She’s in fashion….

This weekend was the launch of Edinburgh’s first fashion week. My sister & I decided to jump on train and check out all the stylish going ons. We caught  some catwalk shows,perused the pop ups & even discovered some lovely new boutiques. 

Plus size representation was a little thin (ha! a pun) on the ground, but not entirely abscent. Hopefully fatties will have a bit more exposure later in the week. 

Outfit wise, I slipped into my favourite LBD; a style classic. I went bold with red accessories & wrapped myself in faux fur for warmth. I felt rather excellent, a fact my clever sister managed to capture with her fancy camera.







Coat – Primark

Dress – Asos Curve

Scarf – Gift

Clutch – Ben De Lisi

You’re gonna hear me roar…..

On Tuesday I decided to be a lady who lunches & of course shops a little too. I enrolled my wonderful best friend in the scheme & off we popped. We both managed to pick up cheery bits, including some glorious Mac newbies. I opted for their new eyeliner pencil in a vibrant green, with which I can’t wait to experiment (& review). 



Purse – Dorothy Perkins ( currently on sale)

Necklace – Dorothy Perkins

Eyeliner – Mac

Since it has been snowing again this week I plumped for cute & cosy with a skater dress, maxi cardi combi. I decided to break some more of those darn fashion rules by mixing animal prints. I usually adore this leaping tiger dress, but I feel I look really out of proportion in these pictures. As you know, I’ve lost weight, but my boobs remain unchanged. The result is they look a bit if of control. I’m hoping styling the dress differently will return it to something I feel awesome in.



Dress – Asos Curve

Cardigan – H&M

Shoes – Just Fab



Yellow light…

Last Saturday I awoke to lovely bright day. I was excited, perhaps winter was coming to an end. I raided my wardrobe for some bright & hopeful clothing. I came up with this yellow  & green combo, which I was loving. However, by the time actually made it out the door the sky had turned grey. Sensing an impending chill I added this lovely new cloakigan.



Skirt – Primark

Top – H&M

Cloakigan – Primark

Scarf -Gift

I also donned my new favourite thing, flatforms. I was rocking these delicious shoes first time around. There is something very pleasing about knowing your 14yr old self would approve of your sartorial decisions. I will absolutely be collecting some more flatforms. I think my next pair need to be higher to get that authentic early 90’s I might break my ankle feel.





Regardless of the weather we managed to have a lovely day. I accompanied my sister to get her new tattoo, which you can admire on her blog, Living in a boxx



My week in pictures…

It has been a week of highs & lows. There has been too much pain & too little sleep. Thankfully I have also been involved in some joy inducing activities. Overall I’m declaring it a win.

A financial boost allowed a wee spending spree. I got a few bits for myself & many bits of my muffin. She will be visiting with my big bro from Australia in April & I am getting very excited. I love Facetiming with my girl, but nothing compares to the wonder of wrapping my arms around her little body & squeezing her tight. I found her a My Little Pony dress that she will freak over & some super cute Comic Relief t-shirts.

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Treats for myself included some budget beauty, freebies from
a plus size event & my very first pair of flatforms. As usual I’m sharing some random snaps of sights I enjoyed; Glasgow & Edinburgh both had some little treasures for me. Talking of the capital, whilst through there for the aforementioned event I was lucky enough to visit my favourite bar with my favourite man. This week even included some flowers, in my opinion white roses stomp all over red in the romance stakes.

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I’ll leave you with my most momentous addition. On Wednesday I finally got my new tattoo. I went to True Colour Tattoo where I was inked by the fabulous Sharon. It was so good to finally be tattooed by a woman, the fact that she is an old school friend made it even better. I am ecstatic with my tattoo & I can not recommend True Colour enough. I can honestly say this was my favourite tattoo experience. I will definitely be going back.

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Like the first of spring….

Last Thursday I headed to the movies with darling sister. I was feeling a little fed up with the scottish winter & tried to will spring into being with my outfit. I rarely wear trousers, but have fancied some palazzo pants for ages. I snapped these up in the sale & they’re a dream.

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Palazzo Pants – Truly You
Vest – Monsoon
Waterfall Cardi – John Lewis
Long Cardi – H&M
Jewellery – Gifts

I continued my theme with a spring palette. It did feel nice to be kitted out in fresh, floaty tones & fabrics. Unfortunately it had absolutely no impact on the weather. Winter remains & I had to don my huge coat on top.

We opted for Kingsman as our night’s entertainment. It’s ridiculous, but wonderful. Colin Firth is delicious as always.

Painted it red…

I don’t have any fancy plans, so my Valentine’s outfit is casual, but still kind of sexy. It’s funky pattern & curve hugging are right up my street.

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Dress – Monsoon
Vest – Monsoon
Cardigan – Monsoon
Shoes – M&S
Hair Flower – Bought in Australia.

What better way to add some love to a look than velvety red lipstick, very cute heart shoes & some valebtine’s nail art? All that is missing is a beautiful bouquet of flowers. I’m sure they’ll be arriving any minute.

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My week in pictures….

Excuse my absence, last week was packed with ALL the things. I headed to edinburgh on Tuesday to deliver some presentations. These were critical, possibly game changing lectures & I don’t mind admitting my stress levels wee soaring. After a tough first session the reception warmed up & I was a hit.

I had to present over three days, which necessitated finding somewhere to stay. Luckily I found an amazing rental flat on rose st. The location was perfect & the flat itself was lovely. Highlight was absolutely the massive shower, so good for unwinding after a hard day’s work.

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All work & no fun does, as they say make for a dull ly. With that in mind I took advantage of being in my favourite man’s city. We had a glass bottle or two of wine & delighted in each others company. I also managed to squeeze in catch up with my friend & kindred spirit, Aidan.
It was a highly successful trip.

As always, edinburgh was looking spiffing. I snapped a few of shots of vistas that took my fancy.

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The rest of the week was taken up with my fur babies. I nipped through to Mum’s to look after my poodle family. Coco & her son D’artagnan are gorgeous if a little hyper, but were little darlings for me.

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On Saturday I was wowed by the most amazing sunset. I really do love these vibrant natural displays. There was more wow on Sunday when I was reunited with my beautiful Bronan.

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I’ll conclude with some random pictures of things that pleased through out the week.

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* apartment – http://www.destinyscotland.com

There is a rose in Spanish Harlem….

I nipped into town yesterday in a second opinion & random chat capacity. It was pleasing to get out & about in the world after a week of being mostly at home. Likewise it felt good to put done make up on & try some funky accessories.

I have been oggling flower crowns on other people’s head for ages. I finally took the plunge with this luscious red beauty. I am completely smitten, the search for my next crown has already commenced.

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I am well & truly sick of winter, so I busted out this amazing jungly print maxi to brighten up my day. I got this dress for my Australia trip & I haven’t had it on since. I’ve no idea as I love everything about it.

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I was trying out a new angle on this dress with my favourite belt. Unfortunately, it’s a little too big for me now. I shall have to fashion myself another notch before donning it again. I took a few snaps sans belt too. I’m keen on both looks. What do you think?

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Dress – M&S
Cardigan – Monsoon

Step into my office, baby ….

I had a fairly important meeting last week & whilst I don’t really do corporate, I did want to look smart. I opted for this colourful, but almost conservative look.

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Blazer – Primark
Skirt – H&M
Blouse – AsosCurve

Unfortunately I hated every single picture taken of this outfit, but have opted for the least offensive. Note the big, fat side bun, a recent innovation I’m enjoying.

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Bag – Accesorize

This is my go to presentation bag as it fits my NetBook & everything else I need. I also love it’s giant tassel. The only downside is once it’s all in there it weighs a tonne.

I would be good…..

So, here it is, the obligatory New Year’s resolution post. I doubt it will surprise anyone to learn that I will not be worrying about any of the dieting bullshit. In fact I shall be trying my best to eschew all negative, body policing type thoughts. My focus shall be on enjoying life & challenging myself in positive ways.

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Living with chronic illness can make seizing the moment difficult. Sometimes I really am too sick to do anything, no matter how amazing the opportunity. This year I have decided I will try to be a bit more strategic about my day to day life. I’m hopeful that simple changes such as keeping track of how much sleep I’m getting, taking gentle excercise when I feel up to it & keeping up with my food diary will ease managing my illnesses. I have also resolved to make bigger changes for instance trying a gluten & dairy free diet & pushing my consultants to make a care plan of sorts instead of just constantly adjusting/altering meds. Of course none of these things will cure me, but perhaps a change in diet, being conscious of getting enough rest & so on will improve my symptoms somewhat. At the very least I will feel more in control & I am big on control!

That time of year can be a nightmare for fat folk. Everywhere you look there are diets & fitness regimes. Friends, magazines & celebs alike insisting we must lose any xmas weight gain, pushing us to aspire to a ‘new you’ for a new year. Well, I am hoping for a slightly new me, but it has nothing to do with my weight. I am striving to block it all out completely. I no longer want to think of myself in terms of fat/thin. If you’ve been reading this blog for any length of time, you will know I have already come a long way on the body acceptance trail, now I want to consolidate that. I don’t want to waste energy worrying about weight loss (through ill health) or any future weight gain. My plan is to divest my identity of it’s link to my size. I will be me wether I am a size 22 or 12. My writing, opinions, talents & interests will remain unchanged. This is the message I hope to drive home.

On the challenging front I want to push myself in healthy ways. Instead of berating myself or being
weighed down by guilt, I plan to make it ok for me to be unable to achieve certain things. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not giving myself permission to stagnate. In fact, the opposite, by stretching myself to try things I worry will be too much, I will perhaps surprise myself. However, if I prove unable, I refuse to beat myself up. With a bit of luck this approach may help me extend my freelance work & possibly even branch off in new directions.

Finally, I aim to have as much fun as possible. I will see friends & family as often as I can. Try new activities, even if they scare me or I am rubbish at them! I don’t want to deny myself anything that will make me happy. Be that expensive shoes, a man, a big cake or a day in bed.

2015 is my year to get living.

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