Breaking All the Fat Girl Rules: Bikinis AND Crop Tops

I went to the beach and didn't end up wearing a dress (it's hard to wear the necessary chub rub protection at the beach) but my bikini has a skirt bottom so it kinda counts, right?

I got my bikini from Evans and it has been my go to bathing suit all summer long, I absolutely adore it. Not to mention that I'm a sucker for a bikini actually made for fat people, not ones that me and my small breasts can merely stuff myself into. When I first ordered the bathing suit I was hesitant that a skirted bottom would be too Grandma-esque, but my lovely friends convinced me that it looked more like a tutu and paired with a bikini top it wouldn't look matronly. As an added bonus when I'm late into my waxing cycle the skirt is a godsend. I was chilly so I borrowed the button down from a friend.

Not to mention I can't resist a polka dot. For serious.

Since I know I'll get questions about this I'll point you to a few other posts about fat girls in bikinis. I've posted pictures of various bikinis before and the magnificent Frances over at Corpulent wrote an amazing manifesto about it. Simply put, I find wearing a bikini empowering and I love feeling the sun on my belly.

But it was Labor Day weekend and the day was not yet over. Next on the agenda was celebrating my dear friend Ateqah's birthday and for that I had a perfect post-beach outfit - a crop top and shorts.

It was the first time I had worn a crop top (I only bought it the day before) and to be honest I was kinda petrified of wearing it. Being on the beach in a bikini doesn't make me bat an eye, but a crop top on the street really tested my comfort zone. I was nervous about wearing it and wondered if I'd get nasty comments but it turns out I loved the hell out of it and not a comment to be had.

And I now give you what will probably be the most high fashion shot of me ever to be seen on the blog, I mean I'm not even smiling. For this we can thank the blue lights in my friends entryway which I have lovingly dubbed Melrose Place and the photo direction of my friend Suzanne.

Top - Random Brooklyn boutique (straight sized I might add)

Shorts - City Chic

Sunglasses - Rayban and sadly don't belong to me.

Shoes - Crocs - another pair! Are y'all still gonna read my blog?

Photo credit goes to Suzanne and Ateqah.

My Deep, Dark, Shoe Secret

Before I jump into my outfit details I want to thank you for all of your kind comments to my first posts from last week. It is so heartwarming that even after my extended absence I still have readers. Also you should know that while I'm fairly delayed with posting photos I have been taking them every single day and will post them eventually. And now, on to the outfit.

This dress is a hand me down from my work wife Nicole and I think she may not have ever even worn it. It's a silk dress from BCBG and is actually fancier than it appears in the photo. The dress is a regular sized large (that old adage of always try it on comes to mind).

I picked up the necklace and earrings at 2 different fairs (one craft, one street). Please excuse the droopy boob shot, but my weekend wardrobe goal is basically to not wear a bra and it was Saturday so I was not wearing bra. Plus I wanted to do something different and show you a sitting spot. Never say my blog isn't exciting.

Finally I'm going to admit a deep dark secret to you. Look at my shoes (and ignore my chipping pedicure) and guess who makes them.

Have you guessed yet?

Deep breath. They're crocs. GASP. It's ok, judge me, lord knows I judge myself. But these shoes are SO comfortable, which is something severely lacking from my summer shoe wardrobe that I just could not resist them. I take solace in the fact that at least they don't look like the original crocs and most people guess that they're Melissa's. Who would you have guessed makes them?

Photo credit to my friend Kate who was helping me apartment hunt.

Dare to Bare

I've been on the hunt for a denim dress ever since I saw my friend Mr. Kate rocking an awesome one at her birthday last year. Finding a fitted dress that fits my large ass and smaller chest is difficult so I didn't have much luck until City Chic (the Australian equivalent of Torrid) launched in the U.S. this year. They were kind enough to give me a gift card and after some buying and returning (yay for 2 way free shipping!) I ended up with this awesome dress.

There are pockets! Which makes me love any dress at least 50% more.

And a fun zipper down the back. Back fat realness.

Even though my office is casual I feel strapless is a bit much (apparently even I have boundaries) so I added this orange cardigan so to make it office appropriate. It also would have been perfect had I been headed to a Mets game (which I wasn't).

Aren't my earrings fun? My sister laughed so hard at me when I picked them up earlier in the summer but I have been wearing the hell out of them the past few months. They go with everything!

Dress - City Chic
Cardigan - Hand-me-down from Jamie, originally Bendel's
Shoes - Office
Earrings - Aldo

Photos courtesy of Ateqah whose birthday it also happens to be today. Happy birthday babe, I love you!

Take 5

Hi there, remember me? It's bloomie the fatshion blogger. I know it's been five months since I last blogged. I'm no longer a lapsed blogger, I think I qualify as a non-blogger.

But September has arrived and due to some pushing and prodding by my beloved Jamie I am going to attempt a fifth incarnation of 30 Dresses in 30 Days.

I'm not making any promises this go around. I forewarn you that I may not finish the month, I may spend a day in my pajamas and most notably I may/will likely end up wearing dresses that I've worn before. At this point in my endeavor I can't quite keep track of what I have and haven't worn in previous years and going through 120 outfit photos every morning just doesn't seem feasible or realistic. So I'm going to aim to wear things I think you haven't seen before, but it may not always work out that way.

Dress - Ebay
Leggings - Danskin
Sandals - India

Earrings - Topshop
Fascinator - Street Fair

Photo courtesy of Ateqah, who also suggested the tongue.

Fat Girl Flea Market - Purchases Over the Years

This Saturday is the FAT GIRL FLEA MARKET aka the best day for NYC fatshionistas. The Fat Girl Flea Market (FGFM) is a once a year, day long, giant flea market, where for once everything comes in our size. If you are in town you cannot miss it.

There's a $10 entrance fee to get in and then there are prices for types of clothing. There will be some new clothing for sale that has been donated by fabulous plus size designers and there will be TONS of donations. If you have clothing to donate (and let's be real, most of us do) you can drop off donations on Friday night or bring them Saturday when you come to shop.

I'll be working as a stylist on Saturday afternoon. Come find me so I can find you a fabulous outfit!

Wonder what you can get at the FGFM? Here are some snapshots of me in stuff that I've scored over the years.

I picked up this cropped jean jacket at the flea several years ago and I sometimes wonder how I lived without it in my wardrobe. It is an absolute go to piece for me. This was probably $5 or so.

I got this top at the FGFM a few years ago and looking at this photo I think I should wear it more frequently than I do. It's cute.

Sadly this isn't the best photo to show off my top, but take my word that it is this great turquoise sweater with a cowl neck that I picked up in the communal dressing room after someone else decided she wasn't interested in it. Fatty sisterhood!

Here are some great tips about hunting at the flea and I'm gonna add a few more of my own.

1) Come unencumbered. Wear as little clothing as possible and if you have a messenger bag, now is the time to wear it. You want your hands as free as possible.

2) Water. Shopping is hard work and hydration is important.

3) Cash. The FGFM is all cash and while everything is a massive bargain, it's not free. You'll need cash to pay for your goodies.

4) Have a good attitude. The flea is a great community day. It's going to be a great time, for your closet, pocketbook and your heart.

5) TRY IT ON! You never know what will fit.

Hopefully tomorrow I'll be done cleaning out my closet and will be able to show off some of the things I'm donating.

Hope to see you there!

Country Chic

Sometimes life is amazing. You tweet "I really need a weekend away" and all of a sudden a friend texts you "wanna go to the Catskills tomorrow?" and you have your weekend away. Life is magical that way.

Off we went for a lovely weekend of sleeping, cooking, drinking, game playing, dancing and general merriment. It was wonderful.

When planning my outfits for the weekend away I wanted to get into the country mood, look decent and be incredibly comfortable and I think I did a good job of it. Honestly I think in the right context throwing a furry vest on anything can make it a bit fabulous in the country.

Outfit sourcing:

Top - Evans

Leggings - Danskin via Ebay

Vest - Target

Boots - Duo

Sunglasses - Swiped from the coffee table, not entirely sure who they belong to. I think they're Ray-Bans.

My photographer for the day is a photo stylist for fancy shoots, can you tell? Also the view from the deck we took photos on is this. Can you imagine how gorgeous this must be in full spring bloom? Apparently spring comes even later to the Catskills than it does to Brooklyn.

New Hair and Office Sequins

Ta dah! Check it out, I have new, all natural hair.

Last spotted in 1998 and a two-year work in progress, it's my all natural hair color. I was more than a bit shocked when I discovered just how dark my hair really is and to be honest I wasn't all that pleased. But it's been a few weeks now (I'm quite the delayed blogger) and it's really starting to grow on me. The cut was inspired by a curly haired Maggie Gyllenhaal and while not quite as dramatic as I was hoping for it did re-dedicate myself to my stylist who I was thinking about breaking up with after a very long relationship.

You like?

I've also got on a very cute, new to me dress. I picked this up on my trip to Portland this past fall on Hawthorne Boulevard in the Southeast. Portland was glorious and I can't believe I never told y'all about it. When I finally wear the dress I got from Fat Fancy I'll give you an update.

It's just a simple black sweater dress that has the most AMAZING 80's shoulder pads and sequins. It's a continuation of my desire to bring sequins to the office, not just the weekend. I've paired my sequined sweater dress with some Duo boots and a headband from a Brooklyn street fair.

Photo credit to my beloved Ateqah.

I'm the Fat Cruella de Vil

A week or two ago the Fat Heffalump asked me if I'd be willing to contribute to a blog post about what fatshion meant to me. I was super touched to be included and quickly sent her a few lines and included the above photo of me. Amongst the things I said I wrote

"Sometimes I get on the subway in the morning, look around at everyone on the train and think about how in a sea of black, I am the fat woman wearing multiple fluorescent colors and a faux fur jacket. And then I laugh to myself and think about how far I’ve come from the days when I didn’t even know where to buy jeans that fit me."

And today's outfit is just an example of how far I've come. Not just in being comfortable in my body enough to show it off and bring attention to it, but also in the array of places I have to shop.

Also before winter finally ends in New York I wanted to show you what I have found to be the best part of my winter. My amazing, vintage faux fur that I purchased at Re/Dress a few months ago. I'd been coveting a faux fur all season and after a few ordering misses I picked this up at Re/Dress in the midst of one of the many blizzards we had. Every time I wear it, it puts a huge smile on my face. I think it makes me the fat Cruella de Vil!

Underneath my coat I had on those multiple shades of fluorescent I referenced. This dress was also picked up at Re/Dress and it was one of their new pieces that they carry. For some reason I don't wear this dress that often, even though I do like it. It often feels like a lot, even for me. The one other time I wore it I met Morgan Freeman.

There are batwing sleeves - fun! The dress comes with a belt that threads underneath the sleeves, but in the most un-bloomie fashion I chose not to wear it. I'm also wearing tights from Target, shoes from Payless and earrings from Primark.

As an added bonus the dress does some nice stuff for my booty. My ass and I are happy.

Photo credit goes to Amy and Ateqah.

My Vest is Bananas

As much as I hate to admit it, sometimes I watch the Rachel Zoe Project. Half the time I think she looks like a crazy lady (cause let's be real she is) and the other half of the time I love her look. I die, do you die?

When Rachel Zoe first started wearing a furry vest a few years ago I thought she looked ridiculous. I swore I would never, ever wear such a thing. And then, slowly but surely as time progressed I warmed to the look until finally I wanted one of my own. Lesson of the day, don't doubt Rachel Zoe's fashion foresight.

So one night I was shopping at the Atlantic Center Target, aka the Target that never, ever has anything in stock when I came across this vest from their newish juniors plus line Pure Energy and threw it in my cart. I wasn't sure how to wear it, but my wise friend Ateqah just told me to keep everything else simple and I would be ok. As usual, she was right.

I chose a simple black dress as my base. It's a straight sized piece from one of Bloomingdale's in house brands and I got it from a Friday fats sale. I'm wearing some crocheted tights from Target and boots from Evans. My necklace is from the Bust craftacular. Unflattering lighting thanks to the MTA, photo thanks to Ats.

Twitter

I joined Twitter and if you're so inclined you should follow me there. Bloomie was taken so I'm @DressWhore . I talk about a lot more than fatshion, but there's plenty of that as well. I haven't yet decided what I think of Twitter, the amount of information coming at me kinda stresses me out. Also it is super not good for my wallet as I keep seeing pretty articles of clothing being posted in tandem with discount codes. In the past week I've bought stuff from Asos, City Chic, and I'm about to purchase a new bikini from Evans. Even with sales and coupons it turns out that the price adds up. This is dangerous land I tell you.

Do you love Twitter and if so why?