Bananarama

I actually shot this outfit late last year but lost the photos until today when I found my long lost sd card. I've worn this outfit a lot this summer and every time I do I end up getting lots of people stopping me to tell me they love it. I can see why, it's just so bold, bright and cheerful. I'm never one to play it safe so mixing these two prints and colours together comes naturally to me. My fashion motto is to wear whatever pleases me and this outfit pleases me greatly, I mean how could it not? It's just so fun to wear.

Outfit details
Banana top House of Cards
Splash skirt Gorman
Banana earrings WeGo Tokyo
Pink basket bag H&M
Sunglasses Tsumori Chisato
Yellow sandals Saltwater Sandals

Banana's and banana's - oh my!

Banana top House of Cards
Banana earrings WeGo Tokyo
Sunglasses Tsumori Chisato

My cute fruity nail art was done by the lovely ladies at Magic Nails in Box Hill using shellac colours. I loved having this manicure, looking back at these photos makes me want it all over again.

Fruit nail art Magic Nails Box Hill
Flower bangle House of Cards
Pink basket bag H&M
Rings | Red acrylic ring MOMA NYC | Pink gift bow ring Tokyo's Tokyo at Omohara Tokyu Plaza | Pink resin crown ring Keep Resin

See? It's just so kawaii! #fruitsaladnails

Fruit nail art Magic Nails Box Hill

This bag brings me so much joy.

Flower bangle House of Cards
Pink basket bag H&M

BFF hangs with my equally colourful gal pal Lauren. Don't we look cute together?


Yellow sandals Saltwater Sandals

As some of you may know I just moved house. As such I need to downsize my wardrobe so I'm having a HUGE clear out at this Sunday's A Plus Market at the Darebin Arts & Entertainment Centre from 10am - 3pm. I'll be selling pieces from lot's of plus size brands - ASOS, City Chic, 17 Sundays as well as a few larger pieces from H&M, Monki, Gorman, Obus and Sportsgirl. Of course there will also be vintage pieces I no longer wear and lot's of shoes, bags and accessories. Will be a good day with lot's of other stalls all selling plus sized clothing, hopefully see you there xoxo

Punyus Pink Core

Long time no blog! This was the longest break I've taken in 7 years of blogging. I don't know if you've noticed but I've not really been blogging as often as I once did. Perhaps it's the 7 year itch? I've not been feeling as inspired to blog of late even though I've continued to take photos at events and of my outfits. So much of it is good content that I do really want to share with you but I've just not been able to get the words down and write. Bloggers block, is that a thing? Regardless of all that I am currently back in Tokyo, only 6 months on from my last trip here. If I could keep returning every 6 months then I would definitely be a very happy girl. Especially now that an AMAZING plus size store has opened up in Shibuya 109!!! Shopping for clothes in Tokyo has always been difficult for those above a size 8, even my skinny friends find it difficult as most shops only have one size, yep that's right, one size! So it is very exciting that Punyus, headed by famous Japanese comedian Naomi Watanabe who is famous for her Beyonce spoof performances. Punyus was my very first stop once we landed in Tokyo and I bought the above Strawberry print top and skirt that I had lusted after as soon as I saw them in the newly launched online store.

Outfit details

Strawberry tee Punyus

Strawberry skirt Punyus

White sunglasses Tsumori Chisato from Pet Shop Girls

Pink pom pom earrings Chip The Teacup

Unicorn necklace Giza by Mademoiselle Yulia from GR8 LaForet

Pink bangle Keep Resin

Strawberry socks Punyus

Nike roshe sneakers JD Sports

Pink fur backpack Bubbles Harajuku

What is most interesting about Punyus is that the store starts at skinny sizes and ends at plus sizes. So both straight sized customers and plus size shop and work there which is AMAZING. Why does plus size have to be separate? This is proof that it doesn't. The lookbook also shows Naomi Watanabe rocking the designs next to a straight sized model showing just how awesome both plus sized and straight sized girls can look in the clothes. I've seen just as many cool Harajuku skinny fashion kids carrying Punyus shopping bags or wearing the designs as I've seen cool fat babes wearing it too. The flagship store is at Shibuya 109 (B2 floor) and the line is also carried at parent company We-Go's many stores across the country. The line is only three to four sizes depending on the item. As I said Japan is used to one size fits all sizing so four sizes is a big deal. It starts at size 1 which is an Aus 6-8, size 2 is an Aus 10-12, size 3 is an Aus 14-16 and size 4 is an Aus 18-20. So no it's not incredibly plus sized but I guess the demand for that isn't just isn't there. I do see cute fat girls all the time and I've always wondered where the bloody hell they shopped for clothes in Japan and now thanks to Punyus I know where they will be shopping from now on. It's an exciting time for plus size fashion in Japan as there is also a recently launched plus size fashion magazine called La Farfa. Yes a whole magazine dedicated to plus size fashion in print! I bought a copy of the latest issue and can't wait to share some of the features with you soon.

Kawaii Koenji times.

White sunglasses Tsumori Chisato from Pet Shop Girls

Pink pom pom earrings Chip The Teacup

Unicorn necklace Giza by Mademoiselle Yulia from GR8 LaForet

Pink bangle Keep Resin

I still love this backpack with elastic straps I bought on my last trip to Tokyo. Henry has a very funny video of it bouncing away thanks to the elastic straps on his instagram, much watch!!!

Pink fur backpack Bubbles Harajuku

JD Sports in the UK sent me this awesome pair of pink Nike printed roshe sneakers to review (although they call them trainers over in the UK). They're so bloody comfy and go perfectly with my 'pink core' outfit, which is my version of norm core. Norm core is all about wearing plain muted pieces like turtle necks, denim jeans and teaming the look with sneakers, it's a look that is all over Melbourne right now. Well I could never tone it down like that, it's just not me. But I can take elements of the trend like turtle necks (the Punyus tee has a turtle neck) and sneakers but make them pink, loud and bold which is much more me. Pink core forever!

Strawberry socks Punyus
Nike roshe sneakers JD Sports

Pastel Punk

I had been on the hunt for a vintage denim dress for ages when I stumbled across the perfect one at Melbourne plus size vintage store Hey Fatty who had market stall a few weeks back. Since then I've practically been living in this acid wash a-line midi length dress. I've styled it so many different ways so far but this look is one of my favourites with it's pastel punky 80s vibes. Generally the only outfits that end up getting shot are what I wear on the weekends as otherwise there's no one around to take photos of me, so it makes it hard to share all my outfits because by the time the weekend rolls around I may be bored of something and more often than not the weather is terrible. But not this past weekend, the weather was great on both days so we were able to shoot two looks in the one weekend - totally unheard of! I wore this out to brunch and a spot of bicycle shopping (guess what colour bike I got?). We snapped the photos at this great new wall of graffiti by Lucas Grogan that popped up in our street recently, watching the piece develop was amazing to witness over the couple of days it took to complete. 

Outfit details

Denim dress Vintage from Hey Fatty's market stall for $45

Sunlgasses Karen Walker Orbit's in crystal pink from Eyegoodies

Necklace Op shop in Adelaide for $2

Badges two are from Fashiondacci and one is an old one from Chinatown when I was a teenager

Pineapple sequin clutch House of Cards from Lady Petrova

Purple chain bracelet House of Baulch

Pastel peach lace frill socks Fashondacci

Holographic see through brogues Fashiondacci

I was sent an array of amazing Lime Crime cosmetics to review from Makeupnet who are the distributors of Lime Crime in Australia & NZ. Above I'm wearing Lime Crime's 'Great Pink Planet' lipstick which is a pastel pink shade with a hint of fluoro. As a big fan of Lime Crime lipsticks I am so happy to have this one in my collection after lusting after it for a long time. The colour is perfect with my skin tone and I do love all things pastel. I'm not a beauty blogger but I'm thinking of doing a post of swatches from my Lime Crime collection and better detail photos of the product on, would that be something you want to see? Let me know in the comments below.

Lipstick Lime Crime 'Great Pink Planet' lipstick from Makeupnet
Sunlgasses Karen Walker Orbit's in crystal pink from Eyegoodies

 Op-shopping in Adelaide RULES. Can't wait to share with you more from that trip soon.

Necklace Op shop in Adelaide for $2

I go through badge wearing stages and have a pretty big collection ranging back from my teen years. Above the Sarcasm and Lame badges are from Fashondacci and the usagi bunny badge is from Chinatown when I was around 15. Will I ever grow up and stop liking the same things I did when I was younger? I sure hope not!

Badges two are from Fashiondacci

 This pineapple clutch is like the best thing to happen to bags since sequins were invented. I love it so much, I have it on display in my room just so I can look at it at all times - that's how much I love it.

Pineapple sequin clutch House of Cards from Lady Petrova

Purple chain bracelet House of Baulch

Say hello to the BEST SHOES to ever exist in the history of shoes. Holographic clear brogues from Fashondacci So much L.O.V.E. for these babies, can't wait to pair them with patterned socks and wear them in Tokyo next month. 

Pastel peach lace frill socks Fashondacci

Holographic see through brogues Fashiondacci

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Pink Picnic

Spring is finally here in Melbourne and Henry and I have been soaking up every single bit of sunshine that we can. After three years in always sunny Sydney this past winter in Melbourne has been a bit of a shock to our systems with the bone chilling cold arctic winds which are mostly unheard of in Syders. Taking Hachiko to our local park for a picnic is one of our favourite Sunday rituals that mostly stopped over winter mostly due to Hachi's fear of getting his feet wet (yes our dog is a bit of a princess and refuses to walk if the ground is wet). So this past Sunday when we saw how sunny it was we headed down to the beautiful Carlton Gardens for a cute little picnic. I love visiting Carlton Gardens so much as not only is it beautiful but it's also full of memories as I spent a lot of time in them growing up as I actually went to Carlton Gardens Primary School (well back then it had the less fancy name of Carlton Primary Rathdowne Street). I broke my arm riding my bike just behind where this photo was taken doing bike education with my class and my primary school would go on 'excursions' fishing for yabbies in the pond behind me (which seems really weird and crazy in hindsight - yabbies in a man made pond in a park in the city? I don't remember if we caught any to be honest). Feeding the possums at night and seeing drunk couples skinny dip in the fountain. So many fond memories in this place but what is really nice is making new ones with Henry and Hachiko.

My picnicking essentials. I've had this strawberry picnic mat from Japan for years, I actually bought it for my wedding. My pretty pink parasol is so old I have no idea where I got it but I'm guessing Ishka maybe? Or a $2 shop knowing me.

Pink Flower Headband Lady Petrova | Miu Miu Noir Sunglasses Vision Direct | Carousel Lip Gloss in Candy Apple Glitter by Lime Crime Makeupnet

I am in LOVE with this ASOS Curve dress. It was sitting in my saved basket for ages as I was trying to work out if I should get the ASOS Mainline version or the Curve. I am glad I chose the Curve as even though it's a little big around the bust I prefer the smaller keyhole front as it means I can wear a bra without it possibly being on show and smaller cut out back as I get sunburnt so easily I try to minimise exposed areas - especially hard to reach areas for sunscreen. I mean I picnic with a parasol!

Outfit details
Floral Maxi Dress ASOS Curve also available in ASOS Mainline or ASOS Maternity 
Pink Flower Headband Lady Petrova
Pink Jelly Sandals Rubi Shoes $14.95
Miu Miu Noir Sunglasses Vision Direct
Carousel Lip Gloss in Candy Apple Glitter by Lime Crime Makeupnet
Straw Basket Bag My favourite Footscray $2 Shop aka the 'worlds messiest shop'
Pink Chain Bracelet House of Baulch

I love love love this new Carousel Lip Gloss in Candy Apple Glitter by Lime Crime that Makeupnet sent me. It's one of those rare products that looks exactly like the product image - shiny glittery apple red goodness - like you can actually see the glitter which surprised me, although I must say it can get a little messy when applying as it's rather gloopy but with some practice it looks amazing. Makeupnet are the distributors of Lime Crime cosmetics in Australia ans New Zealand and their webshop has all your Lime Crime favourites and latest releases with great shipping rates in Aus/NZ! They sent me lots of Lime Crime goodies, can't wait to share them all with you.

Pink Flower Headband Lady Petrova
Miu Miu Noir Sunglasses Vision Direct
Carousel Lip Gloss in Candy Apple Glitter by Lime Crime Makeupnet
Pink Chain Bracelet House of Baulch

Rubi Shoes are really terrible quality, you'd think I would've learnt by now as nearly every pair I've ever bought I've had to return or exchange as they've broke. Well I wore these jelly sandals out for the first time and what a surprise they broke, luckily they did so outside the Rubi Shoes store so I could easily exchange them (sans receipt) but I don't hold much hope for these lasting much longer either. I should've got a pair of Juju or Jelly Beans instead for a little bit more. Oh well what do you expect for $14.95?

Pink Jelly Sandals Rubi Shoes $14.95

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Super Size Me

Last night as part of Melbourne Spring Fashion Week I spoke on the Super Size Me forum on size and consumer demand. On the panel with me was Craig Halfpenny - National Retail Operations Manager at My Size, Mel Campbell - author of Out of Shape (which I recommend you buy if you have any interest in this topic - it's a great read!), Dr. Sue Thomas - Leader Bachelor of Fashion Apparel Engineering and Design at Holmesglen (a new course in Melbourne specialising in garment construction and pattern making), Judy Green - consumer, tv model, and adventurer, Maria Hatzis - Retail Manager at Nicola Waite GPO. It was a  lively and often passionate discussion with members of the audience joining in.

Some key points from the discussion

• Size can be an emotional topic for women but not so much for men (although this is debatable).
• Why can men shop by their actual measurements - a 32 inch waist for example, while women shop with arbitrary sizes with no relation to measurements which differ store to store.
• The retail experience in itself is important in order for you to find the right fit. The staff should know their products and be able to direct the customer to the right size or styles in the store that will suit them and their body shapes.
• The reason this is important is sizes vary so much between stores. Stores actually target their sizes to their customers, so for example the sizes at My Size run a little bigger than the national average as that is who their customer is - which raised points about vanity sizing. 

I spoke about how the internet has opened up the way I shop - for the better. With access to so many brands and labels from around the world I have so many more options than when I was a teenager and My Size was the only plus size store I knew about (City Chic wasn't around till I was in my mid twenties). This led on to a discussion about plus size options often being matronly and made for the mature woman in mind. As a teenager this frustrated me to no end as I just couldn't find fashionable youth driven clothes made to fit me. We also discussed fit and how it differs to size - I spoke about how as a plus size woman if a piece of clothing I like gets on my body I buy it regardless of it's size because I know I can make it work. Fit has a different meaning to me than my straight sized friends who have so many more options when it comes to clothes.

Outfit time. In the spirit of the discussion I decided to wear a dress I had a little trouble with in terms of size. I originally bought the size 18 in this dress from the ASOS Curve line as I am normally an 18 in ASOS's main line. Well, the 18 was way too small when it arrived so I returned it and went up two sizes to a size 22 as the 18 was so small I didn't think the size 20 would work either. Well the size 22 is a little too big, but not in a noticeable way and I actually like the smock like style on me so I'm happy with my choice, but if you're after a more fitted style then I would recommend just going up the one size in this particular piece. This is why a good returns policy is essential if you want my online shopping dollars, I love how easy ASOS's is now - especially with the same day courier pick up service (which I used this time).

Outfit details
Dress ASOS
Flower crown Lady Petrova
Tights Sonsee
Glasses Bespecd Minsk frames in Lilac
Pastel pink jelly heels Juju Babes
Holographic heart glasses chain Not Lost Boutique
Pastel purple chain bracelet House of Baulch


Lady Petrova has some beautiful flower crowns in at the moment. I couldn't resist this hot pink number.

I got the handmade Holographic heart glasses chain from Not Lost Boutique during my recent trip to Adelaide. I can't wait to share more about that trip with you once fashion week is over as I had so much fun.


I picked up that new red ring whilst in Adelaide too, not sure of the designer but I bought it from a cute boutique on trendy Queen Street for only $20.


I still can't get enough of my jelly heels.

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Sneak Peek at RMIT Fashion Graduate's MSFW Runway Part 2

Cathy Yuen
Using laser cut (new technology) to push the boundaries of clothing design.


Cathy's work is inspired by Architecture. The 3D forms and cut outs remind me of Federation Square but also the cut outs remind me of stained glass windows in a church.


Cathy was working on a new toile when I visited which you can see has the same curved shape as the front piece.


Finished pieces from Cathy's graduate collection - they quality of the finish of her work is amazing.


Dara Ing
Dara's graduate collection is LED powered menswear using reflective materials.




Dara collaborated with RMIT Industrial Design student Dan Vaugh to create his LED menswear skirt.


Jack Leeson
Jack's collection uses lustrous blues inspired by the ocean.


When I stopped by he was cutting out new pattern pieces. He said this was 'boring cutting' and apparently for fashion design students there is also interesting cutting - you learn something new every day.


Using felting, ironing on to seams to blend fabric together, Jack has been able to create this beautiful texture.




Molly Younger
This piece in Molly's graduate collection was made using a mould of a body and then latex and pain is applied to give it form and texture.


Other pieces in her collection are screen printed.


Screen print of the mould.


The latex and pain create interesting texture.


Raw unfinished edges add to the texture.

Hope you enjoyed part 2 of my exclusive look behind the scenes at the RMIT Fashion graduating class of 2013.
Have you got your MSFW tickets yet? Check out the full program here MSFW 31 Aug - 8 Sept 2013 RMIT 
Buy tickets for the student show to see these looks and more walk the runway Student Runway 1 Sunday 1st Sept 6pm

I also have an exciting announcement to make, I'm a panellist on Super Size Me? A forum on size and consumer demand as part of MSFW. Along with Mel Campbell, author of 'Out of Shape: debunking myths on fashion and fit' and other esteemed guests we will be addressing sizing, fit and diversity. What’s normal in sizing? Is this a problem, and if so how are your favourite labels addressing it? Are you a satisfied consumer? Ask questions, share your experiences, and discover what is ‘the new normal’ in sizing.
When Tuesday 3rd September 6:30pm - 7:30pm
Where Holmesglen Institute of TAFE 332 ST KILDA Road Melbourne 3004 Room 4.05
FREE!!! Hope to see you there xoxo