Review: Beautiful Gown from IGIGI by Yuliya Raquel‏

A while back, I got sent this beautiful gown from IGIGI by Yuliya Raquel‏. I've been so busy these past few months that I didn't get a chance to review it right away, but I thought I would share it with you all now!

The fabric of this dress is SO luxurious! The lace is a lovely, heavy-weight stretchy fabric, and the velvet feels amazing. I absolutely adore this burgundy colour (which I think works especially well on fair-skinned brunettes - hey, that's me!). I felt like old-hollywood all night long wearing this totally glamourous dress! I often chose IGIGI for formal events that I'm attending because I feel that the style and quality are exceptional and the dresses are cut with plus size women in mind (but avoid the usual dowdiness of plus size formal wear). You should definitely check them out if you have a formal event coming up!

Dress - c/o IGIGI by Yuliya Raquel/Coat - ATTITUDE Jay Manuel via Sears Canada/Earrings - Can't Remember!

OOTD and N: A Really Beautiful Wedding (and what I actually wore to it!)

Hey Everyone!

This past Saturday, Peter and I were invited to the wedding of one of my closest friends! It was such a beautiful wedding. It was held at the Toronto Hunt, and the ceremony was stunning. It was an outdoor ceremony with loads of flowers and it was right in front of the lake. There were a couple of butterflies flying around too. The weather was absolutely perfect for the outdoor ceremony, because it was lovely and warm, but not too sunny, and there was a nice cool breeze coming in off the lake. They had a classical trio playing music before and during the ceremony, and the music was so pretty. Peter and I got the musicians' business card, lol. The officiant was also really great! Sometimes the officiants can rush through ceremonies, but I really felt like all of her words were totally heartfelt and that she was enjoying what she was doing. Fantastic! When the bride, my friend Suzana, came out, she was absolutely breathtaking. She looked totally fantastic. She and her husband Jon are away on their honeymoon enjoying their first day in Paris today! Enjoy, you guys!

For this wedding, I decided to wear a IGIGI dress that's sheer black with a lavender layer underneath. I paired it with some chandelier earrings and a set of shiny black beads. I wore my (relatively comfortable) black heels and carried a vintage hand beaded black clutch which I think is from the 1940s. I decided to wear my hair up, since I always tear up the dance floor and get so hot that I just end up throwing my hair in a messy pony tail anyway... I thought a red lip would go really nicely with the luxurious look of the lace on the dress and the beaded clutch. What do you guys think?

Dress - IGIGI/Necklace - Ardene/Earrings - Forever 21/Shoes - Torrid/Clutch - Thrifted Vintage

Doesn't Peter look handsome? He let me pick out his outfit! I wanted to do his hair too, but he wouldn't let me :(

This is one of my new favourite pictures of the Peter and I. I think it might be frame-worthy!

More of What I Would Wear to a Wedding

Hey Everyone!

The last post about what I would wear to a wedding seemed to generate a lot of interest, so I thought I would do a post about a few options that are in stores or online now that you can buy. If I had the money, I would buy all of these! Here they are:



Stop Staring! - $140 Available at http://www.deliriumclothing.com/



Adrianna Papell - $215 Available at http://www.lolaandgigi.com/



Donna Ricco - $195 Available at http://www.lolaandgigi.com/



Igigi - $198 Available at http://www.lolaandgigi.com/



Okay, this is my favourite dress ever- I love this dress, and I really feel I must have it. But it's 150 pounds! Available at ASOS



Birthday Bash Dress - $159.99 Available at Domino Dollhouse





Brocade Dress - $30 Available at City Chic

So what do you guys think? I am IN LOVE with the ASOS one. I really, really, really want it! So gorgeous. You can see how it moves by watching the runway video. It's stunning.

A Day of Luxury at Canadian Plus Size Store Lola and Gigi

I apologize for the horrendousness of all the post titles lately. A friend of mine who knows a lot about search engine optimization told me that you need to put search terms in post titles to work your way up the ranks, so that's what I'm up to, if you're wondering. Make sure to tell your friends about this site, and follow us on FB, Twitter, Tumblr, IFB, by email, RSS Feed, and/or by Google Friend Connect (by clicking follow). Pick your poison! All of the links can be found on the right... I love staying in touch with all of you. Also please remember to post comments. I love hearing what all of you have to say! I thrive from feedback. You can leave me a comment by clicking on the comments link underneath each post.

So now for the good stuff! I was invited to visit the showroom of the plus size Canadian retailer Lola and Gigi by its owner and founder, Laura Carravaggio. I was thrilled to get a chance to take a tour and talk with Laura about her selections for the store and all the beautiful spring fashions she's carrying.

When I visited the store last Saturday, Laura greeted me with such wonderful friendliness and an effervessent enthusiasm for her products that was highly contagious. She was very accomodating to both me and the bf (who came along to help take photos) and even offered us beverages. She showed me around the immaculate showroom and demonstrated excellent awareness of both her product and the women she was styling, considering both what would look good on them, and what they were comfortable in. Laura is very well able to read people and their style, allowing her to make great recommendations for all of the women who come into her store. Not only will Laura make great recommendations - but she'll also make you feel great by complimenting you when she thinks something looks nice and will find the best outfit that will make you look and feel wonderful. Laura has her fingers on the pulse of all the latest major trends, and carries fantastic designers whose clothes are designed with the curvy woman in mind. A sampling of the designers she carries include Tadashi Shoji, Anna Scholz, Monif C., Adrianna Papell, David Meister, Donna Ricco, IGIGI, and Melissa Masse, to name just a few. I was able to try on a few of these designer's fabulous items while I was there, which you'll see in the pictures below. The changerooms were beautifully decorated and very comfortable. Laura even keeps quite an impressive shoe collection in a range of sizes so that her clients can try on different shoes with the clothes so they'll get a better sense of what their outfit will look like as a whole. All in all, she offers a great range of plus size clothing options for the Canadian woman, as well as a fantastic shopping experience. Thanks for hosting me, Laura!

You can contact Lola and Gigi by calling 1-888-674-1077 or visiting their website.

Laura Carravaggio, owner and Founder of Lola and Gigi, and I

I love this gorgeous Anna Scholz dress! It fits so beautifully and I would get so much wear out of it.  

Same Anna Scholz dress but you can see the cut out better in this shot. I love that feature!

I love this stunning Tadashi Shoji dress. It fits like a dream! I felt awesome in it! Such gorgeous beads at the shoulders and ruching down the back, which you can see in the picture below.

I love this jacket. It's so comfortable and chic. While I was tryiing this on, other women in the changing room were admiring it and asked to try it on too.

I took the jacket off so you can see the fab jeans I tried on which were underneath. So comfortable and they really fit well too!

This is the Monif C. Marilyn Convertible dress. You can tie it like a ba-zillion different ways, all of them gorgeous, and you'd never know it was the same dress! So versatile!

I love sequins!

I hope you've all like this post and that you go and visit Laura at Lola and Gigi soon!