August wishlist: birthday edition

In honor of my birthday, which is coming up tomorrow–can you believe I’m going to be 28?!–I’ve put together a compilation of things I’d love to get if a magical fairy fatmother showed up waving her wand at my front door.

If I actually had a fairy fatmother, the first thing I’d ask for would be a stable, satisfying job with good pay and benefits–but pretty things are much more fun to fantasize about.

You can click each image to go to the Polyvore set, which has the details.

August wishlist 1 by lrock212 featuring glitter eye makeup

 Cats, dogs, roses, rainbows…some things really haven’t changed in the last twenty years.

August wishlist 2 by lrock212 featuring make up for ever

 I SO want these Nirvana and Courtney Love dresses from Vera’s Eye Candy, which I found through Betties N Brimstone–who had a dress custom-made in her size. Nirvana and Hole were a big part of my adolescent years, and I’d love to be able to wear that history on my body.

Vera’s Eye Candy also carries various items in the same fabrics as Domino Dollhouse – for example, this galaxy top and dress, and this rainbow digital print dress.

August wishlist 3 by lrock212 featuring sweat shirts

Another thing I would love to have, but that Polyvore wouldn’t let me clip, is a custom illustration by Natalie Perkins. Here are a few of my favorites that she’s drawn so far (via FLI’s Facebook page)–aren’t they gorgeous?

Friday links 8/16/13

My favorite part of the farmers’ market. 🙂

Happy Friday! How have all of your weeks been going? I just started a new temp job as a Package Tetris Specialist (ahem, mail clerk), and it’s been good but exhausting. I am very, very glad that it’s almost the weekend.

Fa(t)shion
-I so wish I could be in Oakland for Virgie Tovar’s pop-up shop. That pink cloche! *swoons*
-Speaking of hats, this Advanced Style hat roundup is amazing. New life goal: become an old lady with the coolest hats.
-Even more haaaats! I am particularly in love with, well, the one that says “LOVE” in giant flower-covered letters.
-Chubby Cartwheels has a new line of hologram clothing!
-Marianne reviews the Enell sports bra (my favorite), bandalettes, and a tank top called the Breast Nest.
-She also writes about her feelings about dudes who creep on online fatshion pictures, which is pretty much how I feel as well.
–Steal her style: Ali Koehler of Upset.

Fat Acceptance
-I love these chubby girl illustrations.
-Oxygen’s new show in which formerly fat people get revenge on fat shamers? Ugggh.
-Check out this fat cabaret show in L.A.–it will be streaming live for people who can’t make it in person.
-Point your med-student friends to the new HAES Curriculum, which is “a peer-reviewed curriculum designed for teaching health professionals and university students about the Health At Every Size® model.”
–Hey, assholes: deporting fat people doesn’t actually make them go away.

Wednesday Fa(t)shion Inspirations, 8/14/13

The Cheapskateers

Coven of Bitches

If I were Gabourey Sidibe’s stylist, part 2

I had so much fun coming up with ideas for Gabby to wear that I decided to go ahead and put together some complete outfits.  I had to stop at five because otherwise I would have kept making outfits all day…

You can click each picture to get to the Polyvore set, which includes links to each item.

Gabourey Sidibe alternative outfit 5 by lrock212 featuring a rose headband

Gabourey Sidibe alternative outfit 1 by lrock212 featuring silver jewelry

Gabourey Sidibe alternative outfit 4 by lrock212 featuring ivory bangles

Gabourey Sidibe alternative outfit 3 by lrock212 featuring planet shoes

Gabourey Sidibe alternative outfit 2 by lrock212 featuring headbands hair accessories

So, Harper’s, when are you going to hire me? 😉

Friday Links, 8/9/13

Mwahahaha! Taken by The Meanwhile Project at Figment Boston.

Fa(t)shion
-Erin has more ideas of things Gabourey Sidibe could have worn in Harper’s Bazaar.
–Tripp NYC has a few plus size items available online, and is working on more!
–Various exciting fatshion news, including H&M finally selling their clothes online in the US.
–Beth Ditto wears Gaultier for her Hawaii wedding, and looks amazing.
-There’s so much fatshion-spiration in Offbeat Bride’s plus size brides Pinterest board.

Fat Acceptance
–Virgie Tovar interviews Rachel, a fat-positive personal trainer.
–On the necessity for real-world fat communities.
-The book Fatropolis sounds amazing–it’s definitely going on my reading list.
–Unintentionally inspirational: the Lumpy Space Princess.
–Fat, fibromyalgia, and exercise.

Climate and Sustainability
–David Roberts wants to live in a baugruppe, and now I do too.
-A new study shows that today’s technology could be used to power the world with renewable energy–all that’s needed is the political will to do it.
-Bethany uses the Princess Bride as a metaphor for finding the tools to save the world.
–Like shopping at local businesses? Now you can invest in them, too.

Everything Else
–Immigration is a feminist issue–we need to treat it that way.
-Love this: Dear daughter, I hope you have some fucking awesome sex.
–Lady Gaga has a burqa problem. UGH.
-Sarah Kendzior exposes the economic forces behind the myth of “opting out.”
–The chronic pain PSA.
–Should feminists be critical of compulsory monogamy?
-Two great Captain Awkward posts on online dating and queer romance.
–5 tips for calling out transphobia.
–How to be an ally to Muslim women: an incomplete starter kit.
–Ann Giles’ husband transitioned during their marriage, and 17 years later they’re still in love.
–10 thoughts on mental illness, abuse, and survivors.
–Hugo Schwyzer and the consumption of redemption narratives.
-A really interesting essay on geek culture.
–Visible bodies: transgender narratives retold.
-A beautiful example of doing parenting right: we think he might be a boy.

What have you been reading/writing this week?

If I were Gabourey Sidibe’s stylist…

Lesley and Nicolette have done a great job covering what’s wrong with the way Harper’s Bazaar styled Gabourey Sidibe for its recent “Singular Beauties” shoot. Go read their essays, then come back here for some ideas of how Harper’s Bazaar could have gotten it right.

I’m guessing Gabourey wears somewhere in the 28-32 size range, so I only picked clothes that come in those sizes (and damn, I wish this pink and black bow dress or this swirly-patterned silk dress did, because either of them would look amazing on her).

1.) Igigi has a million gorgeous dresses, many of which would work on Gabby–like this, and this, and this–but the one that stood out to me was this sneak peek from their upcoming fall collection. The sequins!

2.) The Abbey dress from the Pyramid Collection.

3.) The Baize dress from Queen Grace.

4.) Also from Queen Grace, the Gwen Holiday Skirt (which also comes in red!)

5.) Cult of California’s black sequin sleeve moto jacket could be the finishing touch on so many fabulous outfits. Can’t you just picture it with a custom tutu from Ouma and velvet platform sandals? Or maybe with a floral dress (like this ridiculously cute one with mesh cut-outs, which sadly only goes up to a 3x).

6.) The Mae dress from SWAK Designs. To be honest, SWAK isn’t super-high quality, but who cares when a dress is this sexy-glam? Gabby would rock the shit out of it.

7.) and 8.) Queen Grace’s Kara blouse in yellow and pink. These bright, summery colors would look perfect with Gabby’s coloring. And they could go so many ways, from vintage glam to boho chic.

If you were a stylist, what would you pick for Gabourey?

Wednesday Fa(t)shion Inspirations, 8/7/13

VICE

Fring’Halles

Friday Links, 8/2/2013

Can you believe it’s August already?!

Here’s what I’ve been reading this week. Feel free to leave your links in the comments!

Fatshion
–Making the most of your wardrobe with a changing body.
–I’m a size 18 yogi, and Lululemon can kiss my fat ass.
–The new issue of Skorch is out, and it’s full of awesome.
-Judith of the Style Crone has started a monthly hat linkup! Huzzah!
-Two great fatkini posts, from Virgie Tovar and Erin of Zero Style.
-Lesley rounds up plus size denim vests, hiliariously as usual.
-Bronny writes about her experiences with creepy men fetishizing her fatshion pictures. I’ve been lucky that this hasn’t happened to me–it seems to be a lot more prevalent on Tumblr than other blogging platforms–but it really sucks that there are so many dudes male-gazing all over fat women’s liberation.
–An open letter to Old Navy on the disparities between their plus and straight size collections.
–Rock ‘N Roll Bride’s new headband collection for Crown & Glory is full of flowers, glitter, bright colors, and fabulousness!

Fat Acceptance
–Virgie Tovar interviews Joanna Villegas, an awesome (and adorable!) fat, queer Chicana poet.
-Ragen has some great comebacks to fat-hating comments and questions.
-Rachele responds to a troll who calls her a “delusional sea cow.”
-Sara-Jane Smith writes about her experiences being a fat lesbian on a reality TV show.
-Why calling fat hatred “the last acceptable form of bigotry” is neither useful nor true.
–This story makes me SO ANGRY. Fuck weight discrimination.
–An open apology to all of my weight-loss clients.
–Male privilege and transitioning from a fat woman to a fat man.
–My big fat marathon.
-Tori writes about her experiences with the body positivity of bra-fitting blogs.

Reminder: Fab Fatty Frolic at the Beach this Saturday!

Fat beach love!

It’s pretty awesome how much fat beach-going is taking place this summer here in Boston.

Unfortunately, I didn’t end up making it to Marfmellow and Lotsalipstick’s Body Posi Beach Day a few weeks ago (and it looks like they had so much fun! I’m sad I missed it), and I won’t be able to make it to The Big Thrifty’s Not So Little Mermaids beach event next weekend either, as I will be attending a friend’s wedding. But this weekend will be my Fab Fatty Frolic at Revere Beach!

The details:

-Saturday, August 3rd, 1:00 – 5:00 p.m.
-Revere Beach, near the bathrooms (near the Revere Beach T stop)
-I will have a pink Hello Kitty blanket
-All fatties and friends welcome!
–Facebook event page

I hope to see you there! And if you’re free the week after, check out Not So Little Mermaids as well.

Thrifting while fat: finds and frustrations

Becky wrote a great guest post at Already Pretty about how thrifting while fat allowed her to experiment and develop her personal style.

I wish my thrifting experiences were as good as hers. For me, thrifting has been at best a chance to score some cheap basics, and at worst an exercise in frustration.

One of my thrift store finds: cute and comfortable, but not particularly me.

In my area, thrift stores tend to have a decent plus size selection–and some straight-sized items that are stretchy enough to fit fat people–but they very rarely include anything interesting, funky, or wild. I can’t count the number of times I’ve walked into a thrift store and seen gorgeous, unusual, sparkly, riotously-patterned, tulle-adorned, vintage, or punky clothes in straight sizes, while the plus sizes consist of jeans and solid-colored tops.

I can’t count the number of times I’ve thought, “I would dress so much more outrageously if this stuff came in my size.”

I can’t even read straight size thrifting blogs, because it just hurts to see someone finding so easily, so cheaply, the kind of clothing I have to search hard and/or pay lots of money for.

I’ve been lucky, though, to experience a taste of cheap plus size variety at Re/Dress NYC when it existed, and at the Big Thrifty here in Boston. And despite my limited options, I’ve always found ways to experiment with style–from my high school days of green lipstick, dog collars as chokers, chunky Mary Janes, and safety-pin bedecked skirts to the tutus and tiny hats I wear today.

I am heartened by events like the Big Thrifty and New York’s Big Fat Flea. I am heartened by the explosion of fatshion blogs and indie plus size designers.  I hope that the events spread beyond large urban centers, and that the clothes spread beyond small, expensive indie brands.

I hope that someday, I can walk into a thrift stop and be surrounded by Domino Dollhouse, SWAK, Torrid, ASOS Curve, Igigi, and Kiyonna. I want to see a world where fashion experimentation is an option for everyone who wants it.