What I'm Loving

Linking up with This Kind of Love for What I'm Loving Wednesday.

I'm loving...

...Glee! is back <3

TV viewing has been pretty lousy lately. There haven't been a lot of choices. Glee! is reliably entertaining and I'm glad that it's back!

Blaine is my favourite...

...My new earrings

 I've been wanting earrings like this for forever. Mine are the yellow ones :)

...That I've got a day off tomorrow and I can take my doggy Lucy for a nice long walk and do some writing for NaNoWriMo

Working 9 - 5 is kicking my butt! It's going to be so lovely to have some hours at home to potter about. Not that I'm not loving having work, but...you know what I mean.

Don't forget to visit This Kind of Love to either link up or read what everyone else is loving today.

What I'm Loving

I'm linking up with What I'm Loving Wednesday at This Kind of Love. I want to get this post up while it's still Wednesday here at my place, so I'm hitting publish even though the beautiful Jamie at This Kind of Love hasn't posted the linky yet.

Click here to visit This Kind of Love. (Link will take you to the home page.)

What I'm loving...


...warmer weather

Spring weather is unpredictable. One day it's pleasantly warm and sunshiny, the next it's cold and rainy. But this past week we've had a few warm (even hot!) days, and I've finally been able to wear some of my new summer clothes. I've worn my new shorts, denim skirt and sundress - all three items are above-the-knee! (And the dress is sleeveless!)

I'm loving feeling comfortable to wear hot-weather-appropriate outfits, and I'm finding that now that I'm at a healthy weight, I don't feel as uncomfortable and tired in the hot weather as I used to. I think it's going to be a great summer!

...wearing my hair curly


I've got the type of hair that, depending on the weather, or how I've styled it, or how it's been cut, can be curly, wavy or straight. (Or, of course, frizzy.) Usually I blow dry the front of my hair straight and try to make the rest of it sit smooth in nice controlled waves. But lately I've discovered that if I just let it be when I wash it, it dries nice and curly and doesn't look half bad! As I write, however, the weather is rainy and I've got a ferocious frizz going on because I didn't blow dry it. I need to find something that I can put on dry hair to keep the frizz at bay. I think I need to get me some of that fancy Moroccan Oil that my hairdresser uses!

...sharing encouragement


Every day, pages that I "like" on Facebook publish photos that are posters featuring inspirational and encouraging quotes.

I like to click "share" so I can pass on the inspiration.

What are you loving?

Braving bare legs with body bronzer

Spring weather is very unpredictable where I live.

One minute you're enjoying wearing a short skirt with bare legs and stressing about the whiteness of said bare legs. The next you're layering up with jeans and cardigans.

The other day we had an awesome warm springish day and I decided to bite the bullet and wear a skirt with no stockings, tights or other leg covering materials. I'm super brave like that now!

I just needed a little something to give me the confidence to bare my legs, so I decided to give some Le Tan Body Bronzer a go. It's like make-up for your body. You can click on the link to visit Le Tan's website and check out the product for yourself. I didn't receive any for free or anything. I'm not being paid or compensated to write this post. I just like to share information when I can.

I applied the lotion generously to my legs and then washed my hands with soap and water to avoid having bronzed sparkly hands all day. My legs looked pleasantly golden with a little bit of a shimmer. I was a little bit worried about the shimmer to be honest. I work in a library and I didn't want my legs to look like they were dressed for the disco! It wasn't a problem, however, because the shimmer is subtle and only really shows up under strong light. Out in the sunshine I glittered a little, but not enough to look like I was auditioning for a role in a Twilight movie!

The bronzer stayed put on my legs all day and didn't rub off onto my clothes. When I showered it washed right off with soap and water. I think I'm a convert now!

Do you have any little tricks that give you a bit more confidence to face the world? I'd love to hear them.

And if Le Tan want to send me a truckload of Body Bronzer I'm happy to receive it!

It's been a busy week.

Last Sunday we visited the travel agent. We sat down with a lovely travel consultant named Katherine and outlined our "World Tour 2012" plans. A couple of days later she got back to us with her initial proposal covering our flights and some accommodation in London, Paris and Orlando, Florida. Exciting! It's wonderful to have moved beyond the wishing and hoping and on to the actual planning!

I've worked a lot of hours this week between my time at the library and my teaching. I've been busy, also doing my bit to keep the house and family afloat, but I've been happy. The library work is going really well and I'm doing my best to make such a good impression that I'll be offered more work once my current block finishes.

Now that I'm at a healthy weight, I've been steadily building up my wardrobe. I'm really enjoying being able to fit into anything I like, and I'm trying to hold myself back from going the "mutton dressed as lamb" route. I see all these cute little dresses and tops - and I can actually fit into them - and sometimes I forget that I'm not 18 years old any more! I need to take a good, hard look at myself in the mirror to be sure that what I'm buying is "age appropriate". 

What do you think? Are there rules for dressing at (almost) 40? No bare midriffs, obviously, besides, no amount of weight loss will ever get my stomach back into midriff-baring shape! What about skirt length? I'm only 5'2" and I find that above-the-knee works best. And what about hosiery? My legs aren't fat, but they're snow white and have a few veins and a bit of cellulite. If I'm going to wear a short skirt, black opaque tights are my best friend. But come summer, I'll need to ditch the leg-wear. Does anyone know of a fake tan product that works miracles?

I've been meaning to take some photos of myself in some of my new clothes, but I just haven't found the time. Soon, I promise.

So, what have you been up to?

Pictures as Promised

I just got home from the hairdresser. Look how prettiful my hair is now!

I tried to take a full length photo so you could see me wearing my new "leather" jacket. Sorry, the picture quality is hopeless.

I ran the picture through one of the filters on Instagram to see if I could improve it a little.

In other news, I'm heading to the shopping mall tomorrow to pick up a few new items of clothing and visit the Travel Agent...

Rocking the Vampire Uniform

I'm baa-ack!

Participating once again in the fabulous Brandy's Fat Ass Friday.

You should click on the button and visit Brandy as soon as you've finished reading this post ;)

Goal weight: 57 kg

Current weight: 66.9 kg

Counting down: 9.9 kg to go!

I've been starting to think about the clothes that I'm going to buy when I've reached my goal weight. I'm planning on maintaining and never gaining it back, so I want to buy stuff that I really love and that makes me feel great.

I know exactly the look that I'll be going for. This blog http://www.youknowyoulovefashion.com/ that I've just discovered calls it "the vampire uniform" of fitted jacket, understated tee and tight, dark pants. In other words, I'll be looking like a mixture of Caroline, Elena and Katherine from The Vampire Diaries.

 Here's Caroline wearing "vampire at a picnic"! Love everything except the boots.

Elena wearing "doppleganger at the vampire sacrifice chic".

And Katherine looking "just plain sexy vampire".

And don't get me started on the dress that Elena wears to the funeral.

 I. Need. This. Dress.

So watch out world. Coming soon - Fiona rocks the vampire uniform!



Fat Ass Friday- the fashion edition

I went shopping yesterday. You know, clothes shopping.

I decided to take everyone's advice and go to Target and look for one inexpensive work outfit to wear to my training day next Friday.

Target have really expanded their work wear range. They have pants in skinny leg, boot leg and wide leg; in three or four different fabrics, in about five different colours. Most of them also come in short, regular or long leg lengths. Then of course they have a bajillion different skirts and quite a few blouses. And one jacket. What???

Now bless their little hearts, the Target customers don't seem to be all that careful about keeping all the different items of clothing in the right place. They seem to just put them back wherever they like once they've taken them off the rack to look at them. And I guess Target don't have enough staff to regularly comb through the racks and tidy them up. Here you can see the librarian in me coming out! Imagine if you went to the library and couldn't find the books you wanted because they'd all been shelved out of order? Frustrating, right?

Anyway...it was quite a gruelling task to find a selection of items to take to the fitting rooms, but I got there eventually.

I don't have all that much stamina for trying on clothes. All this getting into and out of different items, only to discover that you're not the size you thought you were after all, or that "skinny leg" really does have the emphasis on skinny! So then you have to get yourself all presentable, gather up your items, and head back out onto the floor for another round. Too much of that and I'm losing the will to live.

So I'm in the fitting room and can overhear two ladies talking in the next cubicle.

"That's a great colour on you," says one.

"Thanks. I like it, but I think it's too short," says the other.

"Ok, so you're not happy with the length. We'll look for something longer but I think we'll stick with that colour."

Hmmmm... I've got a great imagination, and I'm thinking that it sounds like someone's got a personal stylist with them.

A little later...

"Do you wear dresses often?" says "stylist" to customer.

"Would you believe I don't have any dresses in my wardrobe in the moment."

See, it does sound like a stylist; certainly not a daughter or friend who would know what her mother/friend wears!

And then...

"I'll just go out and get you a larger size in that."

Where, oh where, can I get me one of those helpful shopping ladies? I'd love one! Someone who could honestly tell me what they think of what I'm trying on and could help me search through the racks. They could also pop out and get me a different size if I needed it. I know you can take a friend or family member shopping with you, but they're not always capable of being honest! And I'd feel mean making them run around after me all day!

So, I guess you're wondering if I had any success.

I did come home with a pair of pants. 

Sorry about the quality of the photo. Needless to say, I didn't get this blouse which looks like a sack!

Unfortunately I didn't find a blouse that I was happy with. I also tried on a couple of dresses.

The top half of this dress was a bit too voluminous!

I thought this one looked pretty good! I didn't feel really comfortable in it, however, so I didn't get it. Maybe after I've lost a few more kilos.

How are you coping with your changing size and shape?

I am a Librarian... almost

Hi-ho, hi-ho, it's off to work I go...

Next Friday I'm going to a fabulous library for a training day, in the expectation that, all going well, they will have some work for me in the future. Yay me!

I am not superstitious, so I don't want anyone to point out to me that next Friday is Friday-the-13th!

The library manager rang to personally invite me to come in for a full day of training and is going to be looking after me on the day. She didn't give me much information about the upcoming work that might be available, just indicated that there would be some. I'm taking all this to mean that she wants to get a good look at me in the library environment before she employs me!

Needless to say, this is a great opportunity for me! And just a little bit daunting...

It's exciting to me that the library manager is prepared to put time and energy into training me. I'm thoroughly looking forward to a full day in a workplace that seems to be ideal for me. It will be wonderful to meet the rest of the team and see the variety of daily tasks involved in the job. It will be great to be in a busy, dynamic workplace meeting people. I'm also aware, however, that I will be "on trial". The library manager will surely be watching to see how suitable I am to be employed by her, so I do want to make a good showing.

I'm planning a recon trip to the library to get the lay of the land. I've only been there once before, for an interview, and I didn't see much of the library. I want to walk through the whole place so that I know where everything is. I'm going to watch the library clients to see how busy it is and how the library is used. I'm going to observe the library staff to see what sort of tasks they are undertaking and how much action the reference desk is getting. Can't you just imagine me hiding behind bookshelves eavesdropping on a librarian helping a patron? Just kidding, I would never invade a library patron's privacy that way.

I've also been trying to figure out what to wear.

Of course when I'm on my recon trip I'll check out what the other librarians are wearing. Beyond that, my main problem is that I have nothing that fits me! Having lost 11 kg over the past 12 weeks (yay!), my two pairs of work pants are falling off! I've been on a couple of shopping trips, but I don't want to spend money on nice clothes that might only fit for a short while. I'm still losing weight and figure that I'll drop another couple of dress sizes over the next few months. Advice please!

What else should I do to prepare to wow them next Friday? Any suggestions very welcome.

My fabulous new hairdo!

Today was the day that I finally got myself to the hairdresser for a long overdue haircut and colour.

I felt like I needed a bit of a change, so I've been trawling the internet and magazines for photos of exactly the cut that I wanted. You can check out this post to see some of my ideas.

I'm really happy with my new look! Hooray!

I came home and took about five thousand photos of myself with my iPhone to try to capture that "I just got home from the hairdresser" look. It's trickier than it looks. Here are a few of my attempts.

This is, I think, my best attempt overall. The wind had blown it about a bit by then but it gives you a pretty good idea.

Hahaha, in this photo I look a bit like a stunned mullet!

Hmmmm...this is an interesting angle!

The quality of this photo isn't great, but I like it because I took it in the mirror so you can see how I see myself.

So you can all relax now, I know that you've been waiting with baited (bated?) breath to find out how my new 'do would look. What do you think?



Searching for the perfect hairstyle - with funny pics!

I've been thinking a bit about hairstyles a bit. Scroll down to see yesterday's post or click here to read about my search for THE PERFECT HAIRSTYLE.

I think I'd like to go a bit shorter, but I don't want short layers all over because my hair tends to curl more the shorter it is. I'd like to keep some length on the top so that I can blow dry it straight for a sleeker, more groomed look.

Here are some pictures that I've found via Google Images:

This isn't actually much different from my current style. I think I really want to go a bit shorter than this, but the colour's nice.

This style is a bit shorter, but I think I'd like to see it blowdried a bit smoother. It's a bit messy for my liking. This colour is nice too.

I really like this one, though again I'd style it so that it was smoother. It's quite short, but retains the longer, swept-over-to-the-side fringe. And I like this colour too.

And now, for a laugh...

I tried out a free iPhone app called Hair MakeOver.

Go on, have a good laugh! I did!

Searching for THE PERFECT HAIRSTYLE

I'm way overdue for a haircut and colour. Unfortunately my holiday funds have not stretched far enough to accomodate grooming expenses.

I've decided to treat this as an opportunity, and am going to use the time until I can afford to go to the hairdresser's to come up with THE PERFECT HAIRSTYLE!!!

My hair is fine, wavy and prone to frizzyness, and is naturally a very fetching mousy colour with attractive grey streaks. I have a round face.

At the moment it is just past my shoulders with long layers and a long fringe that sweeps to the side. I usually get foil highlights in two colours, blonde and chocolate brown.

I'll do a bit of a Google Images search and post some contenders for THE PERFECT HAIRSTYLE!!!

Any ideas gratefully received :)

My Interview Outfit

I know you've all been dying to find out how I'm going putting together an outfit to wear to my job interview.

It's quite a tale, given that:

(a) I don't enjoy browsing. I like to go into a shop knowing exactly what I want, find it, buy it, go home, THE END.

(b) I have found that Murphy's Law prevails, even when shopping, i.e. when you know exactly what you want, it is impossible to find.

(c) I have a limited budget.

(d) I am curvaceous.

So, I found some luvverlee shoes. Take a look:

They are from Colorado. The shop, not the state. When I saw them last Wednesday, they were 40% off. The shop didn't have my size.

When I looked for them on Friday, they were still 40% off. The shop didn't stock that particular style.

When I looked for them on Sunday, they were still 40% off. This shop didn't stock that style either.

When I successfully found my size on Tuesday, they weren't 40% off anymore. So I paid full price. Boo :(

Yeah...if I'm going to have that much trouble with shoes, you can guess how much trouble the rest of the outfit was.

So, I tried to stand in front of mirror and take a photo of myself dressed up in my outfit, but it wasn't exactly working for me. So here is my outfit laid out on the couch:

Hahaha, I have no idea why the photo comes out sideways! I promise on my computer it is up the right way, for some reason Blogger wants it to look like this.

Anyway, the top is from Jacqui E. It is cream and has some chiffon detail around the neckline. Pretty :)

The pants are charcoal and are from Target. They are super comfy and look nice, but unfortunately did not come with a matching jacket. I've searched high and low for a jacket that will work, or a suit that fits well and I can afford, but no luck.

Today I picked up a nice short-sleeved cardi from Rivers that I thought might work. The photo didn't turn out too good, but hopefully you get the idea:

I liked the top from Jacqui E so much that I got one in "mocha" too. I took a photo showing how the top could be worn left out over the pants as well as tucked in:

Hahaha, Blogger has decided that this photo must also be sideways!

Anyway...whaddaya think? Did I do good?

All opinions will be gratefully received :)

Fashion emergency! Help required!

Guess what? I have a job interview coming up!

I have so far applied for five different librarian/library assistant jobs since completing my uni study. I have one confirmed interview, and I expect to have others also.

I have written a little bit about preparing for job interviews on my "other blog". If you want, you can read it here. On this blog, we're going to think about what I should wear to the interview.

Put your "fashion caps" on girls (and boys) and help me decide what look says "capable", "professional" and "all round fabulous" to you.

From Country Road, we have a nice conservative pant suit:

Perhaps worn with a colourful top so I don't look too serious?

Or how about a nice dress? I love the shape of the dress below, but it's from a shop called "MrandMrsTallClothes" which I certainly am not!

I love this skirt and top combo from Jacqui E. Does it look right for a librarian? Or too dressy and not professional enough?

Also from Jacqui E is this dress which looks really comfy. Would it be too colourful for an interview?

I looooove this dress from Portmans.

A nice simple top like this one from Katies would be easy to wear with pants or a skirt...

Ok, so I've discovered that I'm not too good at this internet window shopping thing. Please send me pictures or links or opinions or anything else that might be helpful. Here are some guidelines:

1. I'm not skinny. I can't wear stuff that's designed for six foot tall models!

2. I'm not rich. I can't afford designer brands.

3. Whatever I get for the interview, I need to be able to wear again. I can't have anything that makes me look like I the CEO of a company. Then it will be too dressy and serious to wear to work. A skirt or pants and jacket combo might be the way to go because they don't have to be worn together and different tops can create different looks.

Get working fashionistas! Looking forward to your fashion tips :)

I love my new Dress!

Check this out!

Dress from Target marked price $49.95 but bought for $34.40.

(I don't know - they must have been having a sale that I didn't know about?!)

I love my new dress, it's so comfy and I think it looks good! I did notice that it came in grey with red trim too... 

More Fashion Finds

Yes, yes, I'm still broke! But I can still dream.

I'd really like a long sleeved top with shoulder puffs for winter. Better yet, I'd like to find one I really like, then get it in a few different colours. Something kinda like this...

Sorry, I know the photo isn't too great. Can you sorta get the idea?

And I would really like a jacket that has a lovely feminine, fitted shape. Like this one...

This picture is much better :)

Looks pretty, doesn't it?

I'd love to have the money to go in to any store and buy whatever took my fancy, but guess what? I'm rich in other ways. Look forward to seeing how I put together a winter wardrobe that I love, without spending money that I don't have.  

Any helpful tips will be received gratefully.

Fashion I Fancy

I'm running a bit low on funds at the moment, but a girl can dream. Here's a selection of some fashion items that I'd like to get my hands on for winter.

Black Leggings with Ankle Detail

Black Ankle Boots

A Wrap Dress

What about you? Is there anything that you're lusting after in the shopping department?

The Birth of a Fashionista

Like most girls, I've always loved clothes, shoes, jewellery and all other accessories. Lately though, I haven't always been happy with the outfits that I've been putting together. I haven't always really felt like "me", if you know what I mean.

Recently, I realised what the problem was.

1. I was waiting until I lost weight so that I could buy new clothes and choose things that I loved and really love my "look".

2. I was waiting until I magically had a lot more money so I could afford the clothes and accessories that I really want.

I've decided to stop waiting! So, I'm not thin. That doesn't mean that I can't find a style and wonderful clothes that I love and look good in. So, I'm not rich. That doesn't mean that I can't do some bargain shopping and still put together some great outfits.

So, as this blog becomes more eclectic every day, I've decided to show you some of the outfits that I'm putting together. I welcome your comments, but only if you're telling me how fabulous I look!

Outfit Number 1 consists of:

Top from Target, was on the end-of-season sale rack. (Sorry, I got it a while ago, I can't remember how much it was.)

Skirt and belt from Rivers Clearance Store. (Again, can't remember the price, sorry.) The belt is supposed to be worn on the skirt, but I chose to wear the top out rather than tucked in and tied the belt around my waist.

Shoes from Rivers Clearance Store $18. (Yes they are leather!)

Outfit Number 2 consists of:

Top was a gift (a couple of years ago!) and is from Colorado.

Skirt from Salvos Store $7. Considering that the brand is Jacqui E, it fits me perfectly, and is showing no signs of wear, I'm pretty happy with that! 

Same shoes.

So, what do you think? If you enjoyed this post, head over to Frocks & Frou Frou, a blog that has been inspiring me of late.

And please leave me a comment, I'd love to hear about your take on fashion.