The End of Summer
I know I’ve been away from blogging here for most of the summer, and its probably because I’ve found it hard to drum up enthusiam, despite the fact that I still love clothing and style. I really appreciate bloggers because it takes a lot of effort to keep people interested and to create posts. This summer, I’ve dropped the ball for a lot of things, and I’m not sure whether that is just a seasonal thing – I’m not a summer person, and find heat makes me feel a little bit disaffected. Autumn, for me, is like an awakening - as though I wake up from a long mental slumber. This summer was all about reading, recharging my batteries and the first time I’ve written an article for a newspaper (more on that when it’s published in October). I’ve been thinking about what I love to write about, and whether this blog still slots into that. I do enjoy writing about style and body acceptance, about the relationship we all have with our bodies, and how we reflect our personal style. I read a lot of brilliant blogs about plus size style and just fashion/beauty blogs, and they still inspire me. I’m feeling quieter about my own style choices, even though I do make an effort most days to wear something that makes me feel brilliant, I often forget or don’t get a chance to take photos of what I’m wearing. It doesn’t help that I was getting ready to do some OOTDs in the coming days and I managed to break my camera! So it’s gone off to be repaired. Until then, I will have to be creative with my posting, and do more writing as opposed to picture taking/sharing.
I want to share some reviews of products and clothing I’ve obtained and have been testing over the summer. Some of the things I’ve bought have been reviewed and posted elsewhere, but I hope that my opinions and testing will help people make informed purchases. I’ve bought a few pieces from ASOS, such as the Summer Floral dress (now £16 in the ASOS Curve sale section) – which I’ve had to buy twice because the material is quite flimsy and ended up with a few threads dragging – not exactly a rip but it feels a little like one. I also bought the Spring Floral dress because on the site it looked lovely, but it is definitely too short for me. Or at least it feels too short. I also don’t like the material it is made of, very silky, almost satin, polyester. It doesn’t have a lining which was a huge let down. I guess I’m fussy that way – I like dresses to be lined! That doesn’t take away from the fact that I have fallen head over heels for ASOS Curve, because they are doing something that many Plus Size retailers are not willing to do – make their clothes beautiful, wearable and stylish. Though they don’t always seem to be as daring as the main ASOS line, I actually prefer the Curve line.
I’ve also bought a few things from Style369; the Polka Dot Palazzo trousers, White Polka Dot Prom Dress and also the newer Black Lace Prom Dress. I’m mostly impressed with how Style369 seems to be more exuberant and less frightened of stylish clothing than Evans. Although I have a soft spot for Evans, it just isn’t doing anything for me. The clothes are boring and dated – and whilst they are firm classics, they just don’t sing. I’m also disappointed because whilst I wouldn’t buy that much from them, the ‘classic’ pieces are also disappointing – I can’t even find a long, black cardigan that isn’t a kind of ribbed knit. Actually, has anyone noticed that there seems to be a lack of mid-length to long black cardigans around between the sizes of UK 16-22? I’ve looked everywhere.
I haven’t been on holiday abroad this summer, although the man and I are jetting off to Barcelona in mid-October for a week. I’m looking forward to it – we haven’t been on holiday abroad together since 2006 when we went to Nice (South France) for two weeks. It was almost on impulse – booking the flights to Barcelona whilst the BA summer sale was on, then booking an apartment via Friendly Rentals (where you pay a deposit then the rest of the money upfront when you get there). So it is do-able if you manage to save up the money, and we’re busy saving whatever we can. I guess that’s why I’m so annoyed about the camera breaking – at least we still have the warranty but if they can’t fix it then it might be that we’ll have to buy another camera.
Edinburgh this year was an interesting experience – we went up for Access Week where they have more BSL interpreting than usual and also a few captioned shows. It was disappointing that there were only about three shows captioned this year because we went there for Access Week and the BSL was difficult for my Sister and I to follow – all signers have an ‘accent’ depending on where they’re from. Scottish BSL accents are difficult to follow! It is all to do with how some signs are different according to the region the interpreter is from. It is like a different spoken accent…anyway, we got the gist of some of the comedy performances we went to see (Daniel Sloss and then Craig Hill), but it could have been clearer. I guess it was appropriate considering that the comedians were Scottish and they had a Scottish interpreter?
Another thing is that I’m now trying to make a huge effort with intuitive eating as opposed to Weight Watchers. Whilst I found that WW gave me a little kick to start being more healthy – eating well and moving more – I lost enthusiasm for the calorie counting, Pro-Points following, etc. It just isn’t sustainable for life. That is why I’ve been re-reading Linda Bacon’s Health At Every Size (please give it a read, it is so inspiring and also educational), and have been thinking about the foods that make me and my body happier and more full of energy. I found myself sinking into a guilty relationship with food with WW, which is definitely not a good thing. My goal is to change the way I think about food – not as good or bad, but as something that gives me sustenance, that fuels my body. The movement part is also important – I’ve never been one for gyms or running. I prefer walking in the woods, or swimming or dancing. It is important to me to find joy in movement, rather than feeling like it is a huge effort because I’m not enjoying it. I’ll let you know how it goes, anyway!
Talking of food, I’ve been trying different recipes recently – and I have to say that Nigella Lawson’s Sunshine Soup is beautiful, especially if you like sweetcorn and need cheering up on a bad day. I love her more recent recipe book Kitchen, which I was given at Christmas. Its taken until now for me to start using it, and I’m hoping to try more food experiments in the coming months. I’ll probably talk about it over at my other blog (Cats and Chocolate), if you’re interested!
What else is there to say except happy Autumn/Fall – this is one of my favourite times of the year. Being a writer, it helps if the weather is a little cooler and moodier, and you can feel the nights drawing in. I love wrapping up and going for walks stomping through leaves and the fresh wind blowing through the cobwebs.
A woodland in full color is awesome as a forest fire, in magnitude at least, but a single tree is like a dancing tongue of flame to warm the heart. ~ Hal Borland
