I know I know, I know what you're thinking... 'oh god is she banging on about Scarlett & Jo again?'. Well yes, yes I am. Yet again I've tried on one of their dresses and instantly felt super confident and sexy and amazingly happy with my curves, so I just had to tell all of you about it!

If you saw my post earlier this week from when Leah and I went to the new Evans store opening at The Highcross you will know that I tried on this and a few other S&J pieces there and couldn't resist purchasing this baby.

So this is S&J's classic Powerfit style dress in purple but there are lots of other colours and prints that you can choose from - I'll be very happy if I can collect them all! It features their famous Powermesh lining which is basically a fantastic piece of shapewear built right into the dress. It really is fabulous and really helps smooth you out - I very rarely wear things without a cardigan over the top to hide my less than smooth back area, but will happy wear this dress with nothing over the top as the Powermesh sorts that out for me. Also, as the Powermesh is stitched in place in the dress it means you don't have to worry about anything moving or riding up which can happen if you're wearing seperate dress and shapewear.

I absolutely adore the neckline of this style and the illusion style with the central hourglass shaped panel works so cleverly with the bold colour against the black to help slim you and give the impression of a real bombshell curvy figure, even if you aren't naturally shaped that way. The sleeves are also a fabulous feature at a comfy 3/4 length that cover up that upper arm area that so many of us prefer to keep under wraps.

You can always count on S&J for a good quality fabric and this dress is no exception, being made of a lovely soft heavyweight polyester that washes beautifully and doesn't need ironing if you hang dry it. The thickness of the fabric lends itself perfectly to the ruching detail just under the bust and over the tummy - another flattering detail that works wonders at giving a smoother appearance to that troublesome area. For the £45 price tag you really are getting a great quality dress!

I also thought I'd show off the handbag I bought when in Leicester at the weekend too. It was from New Look and features one of my favourite things - a mixture of leather and suede giving contrasting textures that I just can't get enough of. The only downside is that there aren't any compartments or pockets inside as I do tend to carry an awful lot of 'stuff' around with me so need a little help organising it, but then again it is a tote bag so I can't really complain! It is priced at £19.99 and you can find it in store or buy it online here.

So, I was very excited last week when I received an email from Evans letting me know that they were opening a new store in The Highcross in Leicester - before this the nearest store was at Fosse Park which although close to my work, isn't the best to get to from my home, so I didn't often get the opportunity to go. The email said that they were having a bit of an opening event on the Saturday and I thought I'd love to go but wanted a shopping partner and immediately thought of lovely Leah of the fab blog 30 Something Curvy Me who I had met at Plus North back in September and had recently found out lived not far from myself! I sent her a tweet and we arranged to meet up and check out the new store - oh the wonders of Twitter!!!

As you can see from the above photo, we had an absolute blast trying out lots and lots of things! On arrival we were both given a cracker which we pulled to reveal the gift of a 15% off coupon which was very nice, and naturally only encouraged me to make a purchase which I will share later, but first, here are some photos from the day...

I just love that adorale penguin sweater (they have sweet little diamante bows on!!!) and think Leah looks fab in that white and lace detail shirt which goes very well with her pretty Pink Clove rose skirt.

As usual I went straight for the lace and was very excited to try on the Scarlett & Jo lace prom dress that I'd been waiting for since the preview at Plus North. It is really really lovely and unfortunately the photo above doesn't really do it justice - the pic of Leah in it below gives a much better impression of how nice it is! I really liked this bright fuscia skater dress and really wanted to but it, but as I would class this as a staple wardrobe item rather than a special occasion dress I was a little disappointed with the £45 price tag and left it for the moment.

We both loved the brigh red of this tunic dress! This pic shows the S&J lace prom dress off a lot better - as usual the fabrics used are all lovely quality and it's a great shape for us plus sized gals - perfect for your Christmas or NYE party!

As you can see, that face I'm pulling right there is because boy was this dress see through so apologies for the rack shot!!!! It's a shame as the ribbed detail was lovely and although it was a little too short for me to have worn with tights it would have been cute with some leggings or skinny jeans. Here's another Scarlett & Jo beauty in the form of a fabulous monochrome Powerfit dress - as always with S&J I adored this dress and thought the print was perfect for adding to your workwear wardrobe.

Leah and I both tried on this first sparkly floaty number but neither of us liked the bubble hem - it was really hard to know where it should sit and didn't seem very flattering, but maybe we just didn't have the right body shapes... This sweet bird print sweater however looked so nice on Leah and would be a great casual staple.

I just had to try on this 80's-tastic martini glass jumper! The fabric was nice and soft and it was a great length - all in all a fab graphic sweater. As you can see the sparkly floaty purple number just wasn't for me, I felt it instantly aged me by about 20 years and the bubble hem did nothing for me, although I though the floaty sleeves and spangly fabric were very nice.

I just love the unusual design of the lace on this purple tunic and here we have another great example of Scarlett & Jo! Another fab monochrome stlye print comes into play this time as a peplum dress with a super sexy mesh detail to the bust.

As you can see here, we were both really disappointed with this top! It looked so lovely on the hanger, sparkly white with a silver gemstone on the neckline, but it just did not sit right on either of us. Again the dreaded bubble hem scuppered both our body shapes and the gem just wouldn't lay flat and kept drooping down or turning round. Such a shame. Also, I think I look like I should be in an Abba tribute band in this...

Last but not least we both tried on the Scarlett & Jo Powerfit dress in purple, and both fell in love! It is just a marvellous design and I'm so glad it is available in so many colours! I used my voucher and brought mine home with me, and I know that Leah wants to head back to buy one herself very soon!

The store itself was very nice, as were all the staff, and they had a great selection of pieces including a great footwear selection and some very pretty jewellery and lingerie. I would have liked to see a few of the other brands on sale like Live Unlimited or Clements Ribeiro, I'm hoping they'll start to stock some more when they've been open a little longer.

I had a great day with Leah, she is awesome fun to shop with and a great photographer buddy - we also visited another store on our travels and I'll share the pics from that trying on session in a few days!

Ooooooh I love love love this dress it is SO cute! As soon as I saw it online I knew that I had to have it, but funds at the time were low so I didn't order... but then I arranged a shopping and lunch date with the lovely ladies from my old work and we popped into the Highcross's Simply Be store where they had a sale going on and low and behold, this dress was right there! Naturally I grabbed it (and a lot of other things...) and headed straight for the changing rooms where I fell immediately in love with it! Doesn't the graphic print remind you of those magic eye puzzles where you stare at it and something appears in 3D out of the pattern?

The fabric is just amazing, super soft to the touch and lightweight so it hangs beautifully, but it's also thick enough for you to not need a vest or slip underneath. The peter pan collar is a lovely touch with this unusual print and it has a darling crochet'd edge, the exposed zip detail to the back is also really nice although there are a few raw thread edges starting to appear beneath it that I've had to nip off. My only gripe would be that the bottoms of the sleeves were elasticated which I found did not suit my arms at all, so I just took out the elastic and now have nice roomy short sleeves.

My new adorable spotty shoesies from Irregular Choice were the perfect *ahem* choice, to work with the dots of the dress - this has fast become one of my favourite outfits!

Dress - Claire Richards for Fashion World

Shoes - Irregular Choice

x o x o x

I've been so blown away by how many amazing outfit posts I've seen recently from so many amazing bloggers around the globe, so I thought I'd share some of my favourites with you!

I just adore this outfit from Danielle Vanier. Danielle always puts togethers combos that I would never think to use myself but seem so obviously stylish when she does it! With a jacket this colourful I would have worn all black, but it works so so wonderfully with that fuschia dress. Plus, those gold brogues are awesome sauce.

Callie of From the Corners of the Curve has the prettiest. smile. ever. Seriously isn't she the cutest?! She's also darn good at putting together a great street style outfit and isn't afraid to rock the long sock look! You go gorgeous!

Midge from Modern Girl Blitz has such great style. I just adore this glasses print dress and the glitzy socks over pale tights combo! Also, fringe/bangs + glasses = win!

I absolutely adore Jessie of Minipenny's new hair cut, it totally makes me want to get a blunt cut and fringe put back in, but I know I'd miss being able to do my curl set too much. Jessie absolutely rocks it though and I just love those super sparkly sequin trousers paired with a casual tee and coat, what a great contrast of styles that work together so well.

Erin at Zero Style is wearing what is probably my favourite tartan dress that I've seen so far in this post. I love the leather jacket and shoes combining so well and how she has echoed the plum hue in her dress in her lipstick!

In all honesty, I just think this outfit Pandora is wearing is down right adorable. I love that the red is carried through the dress striping, lipstick and beret - it's such a bold but cute detail, but boy you have gotta be brave to wear a dress that short!

This is a real pastel dream from Michelle at Creature Type. It looks like such a comfy outfit and shows off her lovely figure really well. I definitely want that pug shirt in my life, I'm so sad you can't get it anymore!!!

Hayley of Fashion Hayley is the don of quirky kitschy crazy cute. This outfit is all kinds of amazing - check out the petals in that skirt? Wowza I love!!!! Plus a sequined pineapple clutch and GIANT hair bow? I wish I had Hayley's moxie!

Argh I could not get a photo that does this nail varnish look justice! It looks mega luxe in person, the glitter top coat is fantastic and looks kind of 3D in real life because of its super glossy clear base - so gorgeous!

There's only two varnishes that you need, firstly Bourjois 1 Seconde Polish in Bleu Moonlight and Avon Color Trent Dazzlers Top Coat in Rose Golden. I would also recommend using a base coat such as this Avon Nail Experts Gel Strength Base Coat so your nails don't get stained by the deep blue polish.

I've been REALLY impressed with the Bourjois 1 Seconde polishes, you really do only need one coat even in this deep midnight blue and it lasts really well without chipping. I'll definitely be building up my collection of them as they're ideal if you need a quick nail fix - one sweep and you're good to go with a nice quick drying time to boot.

The Dazzlers Top Coats are fab too, I was so impressed with this one that I quickly went and ordered two other colours in the range - they're only £1.50 each at the moment so you could have the whole collection for less than the price of one premium polish!

Well ladies, my Twitter feed is just full of ladies saying that they can't decide what to wear to their Christmas parties, so here I am again to make it even more difficult with some more b-e-a-utiful dresses, this time from a website which is fairly new to me, Curvety. I'm not really sure why I haven't explored their site before but one of the main reasons I headed there today was because they are a UK based stockist of one of my favourite brands Igigi. I'm ever so glad I did because I am really impressed with their selection, not just for occasion wear but for classy work wear too. Make sure to take a look if you're in need of a killer dress to ace that big business meeting, no 1980's power shoulder pads required. But on to the fanciness starting with the two styles above...

First up we have this gorgeous Retro Glam Lace Dress from Kiyonna. Lace - check, satin - check, jewel colours - check, sparkly detailing - check, so basically this dress has everything you would usually call for in a Winter party piece. I'm also a real sucker for scalloped edging on pretty much anything, and the wrap over bust and waist cinching sash knock this right into category perfect.

This Luna Lace Skater Dress has to be one of the best interpretations of the style that I've seen so far, again by Kiyonna. I know it's very simple, but the little details like the slash neck and straight strapless bodice are super duper sexy. Add in the flattering waist ruching and lovely to the knee length anbd you have something really special.

Now we have two gorgeous styles from Igig, starting with the Nezetta Cocktail Dress. We all know I love metallic fabrics so it's no surprise that I went for this one, but I also love the flattering ruching below the waistline and the sleeves are in my opinion the perfect length. The ruching is also echoed on the back of the dress just above the bum area to bring attention to one of your most important curves...!

This second style is called the Malina Dress and the colours take my mind straight to Marie Antoinette - perfect for a night of decadence and delight, no giant ship hair piece necessary. You'd definitely stand out in this style as the palette is very different to most things on offer this season, and teamed with the right icey accessories you'll look like a beautiful Snow Queen.

More lace here with the Screen Siren Lace Gown by Kiyonna, this time in a drop dead glamorous maxi style with lovely three quarter sleeves and another lovely wrap over bust. We have another good waist detail here that will emphasise your shape beautifully, and the two seems to the front of the skirt are in the perfect place to act sort of like an illusion dress lengthening your figure and adding definition.

Oh I do love a textured fabric, and this Faline Dress by Tia is woollen and has sequins so ticks two boxes! It's a little hard to see from the photo but it has a lovely v detail to the mid section where the fabric has been stitched with the pretty satin bow sat where the points meet. It looks like it would be a lovely on the knee length too!

Now if you fancy going for a dress that is a little more understated so you can max out on the jewellery, these two styles would be great. Firstly a classic style in the Winona Wrap Dress with it's sweet subtle high-low skirt and lovely sash detail, this could easily be taken to party town by adding some glitzy heels, jewellery and Santa red lipstick.

Talking of Santa red, if you really want to set the room on fire this season you should go for this stunning Betsy Ruched Dress by Kiyonna. The cap shoulders over the half sleeves are so stylish and you couldn't fail to have great looking boobies in this one with the plunging neck line (sorry..)!

Last up we have two beautiful maxi styles. I have a few friends that only feel comfortable in long skirts and so these would be perfect for them, and also great for anyone who isn't confident in heels as they are easier to wear with flats than most party dresses. They also keep those pins a bit warmer for when you're tottering to the next bar!

First up is the lovely Charlize Maxi Dress by Kiyonna which has dreamy floaty sleeves that ar ea little batwing-esque, and nice pleat detailing to the waist. If it was me I'd team this with a nice smokey eye and deep plum lipstick and a big statement necklace to take it a little gothic glam.

Last but not least we have this lovely Novella Maxi Dress by Igigi which showcases one of this brand's trademark details in the crossover contrast waist bands. This is such a clever trick as it adds roundness to the bust making it appear fuller while also making a slight upside down v over your stomach to minimise this area. It also helps give that classic hourglass definition. Plus, I just love this print and think a sequined silver shrug would take it to the next level!

Well I hope you liked me picks, make sure you head over to Curvety to check out their other pieces as these are just the tip of the gorgeous dress iceberg!

Hey lovelies! So this is the first accompanying post to my Art Deco / 1920's Christmas party style post a few days ago, this time covering make-up.

Now this was really the age when makeup started becoming really acceptable for women to wear, and so it was embraced whole heartedly and the look was very bold and dramatic - think rich dark tones and really defined features.

My absolute favourite tutorial that I have ever found for a 1920's look that you can feel comfortable wearing today is a fairly recent one by the always gorgeous, fun fabulous Cora at Vintage or Tacky - I love her more than a little bit, can you tell? She covers the whole look really well even going into the detail of using a powder foundation like they did back then, how to create the classic 1920's lip shape and using the correct definition shape for the eyeshadow that gives a kind of sexy but sad look. Here's the video, after watching I'm sure you'll fall in love with Cora too and want to watch lots more of her awesome tutorials!

So I know Cora gives you a name and brand for all the items she uses here, but I thought I'd share with you some of my favourite lipsticks, lashes and shadows for getting this look.

Starting with shadows, I'm a long time fan of MAC's Carbon black shadow and think it would be perfect with a shimmer over the top of either Blue Brown Pigment or thier Smutty Green Mineralize Eyeshadow. Now the photo above doesn't really give an indication of what Smutty Green actually looks like when applied, so if I was you I'd click this link to Cora's website to see some swatches to get a true idea of this pretty metallic green. In fact, either of the other two Mineralize Eyeshadows that Cora swatches in that post would be great for this look!

Now I have only recently started using Illamasqua lashes after the lovely makeup artist at my Simply Be shoot used them on me, but I can whole heartedly recommend them for thier unique styles and outstanding quality. Above you have style number 02 first and then number 021 which I am wearing in these photos.

And lastly here are three lipsticks that I think would work beautifully for this look. First up is Hang-up by MAC, then we have Shard by Illamasqua and lastly Cyber again by MAC. If you're wanting something a little more budget friendly I recently bought the shade 'Seduction' from Collection's new Gothic Glam range and for the £2.99 price tag it's pretty darn good.

Apologies that I have only covered two brands here, but these are the two brands I buy from most often and have therefore used myself and I of course wanted to recommend products to you guys that I like myself! The only thing I can't say that I've tried is the style 02 lashes, but I can recommend others by the same brand so think I'm pretty safe to say that these should be great too.

Anyone that knows me will tell you that I'm more than a bit of a magpie, meaning that I naturally gravitate towards anything glittery, sparkly or shiny. I'm happy to work glitzy spangly items into my daywear outfits, never minding if other might perceive me as overdressed for the occasion. I am one of those people that wouldn't go down tot the corner shop without a face of make-up on, and I'm not ashamed of that. I feel good when I think I look good, and feel awful and self conscious if I think I'm not looking my best.

Although this lovely dress from Lovedrobe for Simply Be features a metallic lace bodice, I really don't think it's too much for day wear. Teamed with some tights and wedges it's smart and stylish but the pleats and slightly ballooned sleeves add that little touch of fun that stop it from being solely evening attire.

I can't say that I own any other skirts that are pleated like this, and it does remind me a little of a school uniform skirt, but I quite like it. It moves and hangs nicely and is a nice length, although I would have preferred it just a smidge if it was under the knee, but then again I always want skirts and dresses to sit just under the knee.

The bodice is good and shiny and catches the light nicely, and I especially like that the metallic lace covers the back as well as the front as a lot of companies cheap out here and only put details like that on the front which is one of my major bugbears.

 I went for a size smaller than I usually wood in this style, only in honesty because they only had a 20 left in the store and I really wanted it and thankfully when I tried it on it was just right - I think the 22 would have been a bit too big in the body.

You can buy the dress here for £35, but I got mine in the sale at my local Simply Be store for £19 so if you're near one it's worth checking to see if they have it!

This dress is exclusive to Simply Be, but Lovedrobe also have their own website selling different styles and have a great sale on at the moment too - check it out here.

So, a few weeks ago I was putting my rollers in first thing on a Saturday morning while half watching The Princess and The Frog when my phone buzzed and to my utter delight I found out I had won a pair of shoes from the amazing Irregular Choice store in Leicester! I had thought I hadn't won as the original winner had been announced the day before, but it turns out whoever that was hadn't read the terms right and didn't actually live anywhere near Leicester and so couldn't come to the store to pick a pair so they had to redraw and I was picked! Woohoo! I got super excited and rang the store straight away with the secret password 'thumbelina' and let them know I'd be in the following week to choose my new shoesies!

So my little sis Laura and I headed out to Leicester on the train the following week to choose my pair of shoes and do a little shopping. The store itself is fairly small but light and airy and choc full of GORGEOUS shoes, hats, sunglasses and jewellery pieces for you to choose from. Here are a few snaps I took while I was trying on...

I really wish this next pair had been in my size, although I could definitely not have walked in them, but seriously how fun are those Santa heels?!

I really really love the sunglasses that you can get from IC, they're so kitschy and fun - just look at those pearly bunnies and gemstone kitties!

The jewellery range is amazing too and lil sis and I headed right for the rings trying on as many as we could!

Now this is what you call a statement necklace...

Naturally I made Laura try on the sequin furry moose hat. That face definitely says 'I love you big sister'.

So after much giggling and trying on I decided on this lovely pair called Dazzel Razzel!

The heel is perfect (and glittery) so I won't be wanting to take them off after five minutes and the black and white colour scheme will go with lots of different outfits. Plus there's a bow, and we all know I love a good bow. The sparkly silver detailing around the edges combined with the textured fabric and gorgeous lining and sole are all examples of why Irregular Choice shoes are so amazing and worth every penny - each pair is finished by hand. The 'v' to the fabric over the bridge of the foot was also a really pretty detail on these, as well as making them a little more comfortable as I have slightly wide feet.

Thank you so much to the Irregular Choice Midlands ladies for drawing me out of the hat and for being so fun and welcoming when we came to visit! I had a blast and will definitely be back next time I fancy treating my feet to something fab and funky, and I highly suggest you do the same too!