Pulling it Off

            “Oh, honey, I just can’t wear sleeves like that.”

            “I’ll leave those short dresses for the younger girls.”

            “Oh, I don’t wear capris. I just can’t pull it off.”

           

         I often find myself standing at work, after being told one variation or another of one of the above excuses for why a customer can’t wear this item or that one, a little bewildered by it all. As someone who tries not to enforce too many fashion restrictions on myself, I often find myself wondering why in the world so many women do.

             

             There was a time, not long ago in fact, when I wouldn’t wear stripes. I wouldn’t wear bright colors. You wouldn’t catch me daring to bare my flabby arms, or wear anything too daring at all for fear of drawing attention to myself. For fear that people would take notice of me and my grave sin of being fat. I’ve rather accepted the fact that I am fat and have decided that I am going to wear what I damn well please despite that. It has been the best decision of my entire life. I have never once regretted it.

           

          I find myself full of sadness when I come across women daily, and sometimes men, who are still stuck in the same mindset that I used to be. They limit themselves to dark colors, they tell themselves they can’t wear “busy” patterns, and they won’t allow themselves to buy a garment in a larger size, telling themselves they only deserve it when they reach that smaller size, and my heart aches for them.

 To all of you out there who live your lives in this way; I just want you to know that your life is right here waiting for you. There is no reason to wait to love yourself. Right now, as you are. You don’t need to lose a single more pound or burn a single calorie more to begin loving yourself. You are a beautiful, wonderful person exactly as you are this very moment.

 You can “pull it off”. You can pull off whatever you want. Wear those capris. Wear that short dress. Wear the damn tutu. Wear those neon heels. Wear that tank top and show off those flabby arms that carry your babies around all day. Your body works hard for you, show it some love. Shake off all those years of hate that yourself and others have taught you to feel for it. Pull it off.

It's Going Swimmingly

Woah! It has been forever since I have posted a new blog post! 

I guess I'll just get right into what inspired me to get on with it and write a new one. I got a new swimming suit! 

I found this little beauty on Amazon (been doing more shopping on there just lately) and I'm pretty happy with it! Especially for the grand total of $36.99.

This suit came in so many different colors! I had a hard time choosing. I love the one I ended up with, though. Those colors!

I am definitely of the opinion that we all could use more color in our lives. Especially us big gals! We've spend far too much time hiding in black and gray.

As far as support goes, since that really is the question for us big-busted ladies, this suit is... pretty O.K. It holds the girls up pretty well, but I do find myself adjusting kind of often. As you can see, it does ride up a bit in the back. Even though support isn't the best ever, I cannot dislike this suit. It is the best I've owned in a long time. It is definitely more supportive than most suits I look at in many department or big-box stores.

The day these photos were taken was a really fun day. We went swimming at our local lake, just my husband, my kid, and I. Often I am reminded of being taken swimming at the lake as a child by my mother. She would watch us swim while she sat on the sand, fully clothed on a hot day, all because she hated the way her body looked in a swimming suit. 

Thankfully, my mother feels better about herself now, and will jump in and swim, but it saddens me that she felt that way for so many years, and that so many women feel that way every day. 

Life is just too damn short. Get you a suit girl, and get in that water. Most of the time, people aren't going to even be paying attention. Those who will be, like our little ones, need to see that we love ourselves and aren't afraid to have fun.

To partially quote Dr. Suess, "Those who mind don't matter, and those who matter don't mind." I've found myself chanting this as a mantra any time I imagine that people might be whispering about me, or any time I think someone has given me an unfavorable glance. There are definitely days when I'm feeling insecure and my imagination gets the best of me, but then I try to remember those words and it helps. 

As long as I am comfortable, and me and my family are having a blast, the rest doesn't matter. Life is meant to be savored and enjoyed; luckily for me, at the moment, mine is going swimmingly.

Sunhat- local thrift store
Sunglasses- Romancing the Stone
Swimming suit- Melitech (found on Amazon)

  

Not Always Black and White

There was a time in the not-so-distant past where I wouldn't be caught dead in white. Morning, noon, and night I could be found donning navy, gray, and of course, black. Any manner of loose, murky fabrics; so long as they were dark. Not that there's anything wrong with wearing dark colors often; it's just that I thought I had to. 

A couple of years ago when I began this little style journey of mine, I only knew what I liked on other people. You know, like 'Oh, that's so cute on her, but I could never wear that', kind of thing. I hadn't a clue what looked good on me. 

I started my journey with the rules. That's right, the dreaded rules. I read article after article, pinned charts on Pinterest, all in an attempt to try to figure out just what the hell my shape was, then how to dress it. 

Now, as much rule-bashing as I do at times, it may surprise you for me to say that beginning my journey, even in this way, changed my life. I started buying things that were supposed to be flattering to my shape. Fit and flare dresses, for example. I began to belt everything to create a waistline. I began to feel different. 

It was amazing. For a little while.

The rules got old real fast. As good as it felt to wear something that was flattering, it was tiring and boring trying to force every outfit to be flattering. I got tired of wearing dark colors to try to appear slimmer. I got really sick of belts for a while. So I thought, why not just try putting something together just because I like it? 

Long story short, the rules really can be helpful, especially if you have no idea where to even start when it comes to developing a personal style. But, and I do mean but, they are nothing more than loose guidelines and are not absolute. 

It's true that there are exceptions to every rule, and the longer I went on, the more I began to realize that when it comes to style, exceptions are the rule. When it comes to style, things are not always black and white.

Even though white is supposed to be a no-no for larger gals, you will find me wearing it proudly. I may look a little wider in lighter colors, but so what? It's not like I'm magically going to look thin in a dark color or something. As long as I like the way I look, that's truly all that matters.

Dress- Factory Connection
Boots- thrifted
Belt and bolero- Wal-Mart
Bag- Stage

A Stripey Twenty-Seventh

Hope 2016 is treating everyone well so far. Haven't honestly had too much going on yet. Hopefully that'll change soon!

 My twenty-seventh birthday was three days ago. Normally I feel nothing when I turn just one year older. I don't know why, but I felt a little something when I turned twenty-seven. It was just a good feeling. Like maybe this year is going to be the best year of all for me. We'll see I guess!

My husband, daughter and I are planning a little weekend trip in February. It really can't get here fast enough! I'm really itching to get out of this small town for a while. 

It's going to be nice to spend a couple of days doing fun activities like going to an aquarium, going on a little hike, and playing some putt-putt with my little family. 

I'm still having to be creative with pieces that are already in my closet. The clothing budget is still next-to-nada. Luckily, by mixing up just a few basic items, I was able to put together a whole new outfit!

I practically live in leggings this time of year (if I can be goaded into leaving the house at all) so of course I started with a pair of basic black leggings.

Add to that this great striped tee from the clearance rack and my thrifted purple cardigan, and you've got some neat contrast going on. I threw on this little teal scarf I've got, also thrifted, and the outfit was complete. 

There are so many things about this that I love. First of all, it feels amazing. Secondly, it is super-comfy. I love the stripes because they are fun, and also because I love proving people wrong about them. I love the colors too! I wore this outfit on my actual birthday, and it helped it feel so good to be twenty-seven.

Striped tee- Sears

Black leggings- Wal-Mart

Purple flats- thrifted

Purple cardigan- thrifted

Teal scarf- thrifted

Thanks for reading!

A Remedy for Gray Skies

It's that time of year again. The wonder and magic of Christmas is over and we're all starting to dread the cold months that are still to come before it's spring again. January and February are always the yuckiest months to have to get through, at least where I live, and we're starting to have that gray sky that plagues so much of winter.

 I feel like this time of year it's really easy to feel a little down and a little dull. It's especially important, for me at least, to remember that Spring and lovely weather are on their way. What better way to remind myself of this than by wearing some fun, bright colors and floral pattern?

Now, I know what you're thinking. Three-quarter sleeve cardigan in December??? Well, down here where I live it usually doesn't get super cold in the winter. We have a cold snap or two each year, and if the roads DO freeze we can't even function, and you better pray there's bread and milk left at the grocery store. I mean, it was 75 degrees on Christmas day!

 Those of you who have read my very first blog post ever, Loving Colors and Myself, might recognize this particular cardigan. I still really love it. How can you not feel happy wearing all of these fabulous colors? I swear, wearing the right color(s) can brighten any day!

Also, this winter I'm all about bringing my summer maxis into the colder weather. Layer on a cardigan, sweater, or denim jacket and you've got a new outfit. Switch those bohemian sandals out for some cute flats and you're done. You could even wear leggings underneath if it got too cold.

Again, as in previous posts, I would like to point out that while I do look kind of sad in these pictures, I am not. I just have resting sad face. Yep. I am forever cursed with random people coming up to me and asking me if I'm okay. Oh well, there are worse things. 

But really, wearing bright colors, especially fun florals, lifts my spirits a little every time. A perfect remedy for those listless gray skies. 

So the next time you are feeling a little blue (or gray!) reach for some color. Reach for a loud print. Reach for something that will brighten your cloudy day. 

Maxi dress- Wal-mart
Floral cardigan- thrifted

Thanks for reading and don't forget to love yourself a little today!

Just Being

Well Autumn is finally here. I mean, I've actually gotten to wear a sweater a couple of times without having a heat stroke! Yay!

 In honor of finally having just the slightest weather change, today's post is another creation I put together out of things I already had.

It may be hard to tell, but I do have on some really cute fringe boots. They blend in with the dead grass pretty well, but they are there!

Again with this suede vest, I couldn't decide whether I liked it better zipped or unzipped. I think it's pretty cute either way.

This shirt was actually given to me from someone. It's a little hard to see in these pics, but there is some pretty lace detail on the sleeves.

Of course, often when I am wearing my fringe boots I like to accessorize with my matching fringe bag. 

There was a time when I wouldn't have worn such an outfit, afraid of wearing anything "unflattering". I suppose it does have a bit of an ice-cream cone effect, but so what? I feel cute wearing this and that's all that matters. Don't spend your life chasing "flattering".

I really don't mean to look so sad in these pictures! You know how some people have resting bitch face? Well I have resting sad face. I promise I was pretty happy that day!

Here! Here is a little smile. I was so happy that day because I was wearing a color that is supposed to be unflattering on me, and while wearing jeans that are supposed to be unflattering. And I felt fabulous while wearing them. Once I let my mind loose of all the silly notions society put there I felt so relieved. I could just be.

Shirt- hand-me-down
Suede vest- thrifted
Jeans- Old Navy
Boots- local store Charmed
Bag- Factory Connection

Thanks for reading!

Blogiversary Post: The Year's Top Five Outfits

It has been one whole year since I started Prettiful Style, and what a fun year it has been! Blogging is a whole lot more work than I anticipated, and I didn't do as many posts as I'd envisioned for the year, but I'm pretty proud of the ones I got done. Hopefully I've shown at least a few others that it is possible to recover from all the negative stigma surrounding being a fat or differently-shaped person. You can learn to accept and love yourself just as you are!


 I've decided to celebrate my blog's first anniversary by taking a look back at the year's five most-popular posts. I hope you've enjoyed reading about them as much as I've enjoyed creating them!





# 5  Peplum Perfection

Rocking a peplum top for the first time ever, this post shows off the cute outfit I put together. This outfit consists of the top from J.C. Penny paired with a thrifted tube skirt. Black accessories complete the look.










#4  Mad About My Maxi

Maxi dresses have been wildly popular for a few years and seem to be getting more popular all the time. This post features the first maxi I've ever owned. I love this thing!








#3  Embracing Chevron Madness

Chevron is everywhere and has been for a few years now. This post features a cute sheath dress in the popular pattern. I especially liked the way the dress fit and made me feel!











#2  Plaid Leggings

Although this post has a pretty unimaginative name, it proved to be one of my most popular posts. One thing I know for sure, people love plaid, and people love leggings. I'll be rocking looks similar to this one all fall and winter!








#1  Loving Colors and Myself

The number one, most viewed post is the very same that I posted one year ago today. I still love this outfit; it's hard to beat that color combo! I remember getting a little emotional as I wrote it. This post will always be special to me since it was the very beginning of my self-love journey. 


I am so grateful for every read, comment, like, and share. To all the loyal readers, few though you may be, I am so glad that you care what I have to say. 
It has been my goal to help others realize that your shape and size doesn't matter; you deserve to wear things you like and feel good about yourself. I know this blog has improved my self-confidence in leaps and bounds, and if it has helped even one other person feel better about themselves, then I consider my goal reached.
Thanks to everyone who reads my blog and follows me on social media!


As always, thanks for reading.

         Love, Ashley