Belle Curve

There is a brand in Target that is called Belle Curve, they specialise in plus size clothing from 16-26.

The most recent times i have been in to have a look at the pieces from the label, they have been really stylish and cute. Lots of leather look pieces  also the use of lace, jewels and velvet. Many of the pieces i have found i have really liked and things that i would get a lot of wear out of and they are of course reasonable prices. Here are some of my favourites! 

Belle Curve Zip Me Up Jacquard Skirt

Belle Curve Anastasia Shoulder Dress

Belle Curve Slouch Pants 

Belle Curve Reach For The Stars Studded Top 

Belle Curve Long Sleeve Leotard 

Belle Curve Skinny Coated Pants 

Belle Curve Floral Panel Top 

Visit any Target Store to shop Belle Curve or Head to

http://www.target.com.au/b/bellecurve

Reshaping Fashion: A Perfect 14

We all grew up thinking that we were meant to be something we are not. searching for perfection and acceptance. I don't remember a time in my life where i wasn't considered Plus size or a Bigger Girl. I don't even remember a time in my life where i was ever considered skinny or a "normal size". As iv'e grown up iv'e learned to love myself. What frustrated me more than anything was that there was a time in my life where i didn't love who i was, where i loathed getting dressed up and going out, where i was being told how  should look what i should be eating and who i was meant to be. I remember being told "you will never find a job being a bigger girl", "you will never be able to have a family and to find someone who loves you being a bigger girl" "don't you want to look pretty?" and the worst one that has always stuck with me was "you know you would look really pretty skinny". I asked myself day in and day out why it was that people would say these things. Society has a lot to answer for, our whole lives we have been told to look a certain way, to act a certain way and to be who other people want us to be and all these people hate that we don't fit the mold so therefore we get criticised. Its sad that only in the last two or three years i have come to love myself, to realise that i am beautiful and that the way i am is okay. Im a proud to be curvy girl and its time that we start to see Plus Size a normality. Some of the most beautiful people in the world have curves and i want to see them on the front of magazines and modelling for some of the top labels. 

                                      Plus-size models Elly Mayday (centre), Laura Wells (left) and Kerosene Deluxe (right) 

I was so inspired by the new documentary film "A Perfect 14"  that explores the fascinating world of plus size modelling and the women involved who show how beauty comes from confidence and not your dress size. The documentary, produced by Canadian filmmakers James Early O'Brien and Giovanna Morales Vargas, offers an unflinching look at the modelling business and its often unforgiving treatment of women with curves. Models Elly Mayday, Laura Wells and Kerosene Deluxe share their personal experiences of struggle and success in the modelling industry. These fearless models have a body positive activist mentality and are part of a growing culture of photographers, designers, make up artists and performers who promote confidence and respect for individuality through their exposure. These women are determined to eliminate the established perception in society that one size fits all.

One of the best quotes i heard from one of the models was " ‘It's important to love your body because you have to live in it,’ she says. ‘It should be your world, it should be your temple, it should be loved and respected... and dressed glamourously ’ ". I could not agree more this statement, more girls need to take on this mantra and love themselves. 

Check out the Teaser Trailer here:

http://vimeo.com/90717453 

To check out more about the film and to help donate towards it check out:
https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/a-perfect-14#home

Emporium Goodness

It's official I love Melbourne even more now. The emporium is extroidnary and it's only just the beginning! So many great stores are there and are also on arrival. UNIQLO is another international store that has arrived in the emporium it is from Tokyo, the name means unique and clothing. They are world famous for being high quality, comfortable and innovative. When I looked at the store I just saw so much colour. Just about every peice that was displayed came in every colour of the rainbow it was amazing. Such interesting and different clothes nothing like melbournes really seen. 

Another exciting store to be opening soon is the much awaited Victoria secret! Yes we have all been waiting for a long time and it's finally about to arrive. I think I almost squealed when I saw the sign and it looks as though it's going to be quite a large store! 

Walking around the emporium it felt very luxurious, the atmosphere was great and i just wanted to hang out there all day and admire all the pretty clothes and architecture. One of my favourite. Designers has also opened a store 'Camilla' it is full of colour and such boohoo designs. It made me feel like I was in another world! Will definitely be going back there to shop and have another look. 

All in all I'm so excited for the future of the emporium and what's to come! I feel as though this is a major step for Melbourne to inject more international fashion into our city and to celebrate new ideas and designs! I will be keeping a close eye on the new labels coming and keep you all updated! 

Finding Plus Size Occasion Dresses

The hardest thing sometimes when your plus size is to find formal and occasion dresses! Ofcourse there's City Chic and Dream Diva who have some amazing occasion dresses that fit beautifully! But sometimes I just want to wear different brands or different kinds of gowns. In the hunt for looking for a dress for my cousins wedding I have been searching for more places that do plus size formal wear. I have found a few places online that do amazing plus size formal wear such as: 

http://www.sydneyscloset.com

http://www.igigi.com

http://isabellafashions.com.au

http://www.lightinthebox.com

These are just a few! But even better I discovered two brands in the city that went up higher than a 14.

The first one was in Myer it's called Montique it's a very stylish formal wear brand and has a lot of girly colours and uses a lot of silk and lace. This label goes from size 8-20 and both the dresses I tried on fit me very well, some of them were even generous. If you can check out the brand it's worth while, they have some beautiful gowns, can be for weddings, bridesmaids mother of the bride and formal occasions. The prices were reasonable for handmade beautiful dresses ranging from $200 and higher.

                                 

                               http://m.montiqueclothing.com.au

                                  

The other beautiful brand I found that also goes up to a size 20 was a brand in David jones that orginally came from the UK. There sizes were a bit smaller but still some of the dresses were generous and fit well. The label is called Phase Eight, they have the most stunning and elegant gowns that are made so beautifully. Majority of there dresses are made from stretch materials so they have room in them. They have many dresses that are statement dresses and have a lot of glitz on them, they are amazing. 

                                  

                                 

                                http://www.phase-eight-fashion.com

H&M +

I'm pretty sure the whole of Melbourne has been so excited about the arrival of H&M. I know this considering the line has been 20 meters long since the day it open three weeks ago! But the curvy girls are also even more excited because we have another shop to add to our labels that we can shop in that goes up from a size 12. Yes that's right H&M+ from size 14-24. Although some of us already were big online shoppers for H&M is awesome to now be able to go in to the shop and see what's there in person. I have been there a few times since it opened and I went and had another look today. When you first walk into the store H&M+ is on the right hand side. The clothes are all stylish and fashion forward with the latest trends being shown such as lots of leather look outfits and many colours such as maroon teal Greys and pinks. There were many pairs of pants including black work pants which was really good considering they are hard to find in plus size nowadays and they also had a wide variety of shirts. The only negatives I would have about the line is that it's very small, you will be able to see from the photos I post but I just wish they had of dedicated a bit more space for it. I also was slightly disappointed that there was not more dressy outfits majority of the stock was fairly casual or work wear there was only two dresses but they were black and they were more for day/work or drinks, there was no really pretty occasion dresses or anything more glitzy, like the many I saw in the non plus size section. Other than that I am excited that there's another place I can go to get plus size clothes and I'm hoping this is the start of Melbourne opening more stores that offer plus size. Bring it on! 

BEST DRESSED GOLDEN GIRL CARRIE BICKMORE

Carrie Bickmore had by far the most amazing dress at the 2014 56th Annual Tv Week logie awards last night. Carrie took the cake with this amazing off white A-line gown by Paolo Sebastian. she was definitely best dressed in my view and she stole the spotlight. Featuring a sheer lace bodice and layered, princess style A-line skirt, the Channel Ten star stole the show in the couture gown. There was not many accessories needed because the dress was already such a statement, however i did love the thin added metallic belt to give her shape. She looked like a true princess. 

Unite In White

White is such a key component of style for this winter and the crisp white shirt is a piece that never goes out of fashion. If we look back in the history of fashion the white shirt has always been a staple for any womens wardrobe. You can dress it up with skirt jewellery and high heels, you can wear it day in and day out for work and you can wear it casually with jeans, its so versatile.  Even more so this year because of Witchery and the White shirt campaign. They have done a collection of nine shirts, 7 for women and 2 for men. Witchery is donating 100% of proceeds for every white shirt sold to support ovarian cancer research foundation. one women dies every 10 hours of ovarian cancer and theres no early detection test, this is why its so important that we raise funds for more research to be done. May 1st is OCRF's white shirt day. Everyone should get on board and buy a witchery white shirt or wear any white shirt and wear it on this day to support the cause. You can also register and donate directly to uniteinwhite.com.au check out sundays style magazine to read more about it.

This white shirt can save lives. 

 

check out www.witchery.com.au 

All Witchery Shirts go up to a size 16 , Trenery, Country road, Target and Myer  also have many white shirts that go from a size 16 to 18. 

WINTER SHOE WISHLIST

TopShop Shelly Cutout Back Platforms

           

                   Topshop 'Scarlet' Snake Embossed Platform Sandal

 

Steve Madden Mightee Leather Biker Boot, Black

Wittner Avril Powder Pink Leather 

Wittner Kuma White Leather 

Wittner Tanya Black Leather 

 Wittner Future White Leather 

Jeffrey Campbell Flatform Trainer 

River Island Flatter 

Midas Ready Boot 

This is my winter shoe wish list! As you will probably realise over time that shoes are one of my biggest downfalls. I really do believe you can never have enough shoes, it's one of my favourite accessories and I love that a pair of shoes can completely change an outfit! These are a few of my favourite winter shoes from my favourite labels. Because I have a size 11 foot I find it difficult to find shoes so these are the main shops that stock my size but I can always rely on them to have fashion forward footwear too. By far my all time favourite show store is wittner I also love Midas, Steve Madden and top shop shoes and although people tend to go for the higher priced brands for shoes I have been known to find great stylish shoes from target I'm a form believer that there shoes are amazing and for that fact they go to a size 11. I also have a favourite store called Bared which make shoes to size 12 so anyone looking for bigger sized shoes that's a good place to check out! So I hope you can all get some winter shoe inspiration from my wish list!!! Get shoe shopping :)

Check out all these amazing shoes at: 

 http://www.topshop.com

http://www.wittner.com.au

http://www.stevemadden.com

http://www.midasshoes.com.au

http://www.riverisland.com

http://www.jeffreycampbellshoes.com

Edgy Black on Black

Like a lot of girls black is my best friend, i do try to wear colours occasionally but black is always a staple in my cupboard. Yesterday i saw the most amazing black leather vest and black layered shirt from City Chic, which came in their new stock on thursday. I have been looking for a leather vest for so long and this one is exactly what i had in mind. Its structured perfectly and is right on trend with all the leather that is available  this winter. I was also after a black shirt and loved this one that i picked up, it is a black see thru shirt with a collar and a layered look over the bust with a tie, the tie allows the shirt to give you shape. It is a perfect staple for any woman's closet as everyone can wear a black shirt. I can already think of so many outfits which i can wear it with. This outfit is very edgy and rock chic, i also paired it with the wet look jeans from city chic, which are also a must they are incredibly comfortable and you can dress them up and down. If your looking for a more edgy look you have to go and get this incredible black leather look vest before it sells out!! 

Outfit Details: 

Vest, Jeans and Shirt: City Chic - www.citychic.com.au 

Shoes: Wittner www.wittner.com.au 

Bag: Seed - www.seedheritage.com.au