OOTD: Comfy and casual with a dinosaur on my back

I’m trying to drag myself away from the whole Lena Dunham debacle that’s been taking over the feminist internet, so, here’s an outfit I wore recently on a weekend trip to visit family. On the way there, my brother, Steve, and I stopped to take a walk at a New York state park, which also provided a good background for outfit pictures.

Top: the Big Thrifty, capris: Pajama Jeans via Zulily, sneakers: Brooks, headband: Crown & Glory, backpack: MadPax via Amazon, necklace: So Good, earrings: a small store in Western Mass., sunglasses: Sweet & Lovely

This backpack is the best purchase I’ve made in a long time. I bought it intending to use it for travel, and almost returned it when I saw that it was too small for that purpose–but I’m so glad I didn’t. I’ve started using it for everyday stuff instead of a tote bag, and it’s been wonderful. It’s far more comfortable than carrying a heavy tote bag on one shoulder, and it gets a ridiculous number of compliments. I think I’ve gotten a compliment on it from a stranger nearly every day since I started carrying it, and that makes me so happy.

Dear Planned Parenthood, please #DropDunham

(trigger warning: sexual abuse) I’ve been spending the past few days reading, tweeting, and generally being upset about Lena Dunham’s abuse revelations–and the way that a certain corner of the feminist internet has responded by defending her, normalizing her actions, and accusing her critics of being right-wingers who either have an agenda or are jealous of her success. Some good background and analysis can be found here, here, here, and here.

I’ve been especially flabbergasted that Planned Parenthood Federation of America is continuing to use Dunham as a spokesperson. Last night, I took part in the #DropDunham hashtag on Twitter, started by Deva (@CatsBaril), which asked PP to remove Dunham as its spokesperson; this morning, I wrote an email to its president, Cecile Richards. If you want to join the conversation, you can email her at Cecile.Richards at PPFA dot org, or tweet to @ppfa using the #DropDunham hashtag. My letter is beneath the jump:

Sunday links, 11/2/14

Fa(t)shion
-Sally has a trick for switching handbags quickly and easily.
–How to shop straight sizes if you’re plus.This is good advice from a blogger who usually wears a 22/24, which is about my size. A few caveats: it won’t work as well for women on the higher end of plus sizes, and sometimes the depressing-ness of being in a straight size store isn’t worth the off-chance of finding an oversized or stretchy item that will fit.
–Settler and pioneer “heritage hipster” styles in the age of Idle No More, Chinatown gentrification, etc.
-New Yorkers, check out the Stylish Curves plus size pop-up shop.
-San Franciscans, if you’ve been cleaning out your closets and want to get rid of clothing, check out the clothing drive for GLIDE’s Women Center.
–Wanted & Found is a new online resource for plus size clothing.
-“I have a feeling that without Rei Kawakubo’s clothes, it would have taken a much longer time to realize I was queer.” This is a wonderful piece–I just wish this kind of life-changing sartorial experience were available to fat women too.
-Two fashion exhibits that look amazing: Jean Paul Gaultier at the NGV, and “Dance and Fashion” at the the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York.
–Death Becomes Her: the dark arts of crepe and mourning.

Fat Acceptance
-A new study about sizeist workplace discrimination finds that fat women earn less than thin women because they shunted into lower-paying blue-collar jobs.
–Solving the “obesity epidemic” in one simple step.
-Andy Richter demonstrates the best way to respond to a fat joke made publicly about you.
–Social barriers to intuitive eating.
–Fat people’s worth shouldn’t be the price paid for other people’s healthfulness.
-Also in New York: the One Size Fits All with Sins Invalid film showing.
–Doctors’ view on weight and weight loss.
–Lies they told me about health.

Wednesday Fa(t)shion Inspirations, 10/29/14: fall colors and neutrals

My Foxy Fatshion

And I Get Dressed

Sunday links, 10/26/14

Fa(t)shion
-Californians, check out the +Market by Domino Dollhouse featuring Tess Munster. It sounds amazing and I wish I could be there!
-Vivi writes about why she’s taking a break from Gwynnie Bee.
-These photos from Bombsheller’s fitting party are awesome, and I can’t wait until their leggings are available in plus sizes.
-New Yorkers, keep an eye out for Lockwood Style, a new clothing boutique in Astoria that will be one-third plus sizes.
-Chubby Cartwheels’ Little Black Dress Collection is out!
-I love Rae’s Halloween costumes featuring Hips & Curves items, especially the witch.
–12 all black plus size picks for fall.
-Sheri rounds up gorgeous dark floral pieces.
–An awesome plus size show at Portland Fashion Week.
-I love this plus size fashion illustration blog!
–Major fashion labels attack blogger for not conforming to gender roles.
-I’ve never been to a horse race and have no particular desire to do so, but I love the style of dresses and fascinators that women wear to them. Everything in City Chic’s Day at the Races roundup is gorgeous. I wish they had credited the sources for the shoes and accessories, though.

Fat Acceptance
-I have somewhat mixed feelings about #4, but otherwise I agree with this completely: 5 reasons why we need to stop thinking of skinny-shaming as “reverse discrimination.”
–On being liked better after losing weight.
-If you’ve heard that sleep apnea is caused by fat, did you know that belief is based on research that was found to have been falsified?
–Good intentions only go so far in making HAES more inclusive.
–Fatphobia: 5 facts and a guide for the disbeliever.
–Apple’s health app: where’s the power?
–When is weight a symptom?
-Australian dance company Force Majeure has put out a call for fat dancers to audition for a groundbreaking new dance theater project.
-I’ve been watching Parks & Recreation, and I want to love it, but there are so many things that bother me about the show–including the fatphobic treatment of Jerry and the portrayal of Donna as the stereotypical sassy fat black woman. This series of posts makes the important point that Donna often talks about her sexual activities, but is never seen with a love interest. It broke my heart a bit when I read this list of 29 reasons Leslie Knope and Ben Wyatt are the most perfect fictional couple around, and realized: this is exactly what fat women, and black women, and especially fat black women, don’t get in the media. We/they don’t get to see ourselves portrayed as worthy of love, and that needs to change.

Wednesday Fa(t)shion Inspirations, 10/22/14: dark mori/witchy goth edition

c4tbus

Gentlemonster’s Quarterly

OOTD: Adventures in an enchanted forest

On Saturday I went hiking with a few friends through the spectacular mid-October foliage. Since I’ve been so into dark mori and witchy goth looks lately, I figured it would be the perfect opportunity to dress up in dark layers. (No, I didn’t stay dressed up for the whole hike–it was unseasonably warm, so I ended up taking off both my skirts and most of my jewelry and just hiking around in shorts. I also brought sneakers to change into.)

Top and cardigan: thrifted, gray skirt: Target, black skirt and belt: ASOS Curve, socks: Domino Dollhouse, shoes: LL Bean, flower crown and bat clips: Crown & Glory, crystal necklace: from my great-grandmother, gray necklace: from a clothing swap, bangles: Torrid and Deb, spike wristband: Hot Topic, studded wristband: Macy’s, skull ring: Torrid, rose ring and earrings: really old

OOTD: Pink leopard, rainbows, and hearts

This is what I wore for my second day at Disney. I spent half the day in the pool, which was wonderful, and when I finally dragged myself out of the water, I had another colorful and comfortable outfit planned out.

Top: Cacique by Lane Bryant, skirt: Dots via The Big Thrifty, shoes: Brooks via Zappos, watch: Amazon, pink wristband: “Magic Band” for hotel and theme park access, rainbow bracelet: a store at Disney, necklace: Betsey Johnson via eBay, earrings: Forever 21, hairclip: Crown & Glory

Sunday links, 10/19/14

Fa(t)shion
–Fashion & feminism: Mateo Guadalupe of Leather Coven.
-I love Maria’s reflections on fashion rules and goals.
–Why I refuse to straighten my hair.
–A series of interviews with alt-fatshion bloggers.
-Courtney’s hot pink mermaid fatkini is everything.
-Style Vanity interviews Luanne of Weesha’s World.
–Instead of banning yoga pants, schools should crack down on harassment.
-I wish I could be in Ohio for Re/Dress’ plus size modeling workshop!
–7 badass ladies of Buffy and the Halloween costumes they inspire.
-My new favorite indie clothing shop: LovelyMsLevecks.

Fat Acceptance
-Leah has a great rant about the bullshit phrase “promoting obesity.”
–Let’s broaden the talk about thin privilege to include the ways it intersects with race and other identities.
–“I’m only talking about myself!” isn’t a good excuse for fat-shaming.
–It’s time for a ceasefire in the war on “childhood obesity.”
–Jenny Trout and Michelle Landriault interview each other about fatkinis, their co-appearance on The Steve Harvey Show, and body positivity.
-Ragen offers tips for dealing with the anger of fatphobia.
–Yoga and body diversity: five ways to be inclusive when teaching or practicing.

Climate and Sustainability
–Money, death, and danger in North Dakota’s fracking capital.
–Why waste coffee grounds when you can use them to grow mushrooms?

OOTD: Rocking my giant bow at Disney

I picked this giant bow for my trip to Disney both because I will take any opportunity to wear huge things on my head, and because it was the closest thing to the Disney aesthetic I could think of while staying true to my own style. The dress I picked because it’s comfortable, fun, and perfect for hot weather.

Dress: ASOS Curve, bow: the Velvet Village, necklace: Tarina Tarantino via eBay, earrings: a small shop in Paris, watch: Amazon, sneakers: Brooks via Zappos, purse: LeSportSac via eBay, wristband: the “Magic Band” that got us into our hotel rooms and the theme parks