000-08:00

Oh my! My follower numbers jumped by quite a bit this week!

Welcome, all you dear new followers!

The big reveal

2010-12-13T12:54:00.000-08:00

Remember when I asked everyone to move their bookmarks for my blog? It was because I wanted to launch something new at wearelargepeople.com!

When I started this blog a year ago, I already had the (rather faint) idea that I wanted to start my own business as a fashion consultant. I'm so happy that, today, I am launching this new part of my life and that I get to share it with all of you! Won't you come look around?

A little bit more about it:

I want to create a safe space where you can explore new looks in a supportive and caring environment. I especially enjoy working with women who are plus-sized, as well as women with special concerns or style needs (allergies/sensitive skin, nursing mothers, etc.).

I don't work on commission, so we can shop at Old Navy or Nordstrom's - wherever the best pieces are for your style and budget - it makes no difference to me!

I am local to the Puget Sound/Seattle area and would love to work with you in person - but I also have packages that are online-only, so we can still work together no matter where you are!

Why don't you contact me and we can get started?

If you or a friend or family member may be interested, get in touch with me! I'm offering 10% off bookings made through my blog through January 15, 2011.

I'm so excited!

Work Holiday Party, and I looked awesome.

2010-12-11T13:49:00.000-08:00

On Friday night we had our work holiday party. It was at the Pacific Science Center, and it was AWESOME.

They had a photo booth.

I made a huge tulle veil and paired it with a dress that had a tulle overlayer (I got at eShakti on clearance).

What you can't see is that it was really short! Also not visible - the fishnets that ripped in multiple places by the end of the night. ~~Cheaply made~~Delicate avenue fishnets + drunk Rebecca = needing a new pair of fishnets.

It was so cool to be at a museum that is normally for kids, but be able to see all the exhibits and do all the activities without any kids around. They even had a planetarium and a laser show!

I'd be remiss if I didn't mention how adorable and hot my husband was last night in his suit and black tie. Cute, cute man.

REMINDER: If you haven't already, please make sure you have moved your bookmarks to wearelargepeople.blogspot.com. If you follow me via blogger/Google friendconnect you should be fine. Thanks!

Housekeeping - What bookmark/rss URL do you have for me?

2010-12-10T12:26:00.000-08:00

Hello lovelies,

I just wanted to check which URL y'all have bookmarked for me.

Very soon, my blog url will revert to:
wearelargepeople.blogspot.com

That's because something new and exciting is going to happen at wearelargepeople.com.

So, if you have wearelargepeople.com bookmarked/feed readered/etc., please change it to wearelargepeople.blogspot.com!

If you follow me via Blogger/Google Friend Connect, you shouldn't have to make any changes.

Thanks all!

An outfit, plus some very exciting news

2010-12-09T19:59:00.000-08:00

The other day it was sunny! Sunny, dear readers. The sun was out.

I squinted at it with glee.

GLEE,* I say.

Outfit details:
Dress: etsy, then DIY'd. It's one of my faves - look at that cute pattern!? The seafoam color?! yes, it is a good dress.
Cardigan: Target xxl
sweater clips: gift from husband
scarf: H&M
squinty happy face: all me

Also, I have some upcoming exciting news. Well, exciting for me. And maybe for you? Maybe not. Anyways, soon my darlings. Also, aren't I mean, to allude to exciting news in the title and then not deliver? Such are my ways.

ETA: It's not a baby.

*not the tv show

Update on the now-passed No Buy November

2010-12-08T00:22:00.000-08:00

So I totally forgot to update you all on how I fared during No-Buy November!

I will admit to two things: I shopped on cyber monday (11/29) because there were such great deals and it was nearly the end of the month, right? I nabbed these with a pretty great discount, and they are as cute in person, if not cuter. I'm still waiting on my packages to come in from across the pond (Evans and Simply Be, I'm looking at you), so I can show you all what I ordered (well, some of what I ordered. Some of it is unbloggable unmentionables... that I just mentioned).

Also, a few of the target clearance items you saw last week were, erm, actually purchased in November also. I actually made my husband buy them so I would technically keep my 'No buy' going... until I realized that I was only lying to myself. We have a shared bank account. It's like I bought them.

So I'm coming clean.

Here are the offenders:

Lace cardigan:

Grey heels and pink t-shirt:

There, now I feel better.

10 days, no dresses - week two hiatus

2010-12-06T15:08:00.000-08:00

Hello friends* - Monkey has pulled her back, and I'm home sick with something or other, so we're going to put week two of our challenge on hiatus.

But don't fear! I have pants pictures for all of you. And non pants pictures.

The "jeans and t-shirt" uniform... that I don't really ever wear. Also, glasses off means that I'm pensive.

Outfit details:
grey skinnies: you've seen many times, torrid source of wisdom size 24
t-shirt: years ago, urban outfitters men's xl
old lady boat shoes: avenue

*internet friends are totally friends

Angsty poetry, coming right up!

2010-12-04T10:38:00.000-08:00

Recently my macbook crashed and burned beyond all recognition. From the flames of offgassing plastic I was able to salvage most of my data, including all of my writing from college (I was an English major). I took a creative writing class, and also wrote poetry somewhat often. It was almost all angsty. I was not a cheerful flower.

I give you... "The Memory of Suffering" (heavy, right?)

Where does he go
When the tears are spent
on his dirty pillowcase?
He is too tired to sleep,
too sore from sobbing,
too restless to lay still.

His hands stopped shaking hours ago.
The only sounds:
the window air conditioner, grunting and shuddering at irregular intervals;
the repetitive clicking of the ceiling fan.
He is shivering.

He is not shivering.
The air conditioner is not shuddering.
The ceiling fan still clicks.

His tongue is stuck to the roof of his mouth.
He licks his lips and they taste salty underneath the dryness.
His face feels tight and clumsy.
His jaw hangs slack.
The ceiling has no new patterns to offer.