A Little Fancy

These days, wearing anything not denim is considered dressing up. Every once in a while I want to get fancy. Am I going to a gala, no, but sometimes I just want to put on a great dress and show off.

Instead of traditional black, I wanted to wear a navy dress. The Maggy London Bethany dress is a great dress for a night or day out. The color is seasonless, and it pairs well with everything. I love navy with metallics. Metallics just bring out the best in navy. Instead of going with silver or gold, I thought rose gold heels would be a nice touch. Things that I love about the dress, first is the mesh neckline. The mesh illusion top gives the dress a nice touch of sexy without revealing anything . Also the mesh sleeves provides nice amount of coverage for those that do not feel comfortable going sleeveless. Second, the stretchy material makes it super comfortable to wear. I definitely recommend this dress if you are looking for something to wear to a wedding or to an event. It's affordable, and you will get so many uses out of this. What do you say lovers? Ready to get a little fancy?

California Dreaming- The IG Wives Takeover Pt 3

Dresses for me are the most easiest things I can maintain. It's an instant outfit, and an extra bonus is when you can find one that is wrinkle resistant. When packing for my trip, I really thought about what I was going to take and limit things that require ironing. One of my go to's was this great lace shift dress from Avenue. 

Photo's courtesy of @fabulizza

This dress is a great travel companion. It folds up small, wrinkle resistant, and it's a sheath. Sheath dresses like this one are great because it shows off the figure but it's not as curve hugging as a bodycon. A sheath skims over your curves. Both still accentuate, but a sheath like this one (I'm wearing a 14/16) can be worn to the office, or out for a day in the sun. When I'm on vacation, the heels are put to the back burner. I like wearing cute sandals that can take me from day to night. These sandals were great for my trip. They are super comfortable, due to the padded insole, and the sparkly elastic makes them stand out. I just needed this pendent necklace, and my look was complete. 

White clothing has become a major staple in my life. Wearing all the things we are told as plus size women we should shy away from has been a freeing experience. The limitations we put on ourself due these rules has been one of the reasons why I started this blog. My goal is that when I try something out and by me doing so, hopefully I can inspire someone else to try an item they never thought about. The IG Wives decided to do a white dress look book. The backdrop here in Santa Monica was such an inspiration for us, that we thought it would be a great idea to share our fun white looks from the Avenue. Definitely check out the look book below and for details on Sandra's look or Darlene's make sure to head to their blogs! A very big Thank You to our photographer Fabulizza and Avenue for this great opportunity!

Visual (LACMA)- The IG Wives Takeover Pt 2

I have always been drawn to bold patterns and colors. When I was younger going to museums were an essential part of my upbringing. I still find peace going to a museum and just walking around looking at art. At Lacma, besides the art inside the museum, there is art outside the museum. The Lacma installation is a definite must see, and of course a great spot to take pictures. 

With such an amazing backdrop, wearing something equally visually bold was needed. This skirt from Lane Bryant was the perfect item for a gorgeous day. What I love about it is the bold color. The shades of blue play nice with black and white to take a fit & flare skirt to the next level. With a skirt so pretty, all I needed was a slightly cropped top, sandals, and my oh so favorite Christian Siriano for LB shades and I was photo ready. 

Besides avoiding all the other patrons taking pictures, we got to have some fun dipping in and out of the rows of lights. This was the first stop on our day of shooting and I think the IG Wives hit it out of the park. I'm so used to just shooting with the tripod or the wives taking pictures, it was cool to have photographer Fabulizza who has such great energy, and just the sweetest person take them. She really captured me: a little sassy, and all around playful. 

Got a little Beyonce wind going....owww Photo Credit @Fabulizza

I think we look great in our skirts. A fit & flare skirt will always be a staple for the IG Wives. This silhouette makes everyone look good. For details on what my wives wore, click here & here. You can wear color, and still look great. Turn yourself into a work of art, and be a visual feast for the eyes. 

Pink Wall- The IG Wives Takeover Pt 1

LA weather is just great for pictures. The sunny, warm weather and amazing backdrops are a blogger's dream. Don't get me wrong, I am a NY'er til the day I die, but summers in NYC can get soo humid that taking pictures becomes an epic task. There were so many times this summer that I just had to go back in the house after shooting and just sit in front of the air conditioner. Ok, I'm getting off topic...lol...back to the matter at hand. LA weather plus all the wall art- pure magic. A must have picture in your blogger files when visiting Los Angeles, is the Pink Wall in Downtown LA. Shooting at the Pink Wall was on my blogger bucket list so I'm happy that the IG Wives had a chance to go and shoot there with our amazing photographer Fabulizza. Check out her site, she is AH-MAZING!!!!!

Picture taken by the oh so fab photographer and blogger @fabulizza

The big question was what can I wear that will look great against the iconic Pink Wall. I have been all about trying new silhouette's this year, and my next one to tackle was the halter top. My go to brand for all things fun and trendy- Eloquii. I went with their Sleeveless Cross Front Top because in my latest tackle of new silhouette's I wanted to give a halter top a try. What I love about the top is that it gives the illusion of a halter in the front, but it still provides ample coverage in the back. Definite must have for those that are not about a halter due to the tying of the strings around your neck. Added bonus, this top is on sale, so I would check it out. I don't see this as just a top for the summer, I would wear this well into fall. Just throw on a blazer and you are all set. Frayed jeans are on trend this season, so when I saw this cropped version, I just had to have them. They have a good amount of stretch, and they do not feel heavy which is great for warm weather. I still will wear denim even when it's hot, but I always make sure that it's not a heavy denim. This is the best of both worlds because it's not as lightweight as chambray, but it's not as heavy as most denim. All that was left was some great accessories like this tie I made into a headband, and my favorite sunnies. 

This group shot of us is one of my favorites. You have me being somewhat silly, Darlene in full on fabulous posing mode, and Sandra looking effortlessly cool. The Wall was tackled by the IG Wives and I must say we look great rocking our favorite pieces from Eloquii. Stay tuned lovers for more of the IG Wives take LA!!!

LA Chronicles

I had an amazing opportunity to attend BlogHer in LA. Blogher is a two days conference, featuring vendors and speakers. The conference is all about getting women bloggers (and quite a few men) of all different backgrounds together and will host seminars to help take your blog to the next level. Before the conference, there were some things on my list that I had to do. 

First: Go to In & Out Burger

One thing that is always on my list to do when I land in Cali, is to get a double combo from In & Out. I love a good burger (to all the men out there, the way to my heart is burgers and cupcakes- find me greatness, and we are set), and In & Out is my go to when I'm here. After a five hour flight, a little comfort food, makes everything better. 

Second: Visit Torrid Headquarters

Rocking my Torrid Girlfriend Jeans, with a Torrid Graphic Tee, and Matisse Sandals.

Living in NY, I get a chance to meet with a lot of the brands I love because they are based on the East Coast. Torrid, on the other hand is based in California, so when there are any events, unfortunately I can't attend. Since the IG Wives were heading out for BlogHer, I thought it would be a great idea for us to take some time out and visit Torrid Headquarters. Ecstatic could not describe how I felt when they agreed to meet with us and give us a tour. 

Darlene, Sandra and I got a chance to chat with Torrid's bra guru/designer, and talk about the challenges in plus size lingerie, as well as what Torrid is doing for the market. As a plus size gal that wears a 38H, it's hard to find bras that are 1. truly a full coverage bra 2. pretty 3. constructed well. Once you are past a DDD, the options for nice lingerie are cut in half. There are a lot more brands out there than before, but you have to put in the work and look for the right brand- and when I say look, I mean shop online. Options in stores are unfortunately very limited. Torrid is looking to expand their bra offerings past a G (YAY!!!). Great thing I learned about their process is that they will have tons of volunteers to wear the product as well as their employees. if the bra doesn't make the grade within a certain percentage, they go back and re-work the fit. I can respect the diligence the team puts in to their product. 

Next we got a chance to talk to the denim and dress designers. For those of you that have been following the blog, I am all about the boyfriend jean, but when I saw the girlfriend jean from Torrid, I wanted to give them a try. I must say, that I'm in love with this jean. I love their fit, they hug the curves, and come up on my waist. A lot of jeans gape in the back due to my butt, but these passed the no gap test. I went with a size 16, and they fit well on me. A lot of times denim starts off well in the morning, and by the end of the day, it's stretched out and looks sloppy. These took from the plane to the visit, without the least bit of sagging. Torrid is known for their great denim options, and they are expanding with more types of fits, lengths, and premium denim washes. When it comes to shopping, whether you are plus size or not, looking for a bra or jeans I feel are the hardest ones to tackle. I'm happy to say that Torrid is there for us to provide us options online as well as in store. 

Getting a chance to meet all the different people responsible was a treat and a great way to kick off my visit to LA. Stay tuned lovers for more fashion, fun, and sun in LA!! Muah!!