Wow! Summer has hit the UK with a huge bang, had some amazing sunshine and personally I’ve had some fun times with the Mr and with some of my good friends. We recently had the Mr’s birthday and spent the day up at Thorpe Park and laughed so hard and so much that I actually lost my voice for 3 days much to the joy of those around me. It’s been great. My mood has lifted, I’ve been enjoying everything and looking for new things to experiment with! So I’ve been looking into new looks for myself, I’ve got zero summer wear at the moment, I mean the weather in England is never predictable but with last year’s up and down in the weather I just didn’t get many clothes last year so the pressure has been on.
So, I looked through the Joe Browns Collection on Fashion World (fashion world.co.uk) and ordered a few things. Obviously my sole reason for starting this blog was to share my finds with you all and what a better time than with these new items! I’ve often chosen dark colours as something to hide behind, to make me blend into the background so this first look was very unusual for me… I asked the Mr to get a decent shot of the outfit so you can see it properly so will be interesting to hear what some of you may think of my choices…
Joe Browns Gold Coast Tunic
Okay so here’s the first one. It’s the Gold Coast Tunic, currently £39.00 on fashion world and I paired it with jeans and my little cardigan. I did that as there was rain in the air and the temperature had dropped slightly but this top looks amazing with or without the little cardigan. The length of the top was perfect, managing to cover all my problem parts like my bum and hips. The top doesn’t dip too low so doesn’t flash too much cleavage although my arms weren’t covered completely it did not hinder this choice. I loved the colours, the material everything about it, the style was lovely as well and I enjoyed wearing it. The Mr loved me wearing something other than the usual black or white and I managed a couple of comments when in town today!
Gold Coast Tunic
I can visualise this top being worn to a picnic, round town or even to an impromptu party without having to worry about being underdressed. You can see my arms in this picture which is fine as I need to get passed my own problems before thinking others can. I know I can tone my arms up in the future and I will work on that once I finally get back down the gym, but I’ve been advised not to go pending recovery on the injections I had in my back.
Gold Coast Tunic
As you will see in the picture it looks like it flares out slightly the back but I’ve actually got my hand in my pocket. It’s so comfortable to wear I felt so happy and smiley as I walked around. I loved that it was so universal. In terms of the bottoms, I think it would work well with a pair of jean shorts, leggings and if you are super daring could even be worn as a beach cover up as a different look. I only had my trainers on today but a pair of summer wedges would have worked and so would a pair of flip flops… but given today’s slight dip in weather trainers worked! In addition though it was just brilliant wearing something so light, summery and flirty. I loved it…! I purchased this in a Size 18 but to be honest I think I could have got away with a Size 16. It fitted well in most places and I normally have problems around my chest area but this seemed be just right.
I also tried a blue crumpled (effect) shirt also from the Joe Browns Collection. I chose the colour because I wouldn’t normally choose a bright colour like this and I thought of so many ways to dress the shirt up or down depending on the look I needed to pull off.
Versatile Jersey Shirt
The shirt itself doesn’t come with the black top underneath I decided to jazz it up with that. The shirt looks fine without it but I wanted to have it like a pull over, so if I got too warm I could take the blue shirt off and have a plain black on underneath. I love that it’s a crumpled style! I am not a huge ironing fan so this is amazing for me. It’s really smart looking but it looks brilliant on, I originally wanted a black one but then I decided to try a much brighter colour. The borrow sits down below my waist hiding my bum again but I love that it gives me a shape, it’s not something I’ve had in a VERY long time. I loved this top as well. I loved being able to add an extra top underneath as well as not if I chose too. I also thought it would look fabulous under jacket for more formal wear for work should the need arise, and is easy to take from day to evening. This shirt would also look amazing with a knee length pencil skirt, which I shall try out later this week, with a decent pair of closed toe wedges! Cannot wait. I’ve not been so excited in experimenting with my looks as I have this last week!
Versatile Jersey Shirt
The material of this shirt is amazing light and the actual colour is listed as bright blue. It’s a steal at just £35.00. It has so far received 5 stars from all those who have provided reviews on the website to date. Should I be lucky enough to go on holiday this year and I’ve toned my leg I reckon it would be brilliant to take from day to night with a gorgeous pair of shorts! It looks great with a pair of jeans and with leggings, it really is that versatile. The instructions to wash this are amazingly straight forward although I haven’t washed it yet so I will keep you posted with regards to how this goes. Who’d have thought being interested in fashion again?! It’s been such a learning curve to be able to open my mind in trying new things and colours but I actually love it!! Even the Mr does 🙂
This shirt was again a size 18 but to be honest a could have gotten away a smaller size. I do love fashion world for their generous sizing! Some of the costings can be a bit more but if you have a credit account then it’s easy to break down the cost of a small purchase order!! It’s also really easy to want everything.
Now moving on to my favourite item….
Up and Down Dress
This is the Joe Browns Up and Down Dress in Grey Multi colour. When I first saw it online it was advertised in Stone, with a brown around the bottom but the grey called to me more, I thought the grey was the better colour for my skin tone. The stone coloured one made me look very washed out but this one looked amazing, I fell in love with it the second I saw it. It is a short sleeve dress, so I put a short cardigan on it to hide my arms and put on a pair of wedges, I felt tall, sexy and fun in this dress. The length was idea, just below the knee so I felt lovely a cool in the hot weather and feeling very feminine in it made me want to go back and order more clothes! I loved the shape this dress gave me, it didn’t cling anywhere including my chest, and it flared out in the right places without making me look massive. I have a couple of pictures of me dressed in this without the cardigan but as I wore this out for the evening I needed something to cover me up a tad! I used a little clutch bag, wore some silver bangles and my little dress watch. I got a lot of comments from so many people. Many pointing out how much I’d lost recently, but mainly that it was good to see me in something different!
Up and Down Dress
I actually have a waist which I loved being shown off in this dress. IT didn’t make me feel like the plus sized girl I know that I am. I want to be considered as pretty and nice despite my size, I still need to get passed that stigma, but I guess until I accept myself as I am how can I expect others to do it too? I love these knew clothes and I love that they make feel sexy and feminine in this hot weather. I’ve been looking for a maxi dress, but since trying this one on I’m not so keen on the maxi dress, I think it might highlight my poor shape and look more like a tent on me rather than a dress similar to this one and the Claire Richards Dress I got earlier this year! This dress was in a size 18 also, I may have been able to squeeze into a size 16 but I think it may really have been a squeeze in this case, the dress cost £50 and is totally worth it. Will be ideal on a holiday, but even to work or just on a nice slightly less formal occasion.It might be possible to dress this up a lot more for that really special occasion but it might take a bit more than what I have done at this point.
I’ve been so excited about being able to review these clothes with you all and I’m sure I will post more once I’ve washed them all and worn them again letting you know just how worth the money these clothes have been! I am a huge fashion world fan, I know it can cost a bit more but the quality of their clothes has yet to stump me and make me feel like I’ve paid way too much for anything. The Mr has loved my choices so that can’t be a bad thing in anyway can it? I mean if the Mr likes how good you look he will certainly love telling you. It’s been a joy trying these things out which are so outside my normal choices it’s been a great learning curve on a personal level as well.
Being plus size is about accepting yourself first then moving on to experiment a bit more with what we have. I’m more likely to try more colours in the near future and I will most definitely be working on trying out new types of clothing such as this dress and even the simple tops that I’ve tried have really made such a difference. The summer can now come along!!
Massive thank you to Fashion World for their brilliant designs and for being so approachable. I urge you all to give them a go if you haven’t already. http://www.fashionworld.co.uk
Plus for all the first time customers you will get 10% discount on your first orders, AND you can shop right up until 8pm and still get next day delivery! That service I love, especially when landed with a lost minute party knowing I need something last minute!
Enjoy the rest of your weekend My Lovelies.
Curvy Girl xxx
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