Sunday links, 1/4/15

No, it hasn’t snowed here recently–this is from Thanksgiving weekend. Here’s hoping for more snow soon!

Fa(t)shion
–13 times Gabourey Sidibe reified her fashion icon and role model status in 2014.
-Casey reviews Re/Dress teggings and Undersummers slip shorts.
–12 plus size bloggers who broke the internet in 2014.
-Eloquii will soon roll out a few items in sizes 26 and 28. This is good news, but I have to wonder: why do women who wear 26+ have to ask to be included, and wait for that inclusion to happen gradually? Why do women who wear 30+ still get left out?
–How Delia’s conquered the ’90s.
–7 times the visible belly outline made an appearance–and inspired me to celebrate my own curves.
–Sustainable style: the joy of Chubby Cartwheels!
–Plus size uniforms for kids are causing concern about the “childhood obesity epidemic”–but what does said concern do for the kids’ body image?
–Why Rum & Coke uses only plus size models.

Fat Acceptance
–Make a New Year’s Revolution.
–Murder at the intersection of fat and black.
–Why fat matters: why isn’t weight stigma seen as a social justice issue?
–Let’s hold doctors accountable: a new form of activism?
–I had hyperhidrosis in my hands, feet, and underarms–and it was a total enemy to my body image.
-Awesome: a Chrome extension that replaces occurrences of “lose weight” with “get pizza.”

30 books by women of color that I read this year

Some light lunchtime reading.

Inspired by Victoria Law’s decision to read 50 books by people of color in 2014, I decided to do a similar challenge: 25 books by women of color (which turned into 30).  I’m happy to report that I read some really awesome books, and found many authors whose work I’d like to read more of.

I’ve organized the books I read by genre, as Victoria did in her summary post. If you have book recommendations, leave them in the comments! I’m not sure whether I will do another challenge for 2015, but either way I would like to continue reading more books by people of color, especially women and queer poc.

Sci-fi/fantasy/speculative fiction

– Ninth Ward by Jewell Parker Rhodes

– Redemption in Indigo by Karen Lord

– Brown Girl in the Ring by Nalo Hopkinson

– Parable of the Sower and Parable of the Talents by Octavia Butler
Two novels about a young black woman who lives in a near-future climate change dystopia and founds her own religion. I loved the first book, but felt the sequel wasn’t as good for many reasons. (For example: the first book came out in 1993, but feels like it could have been written yesterday, whereas the second book was published in 2000 and feels rather dated in its focus on the dangers of fundamentalist Christianity.) Both books are absorbingly written, but incredibly bleak–I recommend reading them only if you’re in the right head-space to process a never-ending string of loss and trauma.

–Ash by Malinda Lo

Memoir

– Redefining Realness: My Path to Womanhood, Identity, Love & So Much More by Janet Mock
Janet Mock is awesome. That is all.

– Crazy Brave: A Memoir by Joy Harjo
Joy Harjo is also awesome. Seriously, you need to read this book.

– Men We Reaped: A Memoir by Jesmyn Ward
This is the heart-breaking story of five young black men in the author’s life, including her brother, who died within four years.

– Fugitive Visions: An Adoptee’s Return to Korea by Jane Jeong Trenka

– Hapa Girl: A Memoir by May-Lee Chai

– A Cup of Water Under My Bed by Daisy Hernandez
A beautiful book; you can read excerpts here and here.

2014: A year in review

I don’t even know where to start with 2014–it had all sorts of ups, downs, and mehs, sometimes all at the same time.

When it comes to style and blogging, I’ve had a lot of fun (as you can see by my favorite outfits featured throughout this post). I’ve experimented more than ever, deepened my connections with my readers and other bloggers (you all rock!), and been influenced by a range of aesthetics I didn’t even know existed until recently, from dark mori to strega to lagenlook.

I’ve also continued to engage with my local fat community through the Facebook group I started last year, and it’s been so exciting to see it grow. Everyone is so supportive of each other, and it’s wonderful to have an online space where we can discuss anything from where to find various items of clothing to the frustrations of living in a fat-phobic world. I also like how decentralized it is–anyone can plan an event, and I am excited for the upcoming brunch planned by a new member who just moved to town!

Thank you so much to everyone who reads and comments on my blog, and everyone who is part of the fat community here in Boston and around the world.

Wednesday Fa(t)shion Inspirations, 12/31/14: Sequins for New Year’s

Here’s to a sparkly 2015!

Lolly Likes Fatshion

Collective For Us All

OOTD: red and starry for Boxing Day

One of my friends held a party on Boxing Day, the day after Christmas, and I took this as the perfect opportunity to wear both my beloved Domino Dollhouse star dress (which I also wore last year on Christmas) and my festive new Crown & Glory crown.

The crown came in my most recent Glitterati box, and I love it. One of my favorite things about the Glitterati is getting to try things that I might not have bought on my own, and that I end up loving. It’s a great way to experiment with new styles.

Dress: Domino Dollhouse, belt and rhinestone ring: ASOS Curve, teggings: Re/Dress, shoes: L.L. Bean, necklace and wristbands: So Good, earrings: not sure, rose ring: really old, cardigan: Kohl’s

OOTD: Galaxy and glitter

Fashion blogger problems: you can have either a great background or someone to take your picture, but not both at once. (I do have a tripod, but I hate lugging it around, and I feel awkward using it in public, so I don’t end up using it often.)

So here’s a selfie in front of a mural, and the rest of the outfit pictures in front of my usual wall.

Dress: Domino Dollhouse, leggings: SWAK, belt: ASOS Curve, necklace: So Good, glitter bow: Crown & Glory, shoes: Fluevog

Artificial scarcity in clothing is the worst.

Have you ever fallen in love with a dress, waited to buy it for one reason or another, and then found that it was no longer available? Have you ever bought something when you would have preferred to wait, because you knew if you didn’t snatch it up right away you might not get another chance?

This is artificially-created scarcity at work, and it’s a marketing technique that I find really manipulative and gross. All sorts of companies do it–large corporations, indie designers, straight size stores, plus size stores–but I find it both most frustrating and most understandable when small plus size companies do it.

Frustrating, because I expect large corporations to do pretty much anything in the name of profits, whereas small businesses actually seem to care about their customers as well as their bottom line. Especially plus size small businesses, who are aware of how few options their customers have. If a straight size item sells out, it’s easy enough to find something similar–but with plus sizes, once it’s gone, you might not see anything like it for a long time, if ever.

OOTD: Pink, purple, and giant flowers

This is what I wore to go blues dancing last week. I hadn’t been to blues in a while, so it was good to be back.

Tunic: Re/Dress, petticoat: Domino Dollhouse, floral crown: Boohoo, necklace and earrings: Forever 21, bangles: eBay

Putting together this outfit left behind a pile of rejected pieces. In fact, at one point I was wearing the same top in black, and the same petticoat in hot pink, before I switched them out for eggplant and light pink. Domino Dollhouse’s petticoats are the best for any kind of dancing–they’re so full and twirly.

Sunday Links, 12/18/14

One of the many houses in Somerville that go all-out with Christmas decorations.

#BlackLivesMatter
-“It is comforting to think of these acquittals and non-indictments as contrary to American values. But it is just as likely that they reflect American values.”
–“Ya’ll Ain’t Hearing Me”: white liberalism and the killing of Aura Rosser.
-“Whether or not he had a gun, nothing warranted Antonio Martin’s death, and nothing justifies leaving his body in the streets for two hours like roadkill.”
–BlackAmazon’s “Twas The Tweet’s Before Christmas.”
–13 things we re-learned about the prison industrial complex in 2014.
–The cops hate being filmed, so why are they ok with body cameras?
–Embracing “crazy” in the “land of the free.”
–The deaths of two NYPD officers are tragic, but not an indictment of the anti-brutality movement. It is also imperative to center Shaneka Thompson, whom Brinsley shot before killing the two officers–to make it clear that domestic violence is violence.
–#BlackLivesMatter protest shuts down the Mall of America on December’s biggest shopping day. Show some love for LUSH Cosmetics, which got trolled by racists for supporting its workers’ right to join the protests.
–Injustice at the intersection: how America’s suburbs are engineered against the walking poor.
–How Chicago Youth Diversion fails justice-involved girls.
–No, Mayor DiBlasio, there is never a wrong time to say that black lives matter.
-“it’s frustrating to see my righteous anger at unjust systems interpreted as hatred for individuals. but it’s more frustrating to see the oppressed suffer while those maladjusted to injustice remain silent.”

A Hanukkah bouquet at Trader Joe’s

Fa(t)shion
-The coolest thing ever: a Nobel recipient accepted her prize wearing a gown covered in the neurons she discovered.
-So excited for the Lela Rose collection for Lane Bryant!
–ModCloth’s #FashionTruth monthly spotlight: Jennae says, forget the rules!
-More fabulously edgy pictures from Skorch’s living doll editorial.
-Liz reviews a top from Smart Glamour, a new company that carries size up to 6x and also offers custom sizing.
–3 amazing dresses Rebel Wilson has worn recently, and where you can buy them. I especially love the pink one, of course.
-Wisconsin fatties, check out my friend Emma’s upcoming clothing swap!

OOTD: A very Jewish glittergoth Christmas

Is glittergoth a thing? Well, if it wasn’t already, it is now.

Top: Re/Dress, vest: Torrid via the Big Thrifty, tutu: ASOS Curve, sequined cardigan: Kohl’s, necklace and spike bracelet: So Good, earrings: Kerala, studded wristband: PacSun, glitter bow: Crown & Glory, skull ring: Torrid, rose ring: really old

I wore this outfit to celebrate Chinese and Movies Day with my brother and a few friends. I would have gone with Steve to visit his family, but I couldn’t get today off from work, so I stayed in and had a traditional Jewish celebration. 😉