LondonEdge A/W 2016

Image credit:LondonEdge

Zombies? Check. Sequins? Check? Gravity defying platforms? Check!

Sunday 4th of September saw the start of the 34th LondonEdge show back at the British Design Centre in Islington. For me, a much better venue than the previous Olympia. The event is huge, and the spacious centre with lots of light coming through, it made the experience much better. Though it was on two levels so would require use of lifts for wheelchairs. Not to mention an onsite cafe with comfortable seating and reasonable pricing was another bonus over the uncomfortable steel chairs and extortionate food at the previous event. A much welcome respite from the busy day!

My day started with a surprise appearance from Tanya boarding my carriage who it turned out was also attending.

She was meeting Becky at Kings Cross. I joined Tanya for breakfast at The Parcel Yard while waiting for Becky to arrive. We took seats outside and waited for our meals. I started feeling like a bit of a celeb as we had a few people stop to talk to us and compliment our outfits, and even had a woman approach us claiming to be an artist and could she take our photo! Our Eggs Benedicts arrived and there was this excellent moment as we both munched down at the same time letting out a little moan, turning to look at each other. God damn, those were some delicious eggs!

It didn't take long to get to Angel, another bonus for me. The venue location meant much easier access from St Pancras. As I said the events pretty huge and covering every stall would be nigh on impossible-ok not impossible but that's gonna get a bit boring and time consuming, so here's some highlights for me.

Upon arriving our first stop was Woody Ellen. She's an artist who makes her pieces into gorgeous handbag sets. A wonderfully warm woman, who looked stunning in a beautiful sky blue outfit. She also gifted us with a purse of our choice and I got to pick from my favourite collection ' Blossom'

One exhibitor I'd been dying to see was Isolated Heroes. LondonEdge shared a dress of theirs prior to the event that had me gasping. The folks on the stall were gorgeous and super friendly. They're an amazinf indie brand who's sizing comes up to a 24 but I was told that they were happy to take custom orders! My favourite piece by a country mile was this sequin jacket.

LOOK AT THAT MERMAID SHIT. Ahem. Yes. Sorry. It's just so perfect.

Expanding my online shopping list as I went along I came across the most adorable stall from Punky Pins who carry amazingly cute and super detailed pins and patches.

I am absolutely going to be placing an order with these guys for my battle jacket when I get a minute to myself.

Another stall I loved was Dolly and Dotty. I love their classic retro looks, at a competitive price, but another great thing is that many of their items come in different colour combinations. I'm the worst blogger because I was so busy chatting to the amazingly lovely staff I forgot to take any photos. *Jean Ralfio voice* the woooooorst.

However one of my favourite pieces of theirs was easily this gorgeous cape in red.

It's just so cute and oh so soft I couldn't stop touching it. It comes in different colours too so you can make it work with loads of different outfits. They also had some cute jersey tops which, again, super soft and also nice and stretchy. This cape is absolutely on my to-buy list! Also how amazing does their model, Isabella Bliss, look??

Image credit: Dolly and Dotty

Iron Fist were knocking it out of the ball park with their amazing mermaid shoes too.

Look at them!! So shiny!! Heaven.

One exhibitor that really surprised me this time was Demonia. I've always had a soft spot for them in my early, shoe gazing gothy years and I own a couple of pairs of their big ole clompers but it's interesting to see how the brand has developed over the years. One of my faves for sure.

I little hidden jem was an indie company called Koolies Kreations. We had stopped by but the stall holder was out to lunch. We'd headed over to the cafe and she actually came and found us! She bounded over with her big curls, big smile, and big sparkly boots. She was super passionate and really great to talk to.

It wouldn't be a trip to London Edge without stopping by the Pin Up Academy stall. They offer complimentary hair styling and even had a little studio set up if you wanted to pay for a photoshoot. The ladies all have a filthy sense of humour and there was much cackling, particularly with Sinderella's little merkin.

We also managed to bump into fellow blogger Diana

After we schelpped around all the stalls we headed out for a quick bite to eat at Ed's Easy Diner. I must admit, as burgers go it was pretty awesome. I waved the ladies off as I hurried to check into my air bnb. I had enough time to freshen up and change before heading over to the Islington Metal Works for the after party!

The room looked amazing with the ambient lighting and the old tube train bar. 

I got chatting to the ladies from the Pin Up Academy, who were still doing hair styling! After an hour or so October downed her brush and slipped into the most incredible sparkly dress. I got chatting to Sam, who took me under her wing for the night. 

With the gorgeous Kita! 

Image credit: LondonEdge

We headed over to watch the entertainment; an awesome swing band Dick Dynamite and Doppelgangers followed by some incredible dancing from a swing troupe called Swing Patrol. 

Then you had the opportunity to do some swing dancing yourself! I didn't brave it myself. I think I would have melted into a puddle in the London heat but kudos to those of you who did, you did amazing!

We were then treated to an incredible strip tease from Banbury Cross. Partway into her routine she slunk over to the crowd to tease us and of course came over to me causing me to blush very hard! Quite impossible to take pictures when there's steam rising from your face. Utterly gorgeous and dangerously seductive. Amazing!

Photo credit: NeverNotOut

Soon it was time to crawl into my bed ready for another day at 'Edge. This one would be shorter but I really wanted to catch the seminar from the Sophie Lancaster Foundation. For those of you not familiar it was a charity set up in the name of a young girl who, alongside her boyfriend, were brutally assaulted simply for dressing alternatively. Sadly Sophie died from her injuries. Sylivia Lancaster, Sophie's mother, has worked tirelessly to end this kind of discrimination, earning herself an OBE, and garnering support from celebrities and people all over the world. 

The seminar was, at times, haunting. Recounting the event, describing in detail the injuries sustained, and the the painful journey to justice for the family. But hearing how the charity began, and the incredible support it received was uplifting. They now work in schools, prisons, youth centres, and anywhere that education is needed with their resource packs and training. They have also worked to have Sophie's murder treated as a hate crime, and through this 11 police authorities now recognise subculture attacks as a hate crime. 

Follow the link for more information on this amazing charity and ways you can support them.

As my time in London was drawing to an end I stopped by the Pin Up Academy stall one last time and treated myself to a photo session with the lovely Simon, being coached by the gorgeous Sam, who makes it all look so dang easy! 

Thank you London Edge for another amazing season! 

Another bopo bore.

Body positivity seems to be the new media buzzword these days. Gosh, that sounds cynical of me doesn’t it? Bear with me.

It’s no secret that our media promotes the insidious message of thinness being the archetype of beauty, success, and worthiness. This ultimate goal affects everyone who tries it: be it those who seek to attain it, or those who fight to maintain it. Every which way there is a problem for people to fix; trying to measure up to body types that, realistically, don’t even actually exist thanks to the power of Photoshop.

Everyone out there is battling with this toxicity that surrounds us. We’re all trying to come to terms with who we are and what we want for ourselves. But here’s the thing: some of us experience vastly more oppression and discrimination than others. That’s not to say that the expectations thrown at women are not harmful and painful for many but the oppression and discrimination levelled at fat people far outweighs that of thin people.

Body positivity, as a movement, is virtually unrecognisable anymore. Where it was once a tool to create spaces for the marginalised; be it fat people, disabled, POC, trans folks, and other groups, now it is a means for brands and media to appear to be sympathetic without having to actually acknowledge or cater for those marginalised groups.

Campaigns like #iamallwoman use the token call of body positivity to appear to give the middle finger to body policing while simultaneously upholding beauty ideals by using models who are typically attractive and –you guessed it-all thin.

Any criticisms levelled at these campaigns us met with disbelief, as though these meagre crumbs, that do not represent us are supposed to satisfy us. Promises of more inclusions to come, as though the radical inclusion couldn’t have just come in the first place.

This isn’t the fat community demanding that it be all about us, or that thin woman can’t be involved, but rather they, for one minute, take up the least proportion of representation. There are so many groups that can and should be represented that simply never are.  This is a movement for all but has now been co-opted for those with greater privilege to hijack a movement that doesn’t place them at the centre and call it unfair.

We are sick of being told that our turn is coming when it never does. 

Classic looks with Simply Be

As much as I love colour and patterns I'm also a really big fan of simplicity. Having bright hair and tattoos can sometimes be all the accessorising I need for an outfit.

I love this capsule skater dress from Simply Be because it's such a classic LBD  and it's so easy to dress up or down. I'm also a big fan of the skater dress as a larger fat because it's an easy look to create.

Having long sleeves this is probably going to be best worn in the coming cooler months but the material is really light and comfortable so I don't feel too weighed down. A heads up: the dress came up really short on me, I'm about 5"4 but I'm all belly, so I'd say maybe some leggings or just bare you chub rub shorts if you're feeling saucy.

As I said you can dress this up or down. Here I teamed it with this amazing jacket, also from Simply Be, for a casual rockabilly look.

I completed the look with some adorable polka dot pumps from Asda but you could just as easily wear some Converse, or some Dr Martens. Or something with a bit of a heel and some fancy accessories for a more 'evening' look. It's super versatile.

How would you style it?

Outfit deets: Dress and bomber: Simply Be

Pumps: Asda

Headscarf: Dotty and Dolly

Necklace: Suger and Vice

Birthday Wishlist

It's the big Three-Oh for me on July 4th. I've already been treated to a wonderful week away in Gower, and my mum is coming to visit me for a week. My first visitor since I moved down here! I'm also looking forward to it because I haven't seen my mum in over a year because the last time I went home for a visit the floods had destroyed the road so I couldn't get to her.

Birthdays usually entail gifts so here's a little birthday wishlist of stuff I've been fawning over.

Lindy Bop Bette swing dress  |  Sourpuss Bettie Page Centre Fold purse

T.U.K Pizza slip ons

Lady Luck's Boutique Kiki hair flower |  Lindy Bop 'Brigitte' Paris Stripe 

T.U.K Split Stack Nosebleeds

A girl can dream, right?

Yours Clothing Skater Pinafore Dress Review.

I've been trying to incorporate more black back into my wardrobe, a sentiment my 15-year old self would have found baffling that black were lacking in any way. More casual staples that I can pair up with other things. I need to make my wardrobe reflect the laziness that is my daily life.

Yours Clothing has been putting out some great pieces and my wishlist keeps growing. 

I've always fancied a pinafore but there's never really been much going in my size, that wasn't blue denim at least, until now. I was trying to choose between two dresses at the time and when I sent the links to my partner, this was their choice. Although to be honest I'l probably get the other one as well, ha!

I like it, but it's taking some getting used to. It's hard to explain. I'm struggling to find anything to wear underneath it that I think goes really well. I do kinda feel a bit like an artisan baker in it sometimes. I dunno. It's a work in progress. I think this is going to be better suited as a winter wardrobe piece, for me personally at least. 

The material was heavier than I expected, but still soft and comfortable. I wore this to see Grimes and despite it being pretty packed and sweaty, as you'd imagine any Grimes gig to be, I was still really comfortable in it. It's a little bit long for personal taste, but I can always hem it, so it's great for taller folks who often have a lot of trouble finding stuff that isn't cupping their bumcheeks. 

One thing I was a little disappointed with was that after the first wear at the gig I noticed the material had already started bobbling underneath the armpits, which was disappointing for a dress at £26. 

Overall I'm pretty pleased with it. It's comfy, it's cute, and you can work it with lots of things. ALSO POCKETS YASS.

Outfit: Yours Clothing Skater Pinafore

Shoes: Peacocks (old)

The Only Splits I'll Be Doing! featuring Yours Clothing and New Look

After Christmas I kept my head down in terms of shopping, avoiding any internet browsing because I've been buying shit that is just too damn fancy (albeit gorgeous) and having no social life to wear any of it. I basically live in this limbo of work clothes and pajamas. With the spring sales it's been a bit difficult to resist temptation, and for once I've been bulking up my casual wardrobe.

Yours Clothing have been putting out some fabulous pieces out lately and I've bought a couple of bits from them. I spotted this maxi tunic in my local store, but typically they had every size but mine! I figured I'd use the luxury of a changing room anyway and tried the next size down. A perfect fit! In fact they had my size in a different colour and I felt it was too baggy for me. Result!

Oh yeah my hairs back to red again too

The tunic has two large splits up the side and so I donned a pair of chub rub shorts for a little modesty! The fabric is a lovely, soft jersey. It felt lovely and cool and hangs so comfortably.

I gotta admit, I was feeling pretty fierce in this. I knew this outfit called for some serious boots. I picked these up in New Look after a lovely blogger breakfast, after being convinced by Sophie that as they were on sale I obviously would be a fool not to pick them up. How could I not heed such good advice?! 

While I went for a slightly raunchier look here this tunic is just as cute dressed down. I wore this out for lunch with the fella with some leggings and an old pair of leopard print T.U.K creepers. 

It's such a blank canvas that you can dress it up or down.

Your fat super heroine

Outfit details:

Short Sleeved Tunic: Yours Clothing

Ankle Boots: New Look

There isn't enough room for all this bullshit

HelloGiggle.com recently shared this photograph from selling website/app Wish, that were advertising a pair of plus size shorts:

Charming, huh?

As noted in the HG article this is an incredibly cruel way to advertise clothing. Naturally there's been some uproar over social media. Christina, of Interrobang art, who makes and sells clothing up to a 34, posted this fantastic response on her Instagram account

But this isn't the first time this sort of cruel marketing has been used. AliExpress were under scrutiny back in 2015 for using this image to sell plus size leggings

The Big Bloomers Company, a site dedicated to plus size underwear use this to advertise their plus size tights

Aye, you keep smiling it up Sally Small.

I don't doubt there are many more, these are just the ones I was able to find first. So what's the issue? 

In laymans terms it's disrespectful as fuck to use this sort of strategy to advertise plus size clothing. 

The photos are utterly ridiculous, verging on comical and circus-esque. "Look how HUGE this product is! You can fit a whole other person with room to spare!"

And that's the thing, isn't it? We don't see fat people as real people but rather bodies that can't be comprehended without using "normal" bodies for scale. You want to advertise plus size clothing, and demonstrate how big your products are? USE ACTUAL FAT PEOPLE. Use a diverse range of sizes to demonstrate the variety of sizing you offer. "Here's a body wearing a size 12, and here's the same product in a 32." It's NOT HARD. 

There are so many fat people out there who would offer their services. Look at how plus size brands have tapped into using bloggers to model for them. The sizes are out there: you just won't use them.

Frankly I am sick of companies humiliating fat people and in the next breath taking our money. If they aren't using micro-aggresive language like "flattering", "slimming" and other such crap to suggest our fat can, and should, be magically hidden then they are outright removing us from their brick and mortar stores. 

What is even the logic in this? Do they not think fat people are going to take one look at this and close the fucking tab? Bullying people does not a profit make. Too long have companies tapped into a person's low self esteem to sell you a product you don't need, for an imaginary issue you don't even have. But people need clothes. What we don't need is being made out to be circus freaks.