Excuse my somewhat awkward pose! So lately I've found myself drawn more towards wearing lots of blacks, which is funny given how garish I have traditionally dressed. I'm really liking my blonde almost pixie and lots of black + obnoxious lipstick right now. I wore this to go potter around a market with my dad.

Top, clothes swap, free
Skirt, Deptford market (one of my favourite tat hunting grounds!), £5
Belt, passed on by a friend
Necklace, Tatty Devine, gift
Hoops, 75p, Primark
Shoes, eBay, £20

Today (work):

Striped tee, passed on by a friend
Belt, Dorothy Perkins, £7
Skirt, Dorothy Perkins, £15
Sandals, Dorothy Perkins, £7
Jacket, ASOS, £32
Necklace, Tatty Devine, birthday present
Bag, car boot, £3

The price of everything

I've always felt a bit of an odd fit in the fatshion world, cos I can't afford to buy things. Now I have some disposable income, but even with that I probably can't buy things full price. Over the 3 years I've been blogging, I've worn some of my clothes countless times - I guess until they've fallen apart in a lot of cases. In this time I've been on the dole, on minimum wage, on a pittance of university funding, and generally speaking not particularly well off.

Part of the reason I started blogging here was because clothes have always mattered to me (not necessarily fashion, but clothes themselves) - because they've been a way to express myself and explore who I am, no matter how little spare money I've had, and whether I've been shopping at jumble sales or high street shops. I'm a constant re-mixer, because what I buy has to go with EVERYTHING I own. I've learned to thrift through years of having few other options. I've never had a lot, but I've always had fun making things work for me where I can.

I've been putting the prices on what I buy ever since I started this. That's for a reason too - often what I wear can't be bought again by someone else (because it's second hand, or on super duper last one left sale), but I still want to be able to be transparent about where I find things and how I dress myself. I want to be able to show others who don't have a lot how I get by. Again, I feel like knowing the price of something is something I was brought up with, and dressing on the cheap is something I feel proud about. I also tag all of the items I wear so you can see the ways I've remixed something too.

I'm never gonna be the sort of blogger with a wardrobe of outfit options. My clothes will always be a little bobbled, and yes, I've worn that blouse a million times. I'm not on trend, I'm not invested in fashion as an industry, or in keeping up to date because of any sense of obligation. I'm mainly into finding ways to have fun dressing myself even when I have nothing.

Re-emerging from the end of my postgrad course, hurray! I've been thinking lots about what this blog is, what I want it to be and how I want to be present in the fatshion community for the future. Here's an outfit for now though...

Dress: handmade
Scarf: 50p, car boot
Belt, passed on by a friend
Sandals, Dorothy Perkins, £7

xx

I spent the last weekend doing fun things, including going to the Alternative Press Fair on Saturday. Seeing as I never make it out to North West London, I took the chance to hit some charity shops while I was there and found this Beth Ditto for Evans dress in one! I've been stalking these on eBay for YEARS, but they always go for lots and my budget is pretty non-existent, so I was pretty excited to find it for £8.99. Hurray thrifting!

On a side note, I'm wearing this today and I'm always amazed at how bold the Beth Ditto for Evans stuff was - it's all pretty unapologetic and I always feel extra visible when I wear one of the pieces I bought from it. I don't really feel like any collaboration has come close since, especially in terms of also being good quality and well tailored. Sigh.

Dress, Beth Ditto for Evans via charity shop, £8.99

Shoes, Dorothy Perkins, £7

Scarf, vintage, £1

So I optimistically decided it was summer and began my annual wearing shorts and no tights as much as possible recently, but er, apparently it's not anymore. I thought I'd show you folks a few casual outfits incorporating my favourite shorts, which are generally what I throw on most days. 

Shorts, New Look (available here), £15

Teamed with: 

(First Outfit)

Top, clothes swap

Scarf, vintage

Hoops, Primark, £2

Shoes, Vans, £25

(Second Outfit)

Top, Primark, £4

Denim vest, used to be a jacket, New Look

Shoes, ASDA, £4

And the most important latest addition to my self:

Done by Rose Whittaker at Haunted Tattoos, who is most highly recommended!

 

So I buzzed my hair about two weeks back, partially because I'd gotten fed up of styling the hairstyle I'd had and partially cos I felt like I'd been edging my way towards shaving it all off slowly anyway! It was a pretty good decision I think, I'm really enjoying dressing up again, and finding that I'm heading back towards vintage inspired femme-ier looks again, which is amusing! 

On another note, this dress was the best I've ever made! I wear it constantly, it fits just right and it works for a whole bunch of occasions. Good old Vogue V8615. 

Excuse the apparent miserableness of that day! Er, here's a close up of my collar chain which I haven't worn nearly enough. 

Shirt, New Look

Dress, handmade

Belt, Evans

Collar clip, ASOS

Shoes, Office

Hey folks! You'll have to excuse my super glam setting for an outfit shot today (it just gets worse...). I've had a stash of some brown fake leather in my fabric pile for ages, waiting to be made into a pleated skirt of sorts, and I decided to just go for it! I was nervous about sewing with fake leather but it was actually a dream - I used a denim needle and did a fair amount of topstitching but ultimately it took fewer adjustments than I'd anticipated. I was so excited to have finished it that I wore it out without hemming it, then finished it later.

In other news, I'm really loving the camo jacket I picked up recently at a blogger event So Fabulous were running (post about that to come...). It's lightweight, practical and I have been wearing it pretty much constantly since I got it.

Skirt, handmade
Dress worn as top, ASOS (available here)
Belt, clothes swap
Chambray shirt, New Look
Shoes, Office, (available here)
Scarf, vintage
Bag, car boot sale
Jacket, c/o So Fabulous (available here)

 

Long time no see, folks. I've had a tough few months, my dad went into hospital and is still recovering. I'm kind of rethinking what I want this blog to be lately too, so I'm less fussed about posting clothes all the time. Here's what I wore to hang out with some blogger babes last week, anyway. 

Top, ASOS curve via a friend

Skirt, Forever 21+

Belt, Dorothy Perkins

Necklace, Topshop

Tights, M&S

Shoes, ASOS. 

xx

Oh look, it's another pencil dress/boots combo! Er, sorry, no points for originality right now. Anyway, I wanted to post this dress despite that as it's amazzzzzing! I got it from New Look for the grand sum of £15 about six weeks again, and find myself wearing it constantly right now. It's the perfect fitted dress for me, super fitted and yet still comfortable and easy to run about in.

Dress, New Look (available here)
Belt, Dorothy Perkins
Boots, Primark

This dress was kindly sent to me by the folks at Simply Be earlier this year. It's part of their collection with Anna Scholz - a range I've always wanted to try but which is also a little out of my price range normally. This is made out of a lovely jersey fabric, and I love the ruching down the front of the dress. The skirt isn't quite as tight fitting as I'd like, so I think it'll be altered before I wear it next.

This I wore it simply, with some heeled boots and a skinny belt - definitely one of my uniforms looks!

Dress, c/o Simply Be (available here)
Belt, Dorothy Perkins
Boots, Primark

 

So this Thursday I allowed myself a night off uni work so I could go see the wonderful Lauren  in Hamburger Queen at the RVT. It was an AMAZING night, full of laughing so hard my jaw ached and celebrating talented, unruly fat people. There's still two more heats to go and a final, and I'd recommend it to anyone who needs a burst of positivity or just some fun. 

Anyway, cycling shorts seemed appropriate attire for such an occasion. I got these custom made by Allihalla on etsy last year and they're marvelous. Good lazy spring attire (even though it's still bloody freezing). 

Denim waistcoat, altered jacket, New Look

Kitten t-shirt, eBay

Cycling shorts, Allihalla

Creepers, eBay

How to Wear: Spring (Bold Stripes)

The lovely folks at Voucher Codes approached me recently to take part in a series on how to wear Spring trends. I was given a few options, from which I chose bold stripes! I love stripey things, I'm sure long term readers will have realised this by now!

We were given £80 to go and find options from which we could make 3 outfits (using pieces from our own wardrobe where we wanted). I liked this challenge because it was budget friendly too - £80 is probably more than I'd spend otherwise for 3 items, but still a fairly reasonable amount. I found three items, and here's how I wore them:

Look 1: Casual

 Stripey jumper, Maine New England at Debenhams, £22.40 - available here
White button up shirt: Clothes swap
Jeans, ASOS, £16 - available here
Necklace, Topshop, £12.50 - available here
Dunlops, car boot sale, £2

This is a look I wear pretty frequently these days - it's comfortable, warm and still stylish (I think?!). The stripey jumper is a classic for me, though surprisingly I've not owned one in ages! I have lots of stripey tops though. The jumper is a generous sized 22, has lovely cable detailing and is thick. Definitely one I'll be wearing constantly until March gets nicer. The necklace is something I bought with a gift voucher over Christmas and have been wearing with lots of things. Feature necklaces are definitely something I'd like more of!

Look 2: Smart:

 

Chevron striped work dress, £32, Collection at Debenhams - available here

Cardigan, clothes swap

Chunky necklace, £2, Primark

Belt, £7, Dorothy Perkins

Tights, M&S

Shoes, ASOS, £30 - available here (for £16 now, gah)

I went for a more discretely striped item with my second choice - this chevron striped work dress from Debenhams (okay, there were other places selling striped things too....). You can't see but it has these cute red panels that I covered up with the cardigan and belt because I wanted to wear my pink flatforms! It's made out of ponte fabric which is my favourite fabric for workwear, though annoyingly it's also lined making it not stretchy at all! Thankfully it fits really well and the lining isn't constricting. The 22 is pretty generous so would fit size 24 too.

Look 3: smart casual. 

Jersey dress, Very, £16 - available here
Cardigan, c/o Curvissa - available here and customised with these patches
Tights, M&S
Boots, Primark
Necklace - Fable and Fury

My final look revolved around this cute long sleeved jersey skater dress I found on Very. £16! I got the tall version and it's about the right length for me. I thought it'd be cute clashed with my spotty cardigan from Curvissa, which I recently customised with some patches from eBay. A bit obnoxious but hopefully still nice.

Phew! Hope you enjoyed, and thanks to Voucher Codes for letting me take part!

This dress is one of my new favourite things! It's perfect to throw on with some flats when I'm feeling lazy. I've gotten more into separates over the past year that I've almost forgotten how effortless a good dress can be when you're in a rush to leave the house in the morning. I can see it looking fancified with a little more effort too! 

Dress, c/o Simply Be
Tights, M&S
Shoes, crocs, via eBay, £6
Belt, Dorothy Perkins, £7

Also, hey look it's been so long since I posted that I forgot I hadn't given you all a hair update! Yes, predictably enough it's all been chopped off again (I blame the inklings of Spring weather).

 Hey folks! I'm back with some particularly awkward faces, go me! I'm wearing a few new things in this post - particularly chuffed with this red spotty cardigan from Curvissa, which is the elusive warm and cute cardigan I've been searching for. Teamed with my eyeball collar clips from ASOS, which are grotesque and wonderful:

I also wore the cardigan later the same week with a more sedate outfit (and an even more special face):

 

 First outfit: 

Cardigan, c/o Curvissa (online here)

Gingham Shirt, New Look (online here)

 High waisted short, New Look (online here)

Collar clips: ASOS

Tights, We Love Colours

Docs, gifted

Second outfit: 

Cardigan, as above.

Dress, handmade

Tights, M&S

Shoes, charity shop, £6.50

Hey folks! Long time no speak (blame postgraduate education for that!). Here's a quickie, and oh, look, black hairzz. Sure you've seen most of this before, but I've gotten into layering shirts under dresses and t-shirts in the winter for warmth and a new look.

Dress, £20, Dorothy Perkins
Shirt, clothes swap
Collar necklace, ASOS, £8
Belt, Dorothy Perkins, £7
Boots, docs via eBay, £50
Tights, M&S

I made a new zine! Just a quick plug to say you can get it on etsy here - copies of Make It Work #2 have been restocked too (though there's not many of either!). xx

Hey strangers! Fancy seeing me around here again, eh? This week has been a mish mash of frantically working on coursework and adjusting back to post-Christmas break waking up hours. Luckily I had enough spare time to do some crafting this past week too! I've been working through my fabric stash as I have too much, and I also have no money to buy clothes right now. This skirt was made out of a £5.50 remnant from my local fabric shop (Rolls and Rems, Lewisham, highly recommended) by tracing around a pencil skirt I own and lengthening it so it was knee length. I added a super high waist which I love. The fabric is some magic spandex blend which feels like it should be a leotard or something. I actually had enough left to make leggings too, but made them too small by overestimating the stretch of the fabric. But £5.50 still seems pretty good for a skirt!

Teamed with:
Bateau neck top, clothes swap
Necklace, Primark, £2
Tights, M&S
Creepers, eBay, £25

A cheapass guide to sales shopping

L-R

Slim leg check trousers (via Very) £17.50

Painted neon pink necklace £3.99 via F21 (or £2 with the code HOLIDAY50)

Animal print skinnies (via F21) £9.99 (half off with HOLIDAY50)

Superga/H by Holland crochet trainers via ASOS £21.00

So Fabulous stretch satin dress via Very £10.50

Leopard print bodycon skirt via F21 £6.99 (or £3.50 with the discount code)

Cosmic print leggings via New Look £10

Black velvet skater skirt via New Look £5

Hamble brogues via Clarks £25

Thought I'd share a few of my sales favourites this year, some of which I've bought, some which I just fancy the look of.

I am never very certain whether to do posts li/ke this, because I don't know whether I'm just promoting brands, BUT sales shopping is something I am pretty good at, and in the interests of helping other bargain hunting folk out, I thought it'd be good to do a round up of cheap things I like in the sale this year (all of these go up to at least a size 24 I think, though only certain sizes are available), and also share how I find things and save money further on them. I try not to spend much over £10 on something, and definitely not more than £30 (those brogues are £25, but I figured clarks shoes are good and they're 50% off, and black brogues are as practical as you can get, right?) ever.

Here's how I do sales shopping:
- I think a few weeks before about things it would be useful to get in the sales. This time I wanted sensible shoes, some new trousers and a black skater skirt. I try to keep this list in mind so I don't go nuts and find endless things I want.
- Plan a budget, and a point you DEFINITELY DEFINITELY won't spend over. This helps making decisions tricky, but overspending just kicks you in the arse ultimately. 
- Painful as this is, I look a bunch of places for bargains. I tend to sit over the holidays and survey sites I normally shop at, to find which has the cheapest options. I also check to see whether stuff I've ogled before is reduced.
- When I've found what I want to buy, I also google for voucher codes for the same sites. This year I discovered that Forever 21 has 50% off it's sale items (with the code HOLIDAY50), so those blue jeans, the pink necklace and the leopard mini are mine for a grand total of £10.50! I'm currently a student and use that discount where I can too. You'll be surprised how many sites allow you to use existing discount codes on sale items.
- Not that us fatties have much choice in this matter, but NEVER SHOP IN PERSON. Sales fever is stressful and often makes you choose stuff on impulse. Shopping online gives you chances to exploit aforementioned discount codes, and also time to walk away from purchases and have a think about whether you really want them.
- When searching online ALWAYS ORDER LOW-HIGH. That way once things get beyond your limit, you can easily stop looking (in theory).
- Finally, I use cashback site Quidco to get some extra cashback - it's doesn't cost anything to join and gives you a small percent of your purchases back. It takes a while to get paid, but every little helps! If you shop online a fair bit, it can add up reasonably well. 

Sticking by these rules, I don't overspend, and I generally buy stuff I need (or have wanted for ages) that I haven't been able to afford full price.

Happy holidays x

p.s. in the interest of transparency, the links in this post take you to the items via a referral site, which earns me a few pennies if you buy something. However, I'm only linking to stuff I'd like to buy myself or have bought too, and if you don't want to go through those links you can open the sites and search for the items yourself <3 font="font">

 

 Two outfits in one today! Teaming these two together because they are equally obnoxious and over co-ordinated, and feature a tank top I am pretty smitten with, which Curvissa kindly sent over to me. I've been looking for a new tank top for a while, and this one is cute and kind of festive. I went for the 22-24 (which I am as a size) but could have definitely sized down, as it's very large fitting. The trousers in the first picture are from Simply Be, and are a shape I wouldn't normally try, but given that they are HEART PRINT TROUSERS, I decided to give them a shot!

Apparently this colour scheme is a favourite at this time of year?! Funny given how monochrome my outfits have been getting lately.

Top outfit:

Tank top, gifted by Curvissa - on sale here

Blouse, tesco via eBay, £3.50

Trousers, gifted by Simply Be - on sale here

Dunlops, car boot sale, £2

Bottom outfit:

Tank top, gifted by Curvissa - on sale here

Shirt, vintage, £5

Skirt, handmade

 Belt, old vintage stock

Leg warmers, clothes swap

Docs, gifted