OOTD: 100% Big Thrifty goodness

This year’s Big Thrifty was awesome. And I scored some really, really good finds, including all three pieces of this outfit:

Vest: Torrid, tank top: Cacique, and skirt: Dots, all via the Big Thrifty; shoes: Clarks, headband: Alice & Sara, earrings and necklace: Domino Dollhouse,  studded wristband: PacSun, zipper cuff: a store that was closing on Newbury Street years ago, rings: ancient

The vest was an especially exciting find, both because it’s SO ME and because it was new with tags!

Zipped up, it could even work on its own as a crop top.

OOTD: Rocking out with my belly out

I may be the last person on the entire internet to do the crop top trend, but I’m ok with that. I’m just happy that I went out in public with my stomach showing, which is a big freaking deal. I never would have done that before I found FA.

Top; Ashley Stewart via the Big Thrifty, skirt: Dots via the Big Thrifty (yes, I got some amazing scores this year!), flower crown: Crown & Glory, necklace: Target, bracelets and earrings: So Good, shoes: Clarks

I wore this outfit to a concert of two awesome local bands, one that plays klezmer and one that plays Scottish fusion. There’s really more creativity in Boston than I can keep up with, and I’m glad I went to the show even though I kind of wanted to stay home and crash.

The Big Thrifty 2014 = awesomeness.

The Big Thrifty just gets better every year. This year, it moved to a much more spacious location, which was a huge improvement over the previous one. Not only was it bigger, air-conditioned, and so much more comfortable, but it had extra space for movement classes and hanging out. Being able to sit around, talk with my friends, and make new ones made the event so much more fun.

I volunteered to help set up the event the night before, which was a lot of fun although unexpectedly exhausting. I got to meet Deb Malkin, the founder of Re/Dress and co-founder of the Big Fat Flea, and a bunch of other cool people. We volunteers also got first crack at the clothes, and I found a few great pieces–including the sparkly bubble skirt that I wore to the event itself.

One of the new features this year was a photobooth, which means I have some fun pictures from the event to post! A bunch of them feature the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, a modern order of queer nuns. They were so nice and had some truly fabulous costumes.

Me with Shannon, Emily, and two of the Sisters

The Big Thrifty is tomorrow!

Hey fellow Bostonian fatshionistas, just a reminder that The Big Thrifty is tomorrow! The Thicky Chicky will have a pop-up shop, and there will be yoga, bellydancing, and burlesque classes, among other awesomeness–see the Facebook page for all the information. Which reminds me that I never got around to posting pictures from the fat-pos day of movement that the Big Thrifty hosted last year, so, here they are! The pictures are from the event’s Facebook page, used with permission.

The day included bellydance, yoga, self-defense, a cupcake break, and a mini-clothing swap. Also, I couldn’t help doing a few cartwheels when I saw the mats. 🙂

Sunday links, 1/26/14

I love Jill Scott.

Fa(t)shion
–Re/Dress’ spring vintage lookbook is fabulous–and it includes their new masculine/butch styles.
-Despite all the hype, European brand Mango’s new plus size line doesn’t have many interesting styles, and has a fairly small size range.
-This year’s Big Thrifty will be on May 3rd, at a new, larger space in Malden.
-And for New York fatties, the Big Fat Flea will be May 4th.
–16 things teen girls wore in the winter of 1996, as told by the Delias*s catalog.

Fat Acceptance
-Caitlin Thornton interviews the always awesome Mary Lambert about body image, makeup, and fashion.
–Fat and bad knees.
-So much yes to Marilyn Wann’s rant about people who claim to be fat-positive but brag about their weight loss.
-Why it’s important to focus on children’s health, not their weight.
–Things that are still a diet.
–The tyranny of “the normal”: why the BMI is and has always been a hot ton of oppressive bullshit.

Climate and Sustainability
–“We can’t trust capitalism to fix this” global warming mess.
-A conversation with George Monbiot about the great rewilding.
–Why, not what: the heart of climate activism.
–Solar wins: how sunshine will save the planet (really!)

A beautiful short film about reclaiming our energy and economy from fossil fuel companies:

Our Power Film // Black Mesa Water Coalition from Our Power on Vimeo.

Everything Else
-Nicolette Mason is the best. After Jezebel’s ridiculous stunt of offering $10K for unretouched pictures of Lena Dunham, Nicolette decided to raise the same amount of money for women’s empowerment instead.
–Food gentrification and the culinary rebranding of traditional foods.
-If you can, donate to Youngist, which publishes the voices and stories of millenials (and, unlike many outlets, actually pays its authors).
-I like this daring new approach to fighting for a fairer economy.
–“Nobody knows my life but me”: an elegy for Dr. V.
–Afterthoughts and aftershocks: why a dozen different editors failed Dr. V.
-Sarah Kendzior writes brilliantly about the cruelty of the mainstream media (but unfortunately uses some ableist language to do so).
–Reimagining freedom: one student’s take on the Zaptatistas’ Escualita.
–Remember that famous about obedience to authority? Here’s how Stanley Milgram got it all wrong.
-Sick of Dan Savage’s asshattery, and want some better advice about sex and relationships? Check out Cardinal Rules.
-Suey Park writes about the importance of community in activism. I love these beautiful words she quotes from Jeff Yang: “These threads won’t weave themselves, nor will these chains break of their own accord, and unless we join hands and swim together, unless we become each others’ sidekicks, the river of memory will sweep us away. “

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.

Big Thrifty OOTD #6: Red ruffles and cherries

This outfit combines pieces from both this year’s and last year’s Big Thrifty! I got the red ruffle tube top last year (you can also see it here), and the cherry bolero this year. Both are originally from Torrid, as is the skirt.

Skirt, top, and bolero: see above, shoes: Naot, hair flower: Claire’s, spike wristbands: Hot Topic, necklace and earrings: So Good

The whole pin-up/rockabilly look is pretty different from what I usually wear, but I like it! That’s one of the things I love about the Big Thrifty–it’s much easier to experiment with new styles and things you might not normally wear when they’re cheap and you can try them on in person.