When Positive Changes Lead to Negative Reactions….

March 19, 2018March 19, 20182 Comments

Time for some real talk – I have hated myself since I was around 6 years old.

That was around the time when three things happened: (1) My parents separated which later led to divorce, (2) My mother, little brother and I ended up homeless for the first time and (3) It was the first time I was told I had to lose weight. Of the three obviously there are two things on this short list that should hold more weight in terms of importance, yet they all greatly affected my self-esteem, body image and mental health.

These pictures were taken only 4 years apart! Same dress (Kara Lace Dress from SWAK) but different attitude. (Left -2017, Right – 2014)

It wasn’t until I entered my 20s, inspired by the bloggers I followed online, that I decided to look past the qualities that others celebrated and worked on loving the “flaws” I was always told I should make every effort to correct. I replaced my old wardrobe with new items. I learned to accept compliments. I started experimenting with makeup in ways that I found comfortable. I accessorized more. I cut my hair. Twice, even going shorter the second time. I’ve colored my hair a bold color. By all accounts, I’ve become a different person. Continue reading →

Spring Floral Feels

February 26, 20181 Comment

Last week we got an unexpected treat in terms of the weather here in NYC. For two days we got to take a break from the chilly temps and have a sneak peak of what is to come this spring. To celebrate the occasion I decided to rock my natural curls and tried something very different (for me) – a pastel floral flounce hem crop top and high rise jeans.

Made of what has to be the softest material in the world*, this knit floral print top has a ruched center construction with a self-tie that can be used to adjust the length. This is the first time I have found a crop top that works well with my petite frame and short torso as most of the time a crop top fits like a regular shirt on me. I tied the drawstring a bit high to show a sliver of skin but it was tasteful as the flounce hem also provided some coverage. Because of the deep V-neckline I added my leather cord spiral cage pendent necklace with a rose quartz crystal that matched perfectly with the blush color of this top.

I paired the crop top with these close-fitting Seven7 stretch skinny jeans I got at the Platinum Lounge during theCURVYCon last year. I went for this dark wash high rise pair as Seven7 is a bit out of my price range for jeans so I figured that while they were offered as a Platinum perk I might as well take the time to try something new. However, they stayed unworn and with their original tags in my armoire since then. I was all for giving this trend a try, yet I still found myself scared to try a high rise jean because I believed that it was a style that worked best with a traditional hourglass body shape. I was pleasantly surprised to find that this is not the case. These jeans complimented my shape, were high enough to wear with this crop top without showing too much skin and incredibly comfortable as well. The softly frayed hems with split side seams also added an interesting detail that fit the overall boho aesthetic of this look. Continue reading →

A Blue Christmas

December 22, 20171 Comment

Its no secret that I love this time of year. The weather, the lights, the food, and now the parties. I love it all and it tends to make me smile for no reason other than it is Christmastime. Yet this year marks the first time that I’ve been unmotivated to take part in many, if any, festivities. Even gift shopping has felt more like a chore than a joy. I believe that part of this is linked to my depression and anxiety, however with the end of the year fast approaching, I have taken time to do some major introspection that has only worked to further dampen my mood.

I’m an overachiever and a workaholic so its not really surprising that I am disappointed by how short my personal list of supposed accomplishments for this year seems to be. My negative feelings were felt among my coworkers and friends who made a point to check on me abd cheer me up the best they could. Then came the news of our office holiday party and that caused a buzz as everyone went about prepping for it. I’m an empath so I found myself becoming just as excited as those around me. Continue reading →

How I Shop On a Budget

November 14, 2017November 18, 2017Leave a comment

With a blog that has “thin wallet” right on the title you would think that my shopping routine would have been something that I would have covered already. I may be behind but given the fact that we have just entered fall and entering the holiday season this seems like a great time to breach this subject.

Being on a budget should never be a deterrent to having great fashion and style.

Fair warning, my shopping routine does involve a lot of footwork other than just going through the sales and clearance sections both online and in-store, but considering the abundance of clothes that are currently stuffed in my closet and armoire I have to say that it is worth it.

Disclaimer: While this is indeed a process there really isn’t an order to my methods save for the first and last items on this list .

Continue reading →

Disney Fangirl Fashion feat. Little Petal

October 30, 2017November 11, 2017Leave a comment

Being plus size and a huge Disney, Harry Potter, Anime, J-rock, and Marvel fangirl is really not easy. For one thing, when it comes to shopping for geek/nerdy tees, and cosplay apparel it is rare to find pieces in sizes larger than an XL for women. Then there is the expectation that one should only choose characters that are of your same race. As I mentioned before in an earlier post, cosplaying is often seen as something that should only be done by those that “can truly emulate a character as depicted in comics, film and video games.” This obviously leaves people of color as well as plus size women like myself out or at risk of getting highly criticized by the geek community.

For this reason, when it came time to order my Little Petal convertible dress, I had originally chose the Korra dress because I figured that that was a character I could get away with cosplaying, but when I started communicating with designer, Danielle Ward I changed my mind. As a body positive designer and business owner, she doesn’t believe in things like size limiting who you can dress up as, rather you should think of who you see yourself as. For me that made the decision easy – Esmeralda from Disney’s The Hunchback of Notre Dame.