Aussie Curves- Retro

Hello lovely readers! I haven't been posting for a little while, I know. I took a break over the Christmas holidays, planning to start again when the kids went back to school. Mr 5 started school for the first time (leaving me with no kids at home for the first time), and I found myself quite teary and depressed for a while, which I wasn't expecting. I had trouble finding motivation to get back into the routine of outfit photos. But with this week being retro theme, I knew I had to make the effort for I love retro and I had the perfect dress to show you. And yes, I do wear this outfit out in public, just minus the gloves. I wore it out to coffee with friends the other day. 

I found this gorgeous dress at my local shop, Catfight Collections (which have an online shop so you should totally check them out). This dress was only a 20, which is not my size at all but there was some give in the fabric, and I decided to give it a go. It fitted me perfectly, and I used my birthday money to buy it, so I think of it as my birthday dress.

I don't usually wear the dress as a halterneck but I thought I would for the photos. Usually I pin the straps to the back. I always wear a red bra with straps, so if it shows it looks like it belongs to the dress anyway.

Both the gloves and the petticoat come from Domino Dollhouse, and are awesome. I have three petticoats from Domino Dollhouse now. It's a bit addictive.

Gloves require an "I'm a little teapot pose". Yes they do.

This photo made me laugh- looks like I have wind machine going on here (just normal Newcastle weather).
Polka dot Diva coming through!

The red beads are from the op shop, and I think they're something other than the normal plastic because they're rather heavy. The earrings are from Big W and my headband is hand made from The Olive Tree Markets. It's good to be back!

Dress: Catfight Collections (20)

Petticoat: Domino Dollhouse (XL)

Gloves: Domino Dollhouse

Bra: Target 

Necklace: Op (thrift) shop

Earrings: Big W

Headband: Olive Tree Market

Sandals: Big W (11)

Aussie Curves- Mixing Patterns

This week the Aussie Curves challenge is about mixing patterns. It's not something I've really tried on purpose before. I love patterns and have a lot of them, I just haven't mixed them together! I decided on trying to mix both colours and patterns, why not jump right in the deep end, right? I love the red and blue colour combo, and thought I'd try mixing my polka dot shirt with my floral skirt. I think it works!

I picked up the polka dot shirt a little while ago from Big W. The skirt is a Target brand find from the op shop (must have been back in the day when they made coloured plus-size stuff). The skirt is a bit big, I had to safety pin it at the back. 

My shoes are from Best and Less, they were only $10 at the time, and came in a snug size 11. My hair bow and necklace are from my favourite local markets, the Olive Tree Markets. My bracelet set is from Yours Clothing. I like the colours and the elastic which means it fits my wrist, but the quality isn't great. The knots on it made from string or something, are starting to unravel.

I bet the other Aussie Curves ladies have some great pattern mixes, check them out below!

Outfit Details

Top: Big W (24)

Skirt: Thrifted (Target, 26)

Shoes: Best and Less (11)

Tardis Earrings: Etsy

Bracelet Set: Yours Clothing

Necklace and Hair Bow: Olive Tree Market

Aussie Curves- Dark

I almost didn't get this theme done this week, I've been busy, and dark isn't really a theme I'm into. I have one black dress that I'm saving when we have the LBD theme, and most of my other dark shade colours were used in previous weeks. I could just wear all black, but I'm not a fan, wearing all black makes me feel depressed. Then I remembered I had this spotty dress.

Yes it's black, but the white spots make it fun. I picked this dress up at Best and Less for about $40 years ago and it's really been value for money. The pattern reminds me of a starry sky. It is comfy and easy to wear too.

I usually pair this dress with red accessories, but I went with purple to keep it more in the "dark" theme. The bag I'm holding is a vintage bag that used to be my Mum's when she was young and single. :-)

Just trying to show you all my accessories in one pic. The necklace is from the op shop, the bracelet from a market, the hair flower from Target, and I made the button earrings myself. I added the hair ribbon to the pendant, I think it goes nicely. Also, you can adjust the length really easily, which I like.

Isn't the embroidery pattern on the bag cute?

Outfit Details

Dress: Best and Less (20)

Necklace: Op shop/ thrifted

Earrings: Made by me

Hair Flower: Target

Bracelet: Market

Shoes: Payless (11)

Orange!

I'm so excited to tell you about my first foray into the shade of orange! I have always stayed away from it, figuring it wouldn't go with my colouring, but this shirt caught my eye with its lace yoke and bright colour. I was walking past Millers on the way to do some grocery shopping- I usually don't bother looking in there as they only go up to a small size 22. But the top looked roomy and is very stretchy, so I gave it a go. There was a bright pink version which I usually would have chosen, but I wanted to be different. I paired it with my Asos Curve jersey pencil skirt, and wore them both for the first time today. I've taken a few photos as I wanted to show you the different ways I wore the shirt.

The shirt is very loose with not much structure to it, but it's very comfy and the lace is soft and not scratchy at all. The material is a bit sheer, but I'm wearing a dusky-coloured bra so it doesn't show that much. Darker coloured bras really show, not quite ready for that look yet. :-) The skirt is so comfortable to wear, I sized up to 26 but I probably could have stuck with 24 as the waistband is a little loose. But I like being comfortable so that's ok. I like how the stretchy fabric stops the skirt from impeding my movement.

A close up of the lace. I paired it with my orange earrings and purple flower along with a dark purple stone necklace from my Grandma. I like how the bright orange looks with my pale skin. My darker hair from dyeing earlier in the week helps too. Below are some different lengths to wear the top- I wore the left hand one most of the day. The right hand photo is the full shirt- I like the way it scoops at the front and back. My favourite way of wearing it was the left-hand photo- shirt slightly tucked under, no belt. What's your favourite?

Outfit Details

Top: Millers (22)

Skirt: Asos Curve (26)

Shoes: Target (11)

Necklace: Gifted

Earrings: Target

Hair Flower: Target

Blue and Green Striped Maxi

I love me some stripes (almost as much as polka dots) so when I found this cheap maxi at Kmart I was excited. It also has one of my favourite colours in it- blue. I wore it with my blue hair flowers, a green sparkly necklace I'd picked up from one of those little pop-up shops in shopping centres and blue and green bead earrings. I added the black elastic belt for a bit more visual interest (it was an op shop find).

The dress fabric is a nice breathy cotton, not as stretchy as my other stripey maxi (seen here). I went for a size 24 initially but it was too loose in the top. The 22 fitted better, and now that I'm cool with dresses hugging my curves the bottom part of the dress was no problem!

Once again I'm pairing a blue dress with my new op shop boots. I think my boots are going to feature often at least until the excitement of the find has worn off!

Stay tuned for another outfit for "blue week" coming out later in the week!

Outfit Details
Dress: Kmart (22)
Bike pants (underneath): Big W (22)
Boots: Thrifted
Necklace: market/pop-up shop
Bracelet: from a friend
Hair flowers: Target
Belt: Thrifted
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Aussie Curves- Blue

I was excited to come up with an outfit for the "blue" theme for Aussie Curves this week. Blue is one of my favourite colours, and I have a lot of pieces. I decided on one of my favourite shades of blue- in an Asos Curve dress I bought on clearance. To honest, I've had nothing but trouble with the dress. When I first tried it on, it was too big on top, a little tight around the waist (usually my smallest area) and fine around the hips. A weirdly made size 24. I decided I'd keep it and adjust the straps and front to make it fit. After a day of hand-sewing (not my forte) the straps still slipped off my shoulders. I think they're too widely set or something. So I'm currently wearing hair clips on the back of the straps to attach to my bra and keep them on for the photos. It's important that I'm always honest when I share my clothes with you. I still love the colour and style, so I'm going to keep it and try and figure out a more permanent fix.

I added my purple Domino Dollhouse petticoat to make the dress flare more, and I love it. I added an Asos Curve belt and my new favourite boots, a recent find at the op (thrift) shop. I'm big fan of sneakers and boots with dresses. These boots look brand new and despite being a size 9 they fit my size 11 feet. The best op shop find of the holidays ever.

I love how this dress has pockets!

I went all blue with the accessories. My brooch is hand-made from my favourite markets, the Olive Tree markets. The hair flowers are from Target. My earrings and bracelets are op shop finds. I'm declaring this week on my blog as blue week, expect to see two more blue themed outfits this week my lovely readers!

Outfit Details

Dress: Asos Curve (24)
Boots: Thrifted (9)
Hair flowers: Target
Brooch: Olive Tree Markets
Bracelets: Thrifted
Earrings: Thrifted
Belt: Asos Curve
Petticoat: Domino Dollhouse

Blue and Green should always be seen

I really don't get that old "blue and green should never be seen" saying. It occurs pretty regularly in nature, and in my wardrobe! This outfit was supposed to be part of stripes week but I was delayed due to being on holidays at my parent's house. So here it is, a pop of colour for you. And lots of different sorts of stripes. 

This outfit is super comfy, everything is stretchy and soft. The skirt I picked up from Big W, it has a tendency to ride up my thighs as I walk (all straight skirts do on me) but putting a slip underneath solved that problem. 

The top I picked up years ago from Target, when they were still doing non-black colours (now their plus size range is woeful). I tend to be very matchy matchy, so I like to challenge myself sometimes. The green of the top doesn't quite match the green of the skirt, and the stripes on my skirt are in a different direction than the stripes on my top- this niggles me, but it's ok. I think it still looks good.

I love my stripey shoes- I wear them with everything. The spike necklace is new- I picked it up online from Colette. My earrings are a bit hidden, they are blue and green beads. My polka dot hair flower gets worn a lot too- I think you can add polka dots to nearly any outfit. 

Outfit Details
Top: Target (22)
Skirt: Big W (26)
Shoes: Big W (11)
Necklace: Colette
Earrings: gifted
Hair flower: local boutique
Bike Pants (under skirt): Big W (22)
Slip (under skirt): Target (24)

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Aussie Curves: Leggings

I'm looking forward to Mondays, I get to do an Aussie Curves challenge!

This week is leggings. Leggings are a vital part of my winter wardrobe. I don't have any bright prints or crazy patterns yet, but I do have a bunch of coloured ones from Autograph. I'm wearing the purple/berry colour today.

I'm inbetween the M and L size in leggings at Autograph. I get the M so they don't get too baggy- the stitching tends to get wrecked around the waistband over time though. The tunic top is also from Autograph- I love the swirly colours and the pockets.

The long sleeve top is a cheapie from Big W and just happens to match my leggings.

These new shoes are a big deal for me- they actually have a bit of a heel. I like the flowers on them, and the colour should go with lots of stuff. The lining is leather, which is a bargain considering they were $25 from Big W.

To be totally honest, I only wore them for the photos- I still feel too wobbly on them to wear them out. But I'm going to practice. The way the heel is raised, they feel more like high flats than heels. There doesn't seem to be too much pressure on the front of foot- but we'll see.

Love my new hair flower from Target. I tried out some Sally Hansen nail strips today, you can see the results below. They took about the same amount of time to put on as painting my nails. I love the hippy pattern, it will be interesting to see how long they last. I put Opi Chip Skip underneath, and Sally Hansen Diamond Top Coat over the top.

Outfit Details

Leggings: Autograph (M)

Tunic top: Autograph (24)

Long sleeve Top: Big W (22)

Earrings: market in Italy (present from parents when they went overseas) 

Hair flower: Target

Shoes: Big W (11)