"Size It Up" - Lucky Mag, August 2009

This is my new challenge to myself - take an outfit from a skinny fashion mag and "Size It Up" to plus size.

Here's today's inspiration: a beautiful, polished look with bohemian details to soften it up.

Here's my take: A peasant blouse from alight.com (wear it unbuttoned for a more flattering V neckline) with a pencil skirt in a hot coral (color not shown in picture) from Jessica London. Unless you're model-tall, you'd probably have to hem the skirt to the appropriate length for you.

Not all plus sizers wear wide shoes, but for those who do, here's my pick for the "Size It Up" shoe: a chocolate brown slingback sandal (instead of an ankle strap - to keep the leg line long) from amazon.com.

Obviously, the earrings, necklace, and clutch from the inspiration photo (Page 126, August '09 Lucky) are already perfectly sized. And the clutch is only 25 bucks! :)

P.S. The Jessica London skirt doesn't do the inspiration one justice, admittedly, but pencil skirts were in short supply at the plus size stores I shopped for this look. This is a shame because I think they're great for plus sizers who are smooth through the hip (no saddlebags or as I call them "ledges and bumpouts") or are smaller on bottom than top like apple shapes (so this look does NOT work for my bumpy pear body type...woe is me!)

Lucky, April '09

A most excellent issue!! I tore out a hundred things for my scrapbook, and here are a few of the best:

I'm in love with the sweetly feminine but modern outfits featured throughout. Obviously, the editors were in a Springtime frame of mind, starting with this sweet cotton floral top embellished with rosettes on p72:

Part of a multi-page spread, page 174 is a veritable treasure trove of put-together looks. Suitable for any body shape - just add a bag and some jewelry and run out the door feeling fresh and lovely!

I'm digging the sort of bathrobe sexiness of a coat or shirtdress over another dress. (P171 and 175.)

Makes me want to go to a garden party!

Only one accessory I want to show you this month (besides shoes of course.)

I found this ring so unique and intriguing, I plan to use it as an inspiration for a bracelet. I can imagine it having the feeling of a vintage wrist corsage.

I picked out 3 pairs of shoes to feature this month. (What, me? Shoes?)

If you're a person who has traditionally found high heels too uncomfortable (or too scary), I highly recommend a wedge heel. They are SO sturdy and SO comfortable you won't even know you're wearing heels, and they have all the benefits of less-comfortable heels, like giving you a little extra height and a longer leg line.

These on page 88 are amazing and (depending on your skin tone) will make your gams look a mile long! I'm logging on to Zappos.com right after I get done here...

The outfit is nice too, but as a pear, I don't do pencil skirts. Great for an apple though!

This next pair is adorable, but ugh - the price tag! (p72, $240) When I saw them, I thought, why not get a cute pair of flats at Payless and add a coordinating butterfly embellishment?

Savings = About $200. Send me a picture if you do it! You can keep your $200. :)

This last pair is pure fantasy. Ridiculous really, as they're probably WAY too tall for your average girl. They're definitely too tall for me and I wear heels every day. (p72)

But how deliciously, dreamily ridiculous.

Lucky Magazine, March, 2009

Even with a somewhat unimpressive cover and strange headlines that didn't quite match the contents, this was still a great issue.

The cover article that promised "Body-flattering outfits for normal sized people" should have been called "...for A normal sized PERSON" because it was a one-page, one-person deal, but she was a really cute, curvy gal. To be honest though, I liked her in her "before" jeans and curve hugging tshirt best! (Page 100)

The best corporate-without-being-an-automaton look can be found on page 190. Girls with good legs and smaller bottoms can go with this skirt; I'll wear mine a tad darker and several inches longer. Otherwise, kudos forthe whole look. ---->

Best look in the book: an ad actually - on page 56.

Banan Republic model/singer/songwriter Ayo

(didn't know her before this ad) has such an effervescent smile

I want to kiss her.

And the trench aint half-bad either.

(Hope the belt is faux python however.)

Clothes: Adorable boxy jacket/top on page 82.

<---- Would try this on an apple-shape over a pencil skirt?

Bright windbreaker on page 112. Everybody needs a pop of color! ----->

<------Cap sleeve peplum top also on 112. So flattering for a pear girl.

Beautiful classic sillhouette dress on page 122. ---->

It's Armani - $895. (Wow.) Let's have a contest to see who can knock it off best on their home sewing machine. I can name that tune for under $50...

I'm not usually a white-dress person,

but this little dress/belt/vest combo makes me think Meditteranean vacation and swarthy greek gods. (p169)

I'd wear it to the knee of course,

with a low heeled gladiator sandal.

Page 179 has a whole mix and match outfit I love! I'll just circle the items you need and you can go shopping. Pair with a simple brown or black wide-leg trouser and some garnet or ruby earrings, and you're set.

Even if you're not Sporty Spice, you gotta love these cute kicks with this retro-inspired T. (Avoid the top if you're an apple-shape though, you might look a bit unbalanced.) P182

When did romantic, sweetheart tops like this come back into fashion? And may I also say, "YEAH!" (184) ---->

Accessories: Stunning flower hair clips on page 70.

---->

Lusciously pretty floral ring! I tried to find it at forever21.com and couldn't. :(

Love Love LOVE this necklace from page 94. Only $35 bux!

Shoes: Ok, shoes are accessories. But I love them too much to lump them. Fricken-satisfyingly-substantial-without-being-too-chunky red sandal. I gave up being vegan for shoes like this. (I still don't eat anything that comes from a creature, but this leather is a cast-off waste-product from other people's meat habit that would have just gone into a landfill. Right? Oh the justifications I'll make for really good shoes. )

And these little floral flats are adorable.

Ok, so it wasn't all good. Worst look in the book: seersuckerish romper page 192.

What. Ever. Twice. I can't even bear to include a photo here.

Overall Review: Darned good issue. On the downside, I think their cover is starting to get further and further away from what's ACTUALLY in the issue, but what was in there was juicy and full of goodness, so a solid "A" for their March effort.

Lucky - February '09 - The Bargain Issue

This was a great issue, lots of good deals in here! I'm starting with my footwear fetish because these beige d'orsay suede heels on page 16 are going to make my legs look a million miles long (which would be a miracle for my short, trunk-like gams) plus a portion of the proceeds go to a good cause. How much better does shoe shopping get? I don't know who makes 'em - have to stop by luckymag.com to see.

I've always wanted to try a pair of "architectural" heels, but they hadn't been in my budget. Until the February Lucky that is...these are only $29 bucks at endless.com! They may not come in 10W, but we'll see.

Last shoe, I promise...these peep-toe spectators, p63. I've been watching the trend for months and really digging it, but of course when most trends start they're only available through high-end stores, and I'm on bargain-bin-budget right now. Here's my chance - Payless to the rescue! $30?!? Yes!

P62 features this 2-tone moc-croc structured bag that's giving me a bad case of the wants. What can I say? I'm into two-toned structured bags.

Last bargain - p101, a classic wool 3/4 sleeve boucle jacket from target.com. It only goes up to size 2XL so I'll have to see how generous it is. It's both classy and ladylike. They have a different boucle jacket in Women's sizes but I'm sorry, it's ugly. Hello Target, just because we're bigger doesn't mean we want to be less stylish!

<-- It's far from a bargain, but it's a great inspirational piece. I'm not usually a fan of lace dressing except in small doses - I think it's a bit overwhelming on most people when worn overall, but this gorgeous lace vest/top is just dreamy. (p41)

Speaking of vests, how cute is this outfit on P54? I'm going to reproduce for myself, only on me the skirt will skim the knees and maybe only have one or two flounces around the bottom. I'll rock it though, you have my word.

Thanks, Lucky, for a darn good read this month.

Lucky Magazine, January '09

This month's Lucky had several things I pulled for my scrapbook.

<--This outfit from page 43 would be very flattering for someone with my Pear bodyshape or an Hourglass girl. (Probably not so much for our Apple sisters.) I love how the deep V neck highlights the face (or would if I hadn't cropped it off so you could imagine YOUR face there,) love how the belted cardigan accentuates the waist and plays up the top half of the body, and love how the darker skirt and hose match to minimize a heavier lower half. The light peeptoe shoe just adds that fashiony pop, if you know what I mean. Plus, the d'orsay style (cut low on the sides) makes the leg look longer. I'll be wearing a version of this on Monday!

This next dress (page 58) -->

might work for any body style as long as the fit is right. What I like about it is how the stripes dictate the direction your eye travels, accentuating the torso and verticalizing the lower body. (If verticalizing isn't a real word, I claim poetic license!) The key would be to make sure the pleats hung right with no pulling or it would totally ruin the effect. If what they say in this issue is true, and stripes are going to be a big thing in '09, this is a great way to do them!

A couple of bags caught my eye.

<-- This one (p50) has a tattoo-ish motif, and is cute and punky. The only thing I don't like about it is the short straps. Maybe it has a longer strap hidden. I believe it's important to match the bag to the frame of the person wearing it, which is why most larger women should carry nice, large, substantial bags. Just my opinion but I think I'm right. Plus it lets me carry a pair of flats or tennies around for when my oh-so-fashionable heels are killing me!

Another bag I drooled over is this one from page 51 -->

It is larger than any bag I now own. I love the shape, the hardware, the lux look of the leather, the earth tones.

Last but not least, SHOES.

I once organized a 12-step group for Shoe Junkies, but our meetings always dissolved into shopping trips. At our last meeting, we ended up in the Nordstrom Rack fighting over a pair of gold moc-crock stillettos. So now I suffer my addiction alone.

Two pairs from the January Lucky are new must-haves. They're both much more practical than many of the shoes I own, and they're still adorably, wonderfully, wearably cute. Did I mention I'm gaga for shoes? Doesn't show a bit, does it?

Page 77, Cuban heels. The deep V is going to make your foot look sexy and your legs long. The sturdy heel is going to imbue your stride with confidence!

Finally, page 80 has the absolute THING for my trip to Kona this February!

They'll be charming with sunny dresses, and they look super-comfortable! -->