Dead-easy Bun Tutorial

Do you like a bun?

Who doesn't right? The messy topknot was all over Pinterest. Still is, I think. And while I do think that the messy topknot might be on its way out, I think that it was well-loved for a good reason. It was damn easy to achieve. This bun is also pretty damn easy to achieve, but its also a smidge more polished.

Here's what you will need if you want to recreate this bun:

• Two elastics (one ponytail elastic, and one little one. A clear mini one works best)
• Two bobby pins in your hairs color.
• Maybe a brush.

Ta-frickin-da. Its that easy.

I have long, very thick hair, so that is the only hair type that I can vouch for with this method. I suspect though, that if you have thinner hair, you could probably backcomb it a bit before you put in the second elastic band, and that will give you a bun with more volume, and it will help it "spread" better.

Hope this works out for you as well as it does for me!

Mango Cardi w/Leopard Scarf

Not that bright colors were innapropriate for the Winter season, but I guess now that Spring is here (maybe if I keep saying it enough, it will become reality), I am really getting into the brighter colors! Besides, I was trawling some other girls fashion blog, and she had an intense love for scarves... so it inspired me to wear my lovely $4.99 eBay find...

I nearly didn't take any shots for this outfit, because its pretty casual, and I do find it hard to feel the look is worth an OOTD post when I am dressed casually.

However, it was accessorised pretty decently, and I do love the bright mango color of the cardigan, so, I figured what the h-e-double hockeysticks.

Glossybox.ca March 2013

Spring is Springing, Bitches! (White skinnies/bold blazer)

Sort of a Pin to Post, but not a direct one. I've been seeing this sort of thing all over Pinterest;  a bold coloured blazer paired with white skinny jeans and a striped shirt. There isn't a specific pin, although really, if I looked hard enough I bet I could find something like it out there.

If I had to pick an alternative title for this post, it would have to have something to do with Yachting... Not that I would wear pumps on a boat, but this outfit feels quite preppy/yacht club to me. Which is pretty funny, considering what my style was like in high-school  I bet there are old classmates who would never pick me out of a line-up, based on this outfit. I was quite the rocker back when they knew me, so I figure I might not be easily recognisable in this get-up.

So, I am trying this new Polyvore thing, so that you can find the pieces a bit more easily of you dig it. If I was able to find the exact item online, its in the Polyvore list you'll see at the end, but otherwise I just found a reasonable facsmile.

5 (+1) Ways to Amp Up Your Ego

Those days you just want to stay in bed, with the covers up over your head.

Those days where you feel like small children would run screaming from your general area.

Those days where you hate every article of clothing you own, and, were it not for the significant monetary outlay it took to amass your wardrobe, you would set it all on fire.

Those days where you feel like the most unattractive physical specimen on the planet.

We all have 'em. Even skinnybitches have 'em (from what I've heard anyway; never been a skinnybitch myself). I suspect that its some clever little trick that the patriarchy has managed to instill into all female brains, this tendency to doubt ourselves (even the gorgeous ones among us) but that's a sociopolitical thesis that I don't really think that anyone wants to get into on this little 'ole fashion and beauty blog.
I mean, shit, one might go so far as to say this whole blog is just a reinforcement of those little strings that the patriarchy uses to make us "dance, puppets, dance"!! But whatever, I can't stay high-level and cerebral ALL the time... it makes my eyebrows hurt (shout out to Dr. Seuss...)

Where was I?

Oh yes, the ego, and how to pump it up a bit.

Unless you are an emo kid, no one really likes feeling like shit. And, its all a matter of perspective, right? You see a bad pic of yourself, you have a shitty day, someone says (or comments) something snide, and your confidence is shot. You're no less good-looking than you were 5 minutes ago, so how do you get your mojo back when its been kicked down a peg? So here are a few of the strategies that I have found useful in shoring up my ego on the days that it's taken a couple of hits, or for staving off those days as much as possible.

How to do a Bright Pink Lip!

Nothing says Spring quite as much as a set of pink lips. This Spring, a bold almost fuschia lip (but with less purple in it) as made an appearance in a big way. Today, I am going to show you how I do a bright pink lip with a Miss Dior circa 1960's feel. Enjoy!

70s Rock Chick

Whattaya think... a mike stand would go great here, no?

I usually have a really hard time coming up with clever post titles (as you can probably tell), but for this OOTD, it just kind of came to me. It was clearer in the mirror than in the pics, but I felt a Stevie Nicks vibe from this, with the hanky-hem shirt, and the high ruched boots. Which then led me to the eye makeup look...

So, here we have, as I mentioned, a black hankie-hem blouse, my trusty jeggings and knee-high black boots. Ooh, and to follow the theme, I wore my gunmetal pyramid-stud earrings and a gunmetal bracelet. The metal just so happened to match the beltbuckle on my "snakeskin" belt. I bought this belt ages ago, ove the Christmas holidays, and this is the first time I have worn it! Glad it has finally made an appearance.

Sheer Madness!

     

     Like so many women, I like to show off my legs and my arms. I don't have the legs of a Victoria's Secret model, but you know what? Neither do they. They are photoshopped up the ying yang. So, I shrug my shoulders and get on with feeling the sun on my bare skin. My thoughts are that on one's deathbed, one isn't going to wish that they covered themselves up more and felt guilty and ashamed about their body. They are going to wish that they felt the kiss of the elements on their flesh. For those of you that need some coaxing, I present to you a perfect primer....sheer! It gives you the coverage you feel comfortable in, yet it shows some skin. It is also ultra sleek and makes limbs look long and sultry. 

I present to you the cream of my finds....the best pieces that have risen to the top and would love to go for a spin with you!

1) This Vince Camuto dress ($128.83 CDN at Bloomingdale's) is just the ticket for a gal who has been itching to show some leg. The inside skirt is just above the knee and the sheer panel takes the line from knee to ankle. It looks glamourous and elevated and has a columnar effect on the wearer. One can pair it with heels, like the image provided or with sandals if one wants to dress it down. 

2) Cult of California is by far and away one of my favorite labels. The designer, Jen Wilder, is a dedicated soul that sees bringing quality, on-trend plus size fashions to all as a labour of love. Cult of California is not only designed but made in the United States. This dress is a perfect fun and flirty Spring to Summertime dress. This dress will do wonders to balance out a fuller bottom half as the top half has volume via the batwing sleeves. It also nips in at the waist, making it figure flattering for pretty well every body type. This comes in at the amazing price of $75.00. You simply cannot find prices like that on dresses that are made in the States!

3) Manon Baptiste does it again. This is a beautiful dress for the woman that likes to show the tiniest hint of skin, but looking polished whilst doing so. The sleeves are made of 100% silk, which is a wonderful touch of luxury on this simple but chic dress. This dress is available on Navabi for $127.90 CDN. 

4) The final dress is a master class in plus size body confidence. It calls for a strapless or a clear strap bra, in addition to being well above the knee and a body con fit. This dress would be so fun to wear for a night on the town, but probably not for general office wear. Files would be dropping all over the place and creepy people with leering eyes would be asking you to pick up pencils for them. The ruching details throughout the dress smooth out all sorts of dimples and bumps that might pop out. This is dress is $72.09 at Macy's. 

     Well, there you have it, folks. Dresses running from reasonably conservative to downright h-o-t! Wear them with a smile and with confidence! 

Classic White Blouse

Inspiration (left); Interpretation (right)

Whooo weee! So long without "Pin to Post" posts, and here we have two in a row!
I told my photographer that today's shot had to be better than the last one, because the last one made me hate myself a little.

Not that it was her photo taking, all subject! Well, really, I blame the blazer. The blazer takes no responsibility for it, but it was totally her fault. Anyways, we've broken up, and she is on her way to the Diabetes foundation...

Not much to blather on about today, so I'll just present the outfit.

I'll get wordy in my next post, the one where I talk about what I do to make myself feel better when I am not loving myself too much. I might come off a little bit like a mean b*tch, because pumping myself up sometimes can involve a little schadenfraude, but, let's save that for another day...

Daytime Smoky Eye How-to

     I love makeup. I always have and I love sitting at home and farting around with all the colours and textures of products that I use. I pride myself on using both high end and pocket friendly brands. I love Maybelline mascara. They are always under $10 and give amazingly full looking lashes. I like to team up different types of mascara to have the falsies look. Because, let's face it, I am far too lazy for falsies. I also love palettes. They are oftentimes a better price than buying all the offered colours individually and they present a mix of hues you wouldn't otherwise pick but turn out to love. I use two palettes when I do a smoky eye: "Natural Eye" by Too Faced and "Naked 2" by Urban Decay. They are high quality pigments in cute little boxes. What more would you possibly want? 

     Maybe you want to know how I put on makeup. I am by no means or measure an expert, but I do know how to put myself together. Here are some pics, tips and tricks!

Kate Spade Necklace Giveaway!

     We are pretty excited about this giveaway! We thought that we had to give something really special away to our readers. Something fun and good quality. So! We came up with a Kate Spade Necklace as the chosen prize! It is a lovely three string beauty that is a bright and happy yellow. It has an extender on the back and I encourage the winner to wear it as a neutral! Pair it with a black maxi and a denim jacket! It looks great with a white t and some cropped black pants. Dove grey and yellow sing together as do pretty well any and all jewel tones. Good luck!

You can start making your entries beginning at midnight tonight, and the contest will run for two weeks! 

UPDATE: People seemed pretty keen on this one... so we are opening it up now... Have at it!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Black Suiting, revisited (Pin to Post)

Inspiration (Left)                 Interpretation (right) 

Well. Not every one is a winner. For the only second of these Pin to Post posts, I am not terribly satisfied with the look. I have to say though, I kind of knew I wasn't going to dig it that much, but when I put it together, I had high hopes. I thought maybe I would prove myself wrong.


Ya.

Not so much.

I suppose I shouldn't have been surprised to find all the pieces in my closet, they are pretty basic staples. Its the necklace that elevates it (as mentioned by the original poster).

So much grey for being on the cusp of Spring...

Squinty McGee... How do real models shoot in the sun?
 Its OVERCAST here!!

Well, I had totally planned to wear my new killer Addition Elle dress on Monday... and then my alarm didn't go off. So, instead, I threw on this outfit. But, fear not, the Dress will make an appearance soon enough. In case you were worried...

What is this anyway, a cape? A poncho?Capes were huge not too long ago. But I don't know if you are going to find that many of them out in the stores now. Ponchos on the other hand, are still on the scene in a big way. I purchased this bad boy at Sears. Its a Jessica.

I think it was ridiculously on sale too... This through-belted poncho thing I see all over the place now though.  And I think, if I do say so myself, that it can be quite flattering. I wore this to a party recently, and someone asked me if I had lost some weight. Sadly no weight loss, but gladly, the sweater/poncho is very flattering! To bring it back into relevancy a little, in case the cape-ness of it is a bit dated, I've paired it with my yellow statement necklace. Yellow, hot for Spring 2013, statement necklaces, hot right now. I love how a simple statement necklace can totally elevate a look. It sure did for this one.

What to Wear...Wedding Guest Edition

     I was having high tea with my husband this weekend and we saw our first bride and her entourage hustle across the lobby to their waiting limos. It dawned on me that Wedding Season is upon us. As soon as we see the crocuses, it means that many Brides and Grooms are scrambling to get their Save-the-Dates out the door and into our hands. What does that mean for the Plus Sized Guest? A scramble for a dress! There are so many "rules" and customs that it is damned difficult to come up with an outfit that is beautiful and won't raise eyebrows of critical elderly guests. The two most basic tenants are 1) Don't wear white and 2) Don't wear black. The white rule is written in stone. Don't even think about it. However, some guests are sneaking in some black dresses these days. However, all the dresses I will be showing will be colourful or in the very most feature very little black in them. Here are my guidelines for dressing for a wedding:

Topbox.ca February 2013

TopBox.ca February 2013; Pure & Simple Privé box

So, I guess, technically, I won! See, this month, there was this option with TopBox to pick a special box. When I got the email, I eagerly went on the site, and picked out of the 5 or so options that were available. Then, I saw on the interwebs, that if you got that special box, you weren't getting those items in addition to the regular TopBox items for the month, you were getting those items instead. So, instead of getting 4 items that are typical to the TopBox monthly haul, I only got two.

TopBox.ca February 2013; Regular box

As soon as I read that, I KNEW that I was going to get the "special" TopBox, simply because I would prefer to get 4 items than 2. The one I chose was a blush and a nailpolish. And I got to pick the shade as well. But, I was having a brain-glitch at the time, and I accidentally picked a random shade. But that's cool, I like the shades that I got. China Glaze nailpolish in Purr-fect Plum, and a Pure & Simple blush. I quite like the blush, because its a smidge darker than anything I currently have. I also quite like it because a little goes a LONG way. I did your typical fingertip swatch, and it was too much for one cheek. Which means this is going to last quite a while. Which I dig! However, the pan has already fallen out of the case. Bummer, because this makes it more likely to shatter, but I can glue it in I guess...
And, China Glaze is a brand that I have almost none of, so I am pretty pleased to add another China Glaze to my little nail polish family.

Now, the regular TopBox, I have pics of as well, as my co-worker has signed up for TopBox too. I think I would have been pretty satisfied with that one as well. I really would have gone for the mask, the Marc Jacobs perfumes were really nice, and the little case would make a fantastic change purse! My lovely co-worker gave me one of the perfume samples, it was Daisy. And it smelled fantastic! She also gave me one of the hair oils as well (I'm pretty lucky).


Now, online research has shown me that there was a Benefit TopBox that I could have signed up for, and I would have WAY preferred to get one, as there was like, 5 or 6 items in it from Benefit. I don't know WTF happened, but all I know is, I am going to read my emails a lot more closely from now on. No more skimming...





 

Look Chic In Fashions From Your Local Mall!

     What a pain in the patootie. You have a impromptu night out planned and frankly you didn't plan it a month in advance so you couldn't get something new from Asos. What is a girl to do? Well, I have been keeping my eyes peeled for you ladies. Yes, we can look FOXY with stuff from a mall! Not only that, but the pieces are very well priced. And I don't say that in a condescending and erudite voice. I genuinely mean these finds are pretty cheap and readily available. Moreover, I found something from Penningtons. I am just as shocked as you are! But it turns out, if you are looking for a dress in a pinch, give them a peruse. However, step away from the shapeless jackets!

Here is look number one:

Everything here is easily found in a Canadian mall. The dress is from Penningtons and is $60.00.

The necklace and clutch are from Forever 21 and the shoes are from Aldo at $100.00. The great thing about this dress is that a) you can pop the collar b) it is fit and flare. Fit and flare creates a wonderful hourglass shape and tends to tame a tummy. The accessories are trendy and fun and are highly disposable coming in at $35.80 for the clutch and $12.80 for the necklace. I went with a longer necklace to create a longer neck. The less we put as visual obstacles on the line from the chin to the chest, the more streamlined our neck will look and minimize chins. However, I often tell that rule to go and suck eggs, as I wear crystal encrusted bib necklaces all the damned time. Next!

        Now, I agree with you. The above outfit needs a belt. But good luck finding a plus size belt in a mall that isn't ugly and/or nylon. So, I assume that you have one. Maybe even this one. Failing that, a simple black skinny belt will work. The cute black and white striped shirt is from the Bay and it rings in at $51.75. The pants actually have some natural fibers in them and are on sale for $40.00 at Reitmans. I decided to reuse the clutch and shoes from the above post for I want to get your cost per wear down! Then you can justify ANYTHING! Even Vuitton. Back on Earth however, we have a necklace from Forever 21 at $7.80. What a deal! 

     Back to the same Aldo shoes, and we are at $33.33 at cost per wear in just 3 outfits! I paired them with what Old Navy likes to call this a dress, and what I like to call a long tunic. The black and white blocking is on trend and looks so chic. So chic for how much? $36.94! Wow! The bag is $41.80 and is cow-free, where as the necklace is $10.80 and both are from Forever 21. The leggings are from Reitmans and come in at $36.00. All of the Reitmans garments shown are from their plus line. The Old Navy dress goes up to a XXL, which fits me at a 20W. I would love to have this dress, and I am currently plotting to go to the mall to snap it up. Pair this with a red or orange lip and you are laughing. 

     Well, there you have it, folks! Three cheap and chic looks available across Canada at any old mall. It goes to show that regardless of what your preconceived notions of the store are, there can still be some good finds to be had any and everywhere!

Addition-Elle Grand Opening Event

The Invite

Sit a spell, and let me tell you the story of my involvement in the Grand Opening party for Addition-Elle, one of the preeminent, if not THE preeminent Canadian plus-size clothing retailers.
A few weeks ago, I got this invite in the mail. As a member of Addition-Elle's loyalty program, my initial thought was that it was a blanket mailing to their list, and I paid little attention to it. Then, one day, I realised that it was sent to my Curvouture email. I hadn't signed up for their loyalty program with my Curvouture email. My superior powers of deduction led me to the conclusion that somehow, Addition-Elle had found our little blog, and had invited us specifically. Liz, sadly, lives in Vancouver, and so could not attend, but I did, and I had a great time!
I mean, there was shopping for clothes, with cocktails, and h'ors doeuvres... being served by male models. I fail to see a downside anywhere here.
I was a little... star-struck, shall we say, as this was my first "event" but it was really a lovely time.
The store looked great, with a slick modern decor, and the clothes were fantastic.

Cubicle Fashion

If you've been following the blog for a while (and if you have, thank you, and if you haven't, there's still time to make amends ;) ) you'll recall that my company moved locations a while back. I was unfortunately one of the few people who had to be downgraded from an office to a cubicle.
I'm not going to lie; I was not a happy little camper at the news.

The green is a little intense in the photos... its more sage green in real life.
The shelves are covered in leather-look contact paper.
 Damask noteboard: Bouclair Home.

However, one of those little nuggets of wisdom that you hear and forget, but mostly stays lodged in your unconscious, floated to the surface. Something along the lines of "you're as happy as you want to be.*" You can't choose the outcome of certain situations, but you can choose how you react to them. I certainly couldn't undo the decision to put me in a cubicle, but I wasn't going to freakin' wallow in it.
So, I went out, dropped a few bucks at IKEA, and Bouclair Home, and I decorated the muthatruckin' shit out of my cubicle. Before I did that, I scoured Pinterest for some inspiration. I think that's something I might continue to do in future when it comes to decor. Pinterest is super useful in so many regards.

Mint Green mani

Don't know why the bottom right image is so sucky... sorry!

So, my intention was for this to be mint green and emerald green, since the word on the street is that emerald is the color of the year, and mint is going to be a big color for Spring 2013. However, my emerald is probably more of a forest green... And my mint green is borderline turquoise...What do you think?
I also had originally intended this to be a half-moon manicure too, but once I had my base color down, I didn't want to risk smegging it up. So, instead, I used dots to delineate the half moon, and voila, this weeks mani.
This weeks? You say? You've never posted a mani before!
This is true, you see, at the beginning of December, I had some acrylic nails put on for a shwanky party I was going to. And it's ONLY NOW that my nails have recovered. Note to self, never get acrylics again...
I hope to get back in my nail groove and post some more manicures of the week. We'll see how that pans out...
In case you're wondering, this is Essie's Turquoise and Caicos, and OPIs Don't Mess with OPI.

Looking Crisp in Black and White

   

      Hello, my beauties! How is your day? I just accidentally shaved a sizeable chunk off my eyebrows. Damnit! So I am going to be filling them in just a little more for the next few weeks. Dang!

     

     One thing I have been noticing in the pages of Vogue and in store windows downtown is black and white. Bold use of black and white. Graphic use of black and white. In amazing patterns and a-symmetrical panels and in blocks, it is looking so fresh and put together. I personally LOVE black and white put together. LOVE IT! Be it a polka dot, a check or stripes, I cannot get enough. 

     I know that many plus size women shy away from stripes and prints fearing that it will be unflattering and unappealing on them. Fear not. I have being doing some editing, and I think that I have assembled some pieces that will make you look fashionable and polished. 

   Before we get to that, let's quickly touch on pattern. What size of pattern looks good on a rounded figure? There are two schools of thought. One is: the size of the pattern must match the size of the person. Big girl, big print. I learned this in my image consulting programme.  Tim Gunn, however, thinks that a small print looks just right on a fuller figure. He fears that if the print is too large, it might look a little tenty. 

     I wear both. I have a shift that is white with black polka dots and it features big dots. About the size of a twoonie. I also have a blouse that has much smaller dots on it. For the smaller print, I pair it with a bold cardigan, like a bright yellow or a fuchsia. I also then put a belt around my waist. This gives it structure and makes the blouse fit my shape and not the other way around. As for the dress, it has darting and seaming up the ying yang, so I just pair it with a statement necklace and at times a sweater if it gets chilly. 

     My rule of thumb is that if it is tailored to your figure, it won't look like a tent. Have it taken in, buy dresses with darts or ruching or self belts and you are laughing. Big shapeless panels will make pretty well anyone look like a shapeless panel themselves. Belts are your friend. Simple, chic, streamlined thin belts that are an inch or more in width is perfect. Anything thinner than that is lost in the outfit. Giant belts are to be tucked away this season to make way for their more demure cousin. Don't be afraid to skinny belt it! I do....every freaking day!

Before I sign off, here is "The List"(starting from the far top left, running clockwise)

1) Striped Skirt Dress: Eshakti: $69.95

2) Pink Cross Body Bag: J. Crew: $156.00

3) Ink Striped Dress: Dorothy Perkins: £39.50

4) Small Dot Dress: Eloquii: $129.00

5) White and Black Zip Dress: Asos: $39.29

6) Dotted Silk Blouse: Talbots: $99.00

7) Ink Short Sleeve Sweater: Joe Fresh: $39.00

8) Yellow Satchel: J Crew: $398.00

9) Chunky Heel Bow Pumps: Lanvin: $685.00

10) Floral Skirt: Navabi: $131.90

11) Black and White Striped Shirt: Forever 21: $23.80

Belts:

1) Pink Belt: Talbots: $49.50

2) Blue Belt: Felicee: $3.98

Love Your Body!

     

Glossybox.ca February 2013

How'd ya like me now?
 

Fuchsia, how I misjudged thee

When I was a kid, I remember fuchsia being a color that I associated with my mom. I can't recall why, but I remember that I associated it with my mom, and it was therefore uncool, and most certainly not the color for me. I also thought that about her predilection for large scale floral patterns, and cross-stich. While my distaste for floral patterns still holds very true, and my opinion on cross-stitch is wavering (there is some incredible shit going on in Etsy; like here, here, here here, here, and here), I have done a complete 180 on fuchsia. In that it is a variation of pink, I think it might be one of those colors that looks good on me!

So, letting a previously tainted color back into your life can be a good thing, that is something I learned.

Something I also learned, is that satin, and static cling, and some curves, do not mix.

So, satin is an iffy fabric. It can crease terribly, but most egregious, is its sheen. And the sheen works against you... big time. Combine that with some static that makes it cling to your curves, and sometimes, it makes for a not nice look.

There were a lot of shots taken of this outfit, and a LOT of them did not make the cut.

See, I kind of have a personal policy that I won't airbrush any of the shots that I take, but that doesn't mean that I have to post ALL the shots. You can betcher ass that I am cutting any that make me look as though I am 6 months pregnant. And static cling, shiny satin, and a not-flat stomach = bun-in-the-oven lookin'. I know that there are some who would be all "f*ck it, embrace your curves" but I am not that evolved. I can only embrace some of them...