Outfit of the Day: Coffee and Errands

Hey Guys,
I wore this outfit on Saturday to get some coffee with Peter and run some errands. We also got to check out the Junction area of Toronto, and I found a couple of really cool stores down there.

With all the heels I wear, I was super suprised that these combat boots, which I assumed would be more comfortable, actually ended up giving me blisters on my heels. Ouch. I'll stick with my comfy heels, I guess!

I wanted to create a look that was very feminine, but with a bit of a rough edge, which is why I wore the boots with the floral print and the pouffy skirt. I wpre sheer hose from Secret, which I actually got in a swag bag at an event I attended. When I first got them, I wasn't that excited because I thought that they would have runs in them before I even got out the door, but this is about my fourth time wearing them, and they are as durable (if not more so) than totally opaque tights, which is so suprising to me. My experience with sheers has been that they run really easily, but these are great. I also got a pair with tiny polka dots and a pair of fishnets, which I haven't tried yet. I actually really like how this outfit turned out, and in one of the photos, you can see how windy it is, which made the picture look pretty cool.

If you guys aren't following/liking me on your social networks yet, I would love for you to join me there! I sometimes post sneak peek pictures of my outfits in advance of posting them on here, and I always tweet on location from fun fashion events that I am at. I would love to interact with you. Each of these links will open in a new tab, so you don't have to leave in order to add me.

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But now to the good stuff: the outfit! What do you ladies think?

Top and Bracelets- Forever 21+/Skirt and Petticoat - c/o Sofistafunk/Boots - Famous Footwear/Purse - Vintage/Pantyhose - c/o Secret

Six Take - Happy Halloween! - Here is What I Dressed Up As!

Hello My Plus-Size Ghouls and Goblins!

Happy Hallowe'en!!! I just thought I would write a quick post to show you what I am dressed up as today. I wore this to class (I teach Children's Lit at a university), and there was practically no one on campus dressed up. :( I got a few disapproving stares from passers-by, but I don't really care. I am an individual, and today is one of the best days to show it off (because you get to be even more outrageous with your outfit choices than usual! LOVE!!!). So it was just me and one student in my class, who dressed up like a tuxedo-ed lego man. Pretty awesome costume. I hope he puts as much effort into his essay as he did making it! If he does, I know it will be fantastic. Anyways, without further ado, here it is, my Helena Bonham Carter inspired witch.

Jacket - Delirium Clothing (Waterloo, ON)/Skirt and Petticoat- Courtesy of Sofistafunk/Boots - Courtesy of Torrid/Top (not really visible underneath jacket) - Forever 21+/Fingerless Lace Gloves - Urban Behaviour/Sunglasses - Vintage/Hat - Dollarama/Nail Polish - Ski Teal We Drop by OPI

One thing I consistently hate about hallowe'en costumes is the flimsy fabric used. Like, if I wouldn't wear this outside under normal circumstances, why would I wear it now? O_o

That's why I love putting costumes together out of fashion pieces I already own.

All of the pieces here are a part of my normal, everyday-wear wardrobe, I just don't typically mix them together because it's a bit over-the-top for my style. I would normal wear one of these "statement" pieces on its own with some basics and it looks fashionable and not at all costume-y. But when Hallowe'en rolls around, I mix several statement pieces together, and voila! I have a very couture inspired costume! =D

What are you going as tonight?

Have a happy and safe hallowe'en, and send me pictures! I can't wait to see what you're all wearing!

Make sure you visit the other girls' blogs to see what they dressed up as!

Rikke from Sticky, Sweet Danish, Jessica from tooMANYsequins, Jessica from Chic in Every City, Yoli from Diva in Deep Thought, and Sarah from Queen Sized Flava made in Montreal

The Toronto Clothing Show and My New and Fabulous Skirt from Sofistafunk!

Hey Everyone!

So last weekend was the annual Toronto Clothing Show. I had heard some great things about the shopping there, so I decided to go and check it out for myself. I invited Sarah from Garters and Stockings to come too, and we had a great time!

There were loads of great vendors and I had a great time browsing and meeting lots of new people. There was tons of jewellery, accessories, and hats/fascinators everywhere, which is great, because they fit everyone!

Browsing through some lovely jewellery

Outside a vintage booth

Chatting with Lisa from Rent Frock Repeat - a dress rental company - about plus size designers I'd love to see her carry. I think it's a good sign that she was taking notes! LOL.

Trying on all sorts of hats! There was one in particular that I fell in love with, but it was so impractical, and it was $70... I couldn't justify it!

Meeting with Melanie Dubuc, a new up-and-coming Canadian plus size fashion designer

Waiting for the runway show to start!

Here are some videos I was able to take of Melanie Dubuc's and Ashaki Charles' new lines:

Very nice stuff!

Now the skirt I have on just came in from Sofistafunk, a company who specializes in very cool skirts. I met the designer, Arlinda, and Full Figured Fashion Week a while back. She was wearing this amazing black and moss green floor length full skirt to the finale runway show, and I just had to go over and say hello. I asked her where she got her incredible skirt because I was dying to know, and then she told me she designed it! I was pretty much in awe and told her she was very talented (which I am only more convinced of after seeing all the other amazing skirts on the site). We got in touch after Full Figured Fashion Week and she sent this skirt, along with an awesomely flouncy petticoat, as a gift. I absolutely adore it!!! When I got it in the mail I was doing a happy dance all around my apartment for like a good half-hour. Then when I put it on, I was practicing ballet and doing twirls for another half-hour! There is just something so pretty about a really full skirt, you know? It reminds you of the princesses you adored as a child and the opulence of their glamour, and it just makes you feel so youthful and pretty! I think this skirt is fantastic, and I totally recommend you go check out their website if you're looking for a new skirt or if you just like to look at really pretty things. The skirt she sent me is the "Sofistafunk RX," and it's a multi-functional skirt designed as a prescription for those "I-would-love-to-go-but-don't-have-time-to-go-home-to-change" situations. I know you all know what I'm talking about! It comes with a handy little tote so that you can stow it away in a big purse, your desk drawer, or your car in case you score a last-minute invitation to an event you want to look stunning for. 

Anyway, I totally ADORE my new Sofistafunk skirt (thanks Arlinda!) and as you can see, I am wearing it to not-so-last-minute occasions. I actually want to wear it to school with a tiara on, but I think people might look at me funny! But seriously, I can't wait to wear this again!

Six Take: No H8

Hey Everyone,

So me, and my fellow six-take bloggers, Rikke from Sticky, Sweet Danish, Jessica from tooMANYsequins, Jessica from Chic in Every City, Yoli from Diva in Deep Thought, and Sarah from Queen Sized Flava made in Montreal, have decided to write a post entitled "No H8" to promote greater understanding, acceptance, and love of others and what you might perceive to be their differences. We were inspired to do this after one of us endured hateful and abusive messages through one of our social media networks. We must show others that we will not be intimidated by their hatred, and that's what this post is all about.

Like many women who self-identify as fat, I was bullied mercilessly as a child. Other kids would call me "tub of lard" or "connect the dots" (because of my freckles) and I was often the object of other kids' cruel and elaborate schemes, one which involved getting a boy to pretend he liked me, me letting my guard down, and them pulling the rug from underneath me. These experiences left me scarred and lacking self-esteem entirely, and I found it difficult to believe that anyone would ever like me or even want to be friends with me. I suffered from two particularly traumatic physical assaults at school which resulted to my mother pulling me out of that school and registering me at another. The second school was somewhat better, though not by much. I internalized much of the bullying that had become a daily expectation; I became introverted and focused intensely on my studies to distract myself from the constant abuse from my peers. I think I also felt that if I wasn't pretty, that I should at least be smart, so that I could have something going for me...

When High School started, the aggressiveness of the Middle School bullying had dissipated, but there was a whole new sort of passive aggressive judgement that was rampant. I was lucky enough to go to a school where uniforms were required, so I didn't have to try as hard to keep up with all the brand names everyone was wearing, but on casual days, where we were invited not to wear our uniforms, you could tell that there was a lot of judgement going on regarding who was wearing what. There were also a few prank phone calls to my house. I thank my lucky stars daily that I don't have to be in High School in the Facebook era. Who knows what sort of trauma that could cause. People are so callous online. They think that the distance created by the medium of the computer gives them license to berate people, when if faced with the same thing one is critiquing in person, the berater would simply remain silent on the issue. The distance between people in an online discourse is no excuse for one to treat another poorly. Even in online environments, people should treat each other with the same respect that they would observe in-person.

Recently, there was a hashtag trending on twitter - "#onlyfatpeople." Some fat-haters began to put hateful messages after the hashtag - things like "order a diet coke with a supersize combo at McDonalds because they are 'watching their weight.'" There were a number of other terrible comments which I won't reiterate here, partially because I don't want them to function as a trigger for anyone, and also because I don't want to dignify their terrible message by re-broadcasting it. Quite frankly, those idiots and their hateful messages are not worth my time. I posted a response to this hashtag on twitter and had a number of people congratulate me for standing up to these bullies (and got about 100 new followers - welcome, by the way, if my response is what brought you here), and also a number of bullies trying to force me back into submission by way of body-shaming me. After experiencing this journey of self-acceptance, a self-acceptance that has come by way of the scripto-therapy that this blog has given me, I found myself steeled against their bold and impudent attacks. I was not affected by it. I recognize that their hatred comes from their own deficiencies, and I accept their difference in opinion. So I politely (and eloquently) told them to f*@# off. I have come to love myself and nothing can change that now. I am me, and I will be me, and I don't care what anyone says about it. I use fashion as a language to express who I am to the world. I will no longer be shy, and I will no longer submit to body policing by others who would force me into striving towards an ideal female normalized body that I would never be able to healthily (mentally or physically) inhabit.

So the pictures that accompany this post are not themed. They are just me being me, and being totally happy with who I am and what I have on and what that says about me. I can't help it if others are going to be hateful, though I can control my reaction to it. In my own life, however, I have adopted the principle of No H8, and I hope all of you will too. We are all people with hearts and hopes, dreams and desires, families and friends, and no one wants to feel the sting of hatred and we should strive for peace and understanding always.

Jacket - Forever 21+/Skirt - Thrifted/Petticoat - Sofistafunk/Shoes - Honest Ed's/Top - Redress NYC/Sunglasses - Vintage Clothing Sale in York, UK

Remember:

Above all else, to thine own self be true.
- Shakespeare

You can search throughout the entire universe for someone who is more deserving of your love and affection than you are yourself, and that person is not to be found anywhere. You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love and affection.
- Siddartha Gauttama

Life isn't about finding yourself.
Life is about creating yourself.
- George Bernard Shaw


You have enemies? Good. That means you've stood up for something, sometime in your life.
- Winston Churchill


No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.
- Eleanor Roosevelt