STYLING FOR WEIGHT LOSS

 

Styling for weight loss – Has this changed my own personal style? A question I have been asking myself as I have been editing my own wardrobe in preparation for AW19.

It’s taken me six months to reach the point of where I want to be with my health and weight, and styling for weight loss has had some unexpected challenges, some very funny and some frustrating too. Regular readers will know that I am all about investment dressing with a touch of trends to keep me modern. My weight loss journey, whilst focus on losing only the one pound per week, doesn’t quite translate the same in terms of how slowly your body changes, it’s seems to not do much for a week or two and then suddenly overnight a huge change.

Some of the funnier moments have been to wake up to discover that none of your knickers suddenly fit you and you’ve got the most important meeting that day (solution: wear trousers until you can get to a store!). Other times have been, where I  have worn a perfectly good pair of trousers on the Monday, you go to wear them again on the Wednesday and just like that you’ve lost your bum and it looks like you have a soggy nappy on….and that’s no stylish look believe me!

Wrap dresses have been a kind friend until they get to that point when a girlfriend pulls you aside in the ladies to advise you that you suddenly look like you a kid wearing your mum’s clothes – these have all been the funnier side to losing weight.

Frustrations have included some very thought through investment pieces that I now have to sell. Well I don’t plan to gain the weight again and because they don’t fit me, I’ve dropped more than two dress sizes in six months, I have truly tried to re-wear, re-style my investment pieces, but there comes a time when you have to decide, that’s it, they have got to be sold. And for some of my great finds, I am truly gutted.

 

INVESTMENT PIECES – WHAT WOULD I CHANGE?

I think it’s true to say that over the last 10 years my weight has gone up and down – whilst I have no intention to gain the weight again, the fact remains I didn’t realise I had put it on. It was only a photo on Christmas Day in 2018 that I realised just how much, even though I take ‘an outfit of a day’ post daily, I didn’t see it.

So I can’t say (although I would like to think this time, I have made lifestyle changes rather than doing a diet) that I won’t go up a dress size or two – I’ve therefore learnt whilst styling for weight loss that perhaps investments should be more on accessories, like bags, jewellery and scarves – these are a better place to spend your money.

You’ve probably have spotted here I have not put shoes; that’s because some of my shoes no longer fit me – I thought I had wide fit… it seems I am still a size 39 but I am now a normal 39 and not a wide – do you see the funny yet the frustrating parts of styling for weight loss!

 

HAS MY STYLE CHANGED?

Answer: No and Yes

No because my own personal style, as in what I like and do not like has not changed, my style personality remains to be classic, edgy, modern and unique – and this very much has stayed with me. I still like modern classics of wearing blazers, dresses with good quality fabrics, but I also like my pieces to be edgy so they tend to be embellished (and if they are not I add them on, like brooches), I am keen on leather, lace and leopard print too which adds something unique and different to the every day garment. A good way to do this is to shop local in independent boutiques.

But yes because what types of clothes I am wearing has changed – At my most largest size, I had given up wearing jeans and for the most part trousers too. In fact the 3-6 months leading up to Christmas Day 2018 I had hardly worn them; a lot of my outfits were dresses, because for the most part they were comfortable, the patterns hid the areas I wanted to hide. The days I had to wear jeans (say for practical reasons) I simply felt stuffed in them, making me very unhappy, so I stopped wearing them as much as I could. I actually started to wear jumpsuits more; they are so comfy to wear and they are naturally stylish so this was truly my comfort zone

 

STYLING FOR WEIGHT LOSS

The biggest difference to styling for weight loss and really the only change I feel I have made, is getting back into trousers and jeans. I want to highlight here that this is not a dig at plus size ladies at all, it actually highlights to me that the highstreet and supposedly good affordable brands simply do not cater for people who need larger sizes. And it’s an area that needs addressing. I didn’t realise until I was back in them, that this had really impacted my confidence. I don’t believe size 14 and size 16 is plus size and so the highstreet need to wake up to this!

On a more positive note… I have fully embraced the Mom jean, these are high-waisted and really ideal if you are a pear or hourglass body shape as they go in at the waistline and I have found that for the most part you don’t have to wear a belt. If you’ve not yet given it a go, I highly recommend trying them.

 

THE KNOTTED TEE

As your confidence grows when you shed some pounds, there is nothing more exciting than to show it off, and the knotted tee has been a great way to get back that modern styling with jeans or a skirt, that I had stopped doing. T-shirts are a great way to style yourself casual and effortless when you actually want to looks absolutely fabulous. A slogan tee too is a great way of getting some extra colour into your outfit. I have created a short film on how to tie a knotted t-shirt and this is for a side knot or like the photo above a back knot to create a waistline.

 

MY LATEST OUTFITS

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

All of these outfits are from my Instagram account – On there you will find all the details of where I have either purchased the items or if they have been gifted to me.

 

A TIME TO SELL

And so as I explained earlier on in this post, I am now going through a stage of selling my preloved items. So far so good, I am finding eBay much better than Depop. It’s also giving me the chance to have a really good wardrobe edit of my own to see what I want to take into AW19 – a season I am truly excited about!

 

***

Now Available

It’s now 4th February 2020 and it’s one year on since I started my weight loss journey. I lost 2 ½ stone in nine months and for the remaining months in 2019 I maintained it by sticking to my daily habits that I had changed as part of my weight loss journey.

You can now read all about it, in my first eBook – My Weight Loss Journey – just head to my SHOP!