I found it on ye olde Craigslist and just couldn’t pass it up! It’s a SCHWINN “Jaguar” Ladies!!! I love it and got it for a steal and it’s a solid, steel frame thing. The guy repairs bikes all of the time and sells them, even offered additional services if I needed. Super cool!

I have wanted a bike for about four years, but always talked myself out of it. First, the money was always tight, still it but like I said the price was right as well as the timing. Next was the visibility of it, I mean, you’re like just out there! And the thing I still haven’t gotten over and perhaps won’t for some time: Fear of injury! I am still dealing with pain and stiffness in my knees. One is more stiff/sore while the other is a pulled hamstring. Neither seem to heal and I personally think that living upstairs only exacerbates them daily. I remember just a couple of months ago running around with my Puggyman in the morning or being able to sprint out to the front lawn for our walk. Ugh!

But you know what? All of that still isn’t enough to keep me from getting a bike! Because I have stopped giving a damn what other people think, I want to do what makes me happy and it has been twenty…Yes, you read that right…TWENTY YEARS since I’d been on a bike! And I fully intend to Glam-up my bike, too! I want to paint it to match this helmet…which I must have:

If you “Like” this blog’s Facebook page, then you may have already seen me in this dress, but I wanted to share with those who haven’t. This is what I wore on Thanksgiving. It’s an Eshakti dress. The Bloomsbury Dress, to be precise about it. I always choose the custom sizing option, but on this one also chose a puff sleeve over sleeveless. I love it! It is so girly and fun! And the fabric is so silky-slinky-smooth! And it has pockets! There is nothing I don’t love about this dress, come to think of it. It was a bit of a gamble since it’s not something I would normally pick for myself, but something about the ruffles and the dotted print just struck me as something I needed to try. So glad that I did:

I guess it’s good to get outside your comfort zone, even when it comes to fatshion or style! I have certainly been enjoying myself. I think these Eshakti dresses are going to give me a substitute for regular office attire once I find that j-o-b! What do you think? Is this dress or the others I’ve recently posted about appropriate for either interviews or general office wear? Is it more about how it’s styled than the dress itself? Please give me your suggestions because I’ve pretty much decided to wear one of these for my next interview…whenever that may be.

The Puggyman is neither a friend of cameras nor fatshion…he’s more of a pro-snuggler and extreme fetcher!

“No time for fashunz, silly hoomanz!”

Last Friday night was beyond wonderful. I got to spend some much needed gurl-time with two of my favorite ladies in the universe, Jeanette and Nicole! It was more of a gurl’s night in, but we had a total blast! One goal was to style some of Jeanette’s separates into outfits and accessorize. Nicole has such a great and creative eye for these things, but after two cocktails, well, I wasn’t exactly quiet about my thoughts and opinions. Ha-ha!

Since I knew we’d be dressing up Jeanette and taking pictures most likely, I wanted to show up looking cute so as not to feel left out of the fatshion-ness and fun! I wore my latest Eshakti buy and what I call my Zooey Deschanel dress, but they call it the Take a Bow Dress:

I have to say, I feel so girly and cute and fun in this dress…and it has friggin’ pockets! I couldn’t decide how best to tie the ties, so I let ’em hang. I’m also wearing black teggings, Avenue shoes and a Torrid necklace from ages ago. Next to my feet are my recent Avenue slipper socks purchase. So snuggly! I wore those the rest of the night, I won’t lie to ya.

It was so much fun to go though another fatty’s closet. And Jeanette’s was so damned organized and colorful and lovely and damn, some envy was happenin’ y’all! But she works hard and occasionally plays hard, so I am glad she has a bad ass closet for her bad ass self! I can’t wait to see her wearing some of the stuff Nicole put together for her. Too cute!

All of the fatshion talk got the better of me. I had forgotten how much I used to love clothes and style and all of it! I mean, my first real job was at Contempo Casuals, I was obsessed and applied ON my 16th b-day! I loved it there, but somehow lost my love of fashion after I gained much weight in my late teens. Being around Nicole and seeing her style always inspires me, so yesterday I did the previously unthinkable: I wore a skirt! Nicole would be proud! And she should be since half the outfit came from her anyway, ha-ha!

The skirt and belt came from Nicole, the top is a new Avenue Henley with crystal buttons. Black teggings again! Same shoes, too…No necklace and just some 3 buck earrings I got at a craft fair last year. I was comfy and cozy and feeling mighty flirty. We had our BFFs over for dinner, drinks and a movie. We watched “The Girl Who Played With Fire” and witnessed my husband get truly sloppy drunk for maybe the first time.

So, Teggings! Thicker than tights, thinner than leggings. I gave my husband a bit of a rant yesterday about my love of teggings. I explained to him that they have given me a freedom to wear pretty dresses again! That teggings make me impervious to the elements, embarassment and even the dreaded “chub rub!” Teggings have given me the courage to wear a skirt again! And I love that you can’t see my unshaven legs under them at all! Because it is fucking cold and I will be damned if I am going to even attempt to shave my legs right now. But that’s a rant for another time. Teggings! Oh my lovely and glorious teggings! I just ordered 2 more in black because I wear them so much, but I have almost all of the other colors now, too. They have swapped out some colors I’ve noticed, like the green ones are gone, but I have a pair. Haven’t figured out what to wear ’em with yet, but that’s hardly a terrible thing!

I am enjoying this new found love of dresses and teggings. And it seems people are noticing. That’s not such a bad thing. I like looking nice with little fuss and dresses are for exactly that! I can feel casual while looking more dressy than usual without worrying about this that and the other thing. Eshakti has also given me the chance to stand out from the crowd in a positive way. Their custom sizing option is like the best taste of fatshion freedom I’ve ever had! To order something online and not have to worry about if it will fit? Magic! To know that there is a slim chance someone else will have your exact same dress is nice, too. I have one more dress on it’s way and I can’t wait! I still have one in my closet that I bought in October that I haven’t worn yet. Just have to get out more, I suppose! Ha-ha!

The Duke Of Cute Bids You A Fond Farewell!
<3

Since many parts of the world are getting colder right now I thought why not try something different than the old Tank Top Tuesday posts and go in the opposite direction: Winter Wear! I also hope to do a coat shopping guide/options post soon.  Please see below for information on how you can submit your own pics and info for future posts. Thanks.

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This week’s Fats in Winter Wear submission comes from Cia in Scandinavia! And a Lovely submission it is:

This picture was taken at a Christmas market in my little town last weekend. My friend, who took the picture, and I like to dress up for all town events and pretend that we live in Stars Hollow. A little silly, I know, but it gives us joy. The snow is unusually late this year (so I could wear those cute shoes), but it was really cold, so we got into the cozy Christmas spirit anyway.

Coat: H&M (and a steal at half price! It was from their regular selection, ie for non-fat people, but it’s just a little snug at the biggest size and sometimes I just choose to live with that.)
Dress: Indiska – they don’t have a plus size section, but a lot of their clothes are really fat friendly. I could grow in this! 😀 I don’t know if they are outside Scandinavia, though.
Tights: Lindex
Shoes: El Naturalista (they’re organic!)
Hat: Vero Moda
Scarf: Glitter

It’s a great idea to write about this, because winter clothing is a special challenge as a fat! Living this far north can only layer so much before the hard winter sets in and we all need thick, sturdy coats and those coats are few and far between in plus sizes! I’m still searching for one that I can comfortably close while wearing thick wool sweaters underneath.

Hugs from Cia 🙂

Thank you so much, Cia! That coat is gorgeous and I love your picture with the vibrant red accents beside you…lovely!

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I am taking submissions from anyone who wants to participate in “Fats in Winter Wear” posts! Email your pics here: notblueatall@notblueatall.com, please include the name you’d like in the post, a blog or etsy shop you wanna plug, your thoughts on winter wear or other fatty philosophies. Have fun with it!

For additional content, links, aricles, stuff and more, please “Like” the blog’s Facebook Page. Thanks!

That can make you feel so friggin’ awesome!!!

Like my tried and true pug-love, he is such a snuggle:

One dollar fingerless gloves from Target, you know those magical dollar bins when you walk in:

New tube of mascara, I am loving Maybelline’s Falsies Flared, just tried the “Drama Black”:

New lip stain for cheap, that claims it is “smooch proof” we’ll just have to see about that:

 

I’m wearing the “Berry Long Time” in the third photo above…I love the color!

Funky sneaker that reminded me of my niece, so I had to have them…they make me feel like a kid and a bad ass:

What simple things make you feel awesome? Share! <3