I was cleaning up some of the old outfit posts on the blog; there was an issue with images disappearing from a lot of them. Do you know what I noticed as I went through post after post? Firstly, I miss having this record of not only what I was wearing or looked like, but what we were up to. And secondly, that my style has changed a lot in the last five years.
At one stage, I even said that I wasn’t into casual clothes! I prefer to be overdressed than underdressed, I said! WHO WAS THAT PERSON? I don’t recognise her. Haha. The casual ootd is where it’s at for me. For better or worse, it’s what I love. I wonder if that will change for me in the next five years?
Maybe I’ll have to get a job and leave my house again.
Speaking of leaving the house, that brings me to last night’s adventure to the Indian takeaway and bottleshop. Kel and I had both had a long day. He’s picked up a big job that maybe what we need to turn things around with that business. Meanwhile, I have been up to my ears in new enquiries for websites and social media. Not to mention, we are lucky enough to be managing most of our existing social media client accounts still.
But since we were leaving the house, something I’m not doing at all if I can avoid it, I got dressed. This dress arrived in the mail a while ago, but while it’s comfy as, I wasn’t going to wear it to bum around my house. A 5 minute trip to the bottleshop, however…
What can I say? I love an occasion.
Almost as much as I love a good sneaker and t-shirt dress combo. See for yourself.
We were talking about the whole wearing a dress as a top thing on Facebook this week. The blog post I wrote a while ago had made a comeback and it got me thinking; there has to be more I can do with the clothes in my wardrobe now. So, the first chance I got, in the rain and one billion percent humidity I grabbed Kel and went outside with the mission to show how this printed wedge dress (from 17 Sundays) can also be worn as a top. I even had cute hair until I went outside!
I’ve found the easiest way to pull this off, is to tuck the bottom hem of the skirt either into the waistband of the pants (or skirt) or into your bra. Then you just let it blouse over the pants or half-tuck it for a longer side look. Anyway, you get what I’m talking about. No pinning or sewing necessary, just tuck and go!
I’ve been in love with jumpsuits since I picked up a black, wide-leg one from Birdsnest (was it Birdsnest? Yup. I checked, see it here in its first blog post) years ago. No more structured, pain in the ass, impossible to get in and out of bodysuits for me. I was all about the stretch and the drape of that style of jumpsuit. And when confronted with one, would almost always add it to cart.
Like this one, it’s the best. Not only is the colour perfection (hello new hair colour) but it ticks all the other boxes. Stretchy, tick! Wide-leg pant, tick. Pull-on and off design, YUP! It’s got all the things, so it’s been on high rotation since the summer weather kicked in around here. Most useful over swimwear, it’s comfortable to wear, soft as hell, and washes like a champion. One of those pieces that I love to wear because it makes me feel good.
But what about the fact that when I sit my stomach looks rather large?
Well, firstly, it is rather large. There’s no hiding that. It’s been a festive last year or so. I think we all need to start seeing ourselves as we are. As real, rather than a distorted, perfectly angled world, we tend to see through our selfie lens. This is what I look like when I sit down; no more, no less.
And secondly, you saw the bit where I said I feel good, right?
No amount of visible stomach is going to take that away from me. Lately, I’ve been pretty hard on this body of mine. I feel like there are so many ways that it could be doing better; looking better and just BEING better. And it’s hard to live with that as the conversation in your head.
So, I’m making changes. Taking more photos from different angles and worrying less about them always being flattering. Because we all know, flattering is just code for thinner, and when you’re a size 24 every day of the week, thinner isn’t a descriptive word that applies.
Let me clarify.
This post isn’t to complain that I gained weight. Gaining weight at the drop of a hat is something my body does in response to a whole range of health factors for me. It is about challenging the idea what we all have, to varying degrees, that our bodies should be a certain way and remain that way for all time.
I’m old now then I was five years ago, thank goodness, and so is this body I call home. It’s changing and adapting to what it’s been through but so am I. This is about recognising that, accepting that, and viewing yourself as you are.
You don’t need to be anything but what you are. From now on, I’m going to remember that when I berate and degrade myself in the mirror. I owe myself that much. Now, let’s get to more pics, shall we? The shopping links, where available, are below as always.
It’s been a while since we talked about clothes, team. Even longer since I last covered off on plus size maxi dresses. When was the last time? Can anyone remember? But this felt necessary because I am wearing a bunch of maxis on rotation at the moment. For almost every occasion, it seemed important to the whole documenting things thing. It’s not a where to buy, but I’ve included as many links as I could. Most are pretty recent additions, so they’re in stock. Some, not so much. But either way, I tried.
So, why maxi dresses, right?
What’s the appeal of that?
For me, it’s a really easy way to be dressed all at once. No mess and no fuss. Whatever the occasion; backyard BBQ to kind of formal occasion, you’re all set. Add some great shoes and whatever accessories float your boat and you’ve got a whole outfit. Maxis work for those who want to wear little shorts under their dresses in summer and are even cute with ankle boots in colder months. But surely, I don’t have to tell YOU that? You’re a woman of the world, let’s get things started, shall we? (This post contains gifted items, as marked, and affiliate links)
Plus size maxi dresses I’m wearing now!
The casual maxi dresses
This is the section where you are going to be annoyed because you can’t buy the majority of them. Sorry about that. But I live in my 17 Sundays maxis* from last year, both the black and white stripe versions as well as the black and leopard print. Phew. They’re my go-to item for casual and work and if you didn’t buy one you’re insane. Sorry, that happened to you.
In rotation with that are a couple of City Chic maxi dresses. You’ve seen the blue maxi dress in my beach photos, which is sold out. BUT, don’t panic, they’ve just released it in a couple of new colours and prints and there are plenty of them in the RESORT section on their website These are such easy to wear dresses they could really be added to the nice maxis section below. But, well, they’re here.
The nice maxi dresses
These are the maxis that are more wear them out for the evening. Add sandals with a little heel or chunky wedges and you’re good for an evening out. This is such a great option for plus size women especially because they’re easy to wear, you have options on what you put under them (anti-chafe shorts or similar for example). Something like this PQ Collection dress is perfect for dinner and drinks. Trust me, I’ve done both. SO much room for dinner and drinks. Haha.
The ASOS Curve Black Maxi Tea Dress is one that I wear ALL the time but apparently have never taken a photo in it. It’s the same as the image I’ve shared below, but longer. Sorry, team. It’s still a basic black jersey fabric but the tea dress neckline and little slits at the ankle just make it a little more special than the casual maxis. It absolutely dresses up for dinner or I wear it to client jobs sometimes when I want good coverage, to be comfortable and also look like I tried a little.
My shorter version of the ASOS Curve Black Maxi Tea Dress (sorry, team)
My friend, Pip owns the website Sisu and Finn and when I started taking a few outfit photos again, she offered to send me some items to try out and keep a couple. These two Kiyonna Maxi Dresses were part of that parcel. It was my first time trying this brand and I have to say that the quality was beyond what I expected even after being told to expect them to be good.
They are beautiful to wear and look spectacular on. Special occasion coming up? These are worth a closer look. I ended up keeping the navy Meadow Dream maxi dress you’ll see below. Navy is more my colour all year round, and I felt like the neck (boob) line suited me more. Having both in my wardrobe would have been indulgent, so I was happy to send the green Vienna maxi dress (above) back to her to enjoy after taking a few photos.
Another great maxi dress for special occasions is the Embody Women (formally Embody Denim), Birkin Maxi Dress. My friend Desiree has this dress in the spot print and it is STUNNING. Such a showstopper no matter the occasion and available in a range of colours and prints to make finding something that works for you easy. My personal favourite is the current navy colour, it’s so beautiful. I think it’s pretty easy to see that come to special occasions navy is sort of my thing. Haha.
And there you go, team! A bit of a whip around my wardrobe of plus size maxi dresses. You have to agree that this is such a versatile length; especially when you go swishy and full with the skirt. Do you maxi? I hope you do, let me know about it, I’ve enabled the image upload int he comments, show me ALL the things. Otherwise, find me on Instagram, tag @sugercoatit – I can’t wait to see!
*indicates gifted items where it was weird to insert the word gifted
You know the whole concept of the CEO outfit, right? The one look that you can pull on day after day. I wrote about considering a personal uniform here, and for some of you, it was a little meh, because a) who wants to be like Mark Zuckerberg anyway. But b) we express ourselves through fashion, so why restrict yourself to wearing the same thing over and over?
Good question, team.
My thoughts are that there is a time and place for everything. When I need to get dressed be out the door, I love a uniform. When I’m dressing for myself and have the luxury of time, I choose something else. Going the whole hog on a uniform doesn’t allow for such freedom, but when you’re setting your own rules, you can do what you want. I do it to simplify my life. When I don’t need simple, I enjoy myself more because of it.
But you really can’t go past the simplicity of something like this (you know me, I switch up the black graphic tee depending on my mood). Knowing that I have a few keys pieces that I know fit well, wash and wear like champions and are comfortable come what may is something I value. For you, that might be another combination of items (I have a casual stripe maxi dress that is a bit of an alternative to this outfit).
In 2019, my uniform looks a little like this…
And that said, I’d love to hear your thoughts on all of this. What works for you? Do you have a default uniform like this or do you prefer to express yourself daily through clothes? You know what to do, add a comment below (or join us over on the Suger Coat It Facebook or on the post on Instagram).
As Queenslander, my winter wardrobe is pretty limited. I have some jumpers and knits and a few essential jackets. That said, in Gympie, where I live, when winter shows up, it brings its A-game, which is good news if you want an excuse to experiment with some layers or jackets. Or in my case, a knit dress or two as your go-to winter outfit.
When it comes to heading out for dinner, backyard BBQs (yes, we still have those!) or even catching a movie, this is an outfit that won’t let you down. For me, it has been worth the investment in a few key dresses (like this one from last year) that I can throw on and be heading out the door. If you’ve been around here for a little while now, you know THAT is the most important thing to me.
Highly recommend.
The best part about this style of outfit is that you can add as many light layers as you need. For this hot mess of a woman, I find that I don’t need stockings or singlets under, but you totally could. I love jeans, and I couldn’t live without all my joggers and other pants, but there’s something about heading out for the night that brings out the dress wearer in me. I feel fancy immediately in a way I never really do in pants. Is that just me?
What’s your go-to winter night out outfit?
If you’re interested in this one, I’ve put links below. All but the exact boots are still available online at the time of publishing this. I mean, if you know me and my wardrobe, you know that’s not always the case. I’ve been eyeing off a few more knit dresses for this sort of occasion, so let me know in the comments if you want to see a wrap up (pun SO intended there) of more knit dresses like this one. Until then, more pics!
Wearing 17 Sundays Snow Wash Moto Jacket (AU22), ASOS Curve Midi Wrap Skirt T-Shirt Dress (AU24) and City Chic Boots.
Been a while since an outfit post, right, team? Today, let’s make up for that with not one, not even TWO, but FOUR outfits as shown on my plus size body, that even includes some new season stuff. I mean, what’s not to love about that? If you follow my Instagram (if not, gosh, why not?) then you might have noticed the outfit post start to make it’s way back into the roster.
Which is good news, I’d missed it and I think you guys had too.
So, on this path to resuming the usual order of things, I thought this composite post might come in handy. There are some links, some extra photos where I had them, and the initial Instagram post in case you missed it. Sounds like a plan, right? Let’s get started with this week’s ‘What I’m Wearing Wrap Up’ (say that three times fast?).
(Gifted) 17 Sundays Confetti Print Dress (also in black colourway) and City Chic Boots (similar style)
The end. Let me know if this is something that you’re interested in seeing (the links and stuff could be handy, right?) let me know. I’d like to get back to full outfit posts, but grabbing photo sets can be hard sometimes. Until then, let’s live that Insta-life.
Every girl needs a go-to outfit that doesn’t need ironing, is easy to wear and can but slipped on (or off) at a moment’s notice. For me, that kind of thing is exactly the type of clothes I love to wear. Piece by piece I’m building up a wardrobe of these type of items and outfits. This ASOS Curve Mini Tea Dress is the latest favourite. I’ve had the maxi dress for a while now. Living in it for a majority of winter. But with summer on the way, I thought it was time to get the legs out and celebrate the sunshine.
It really doesn’t matter if we’re going to the park, to dinner, a movie or a wander around, this dress does it all. Paired with sneakers or heels or flats… it always looks great. Look at me going all gaga for a simple, little black dress. BUT, as I said above, you just have to have these go-to looks. What’s yours?I know a lot of women that say jeans. Which, I mean, I get it. But anything with a waistband is out for me during summer. Haha.
Too hot, too can’t be bothered.
Side note: I have one minor complaint about the range of dresses I’m collecting in this easy to wear style. If you can spare me a moment to complain. They all have high necklines. Some feel like they’re almost at my chin. The exception, of course, is my Suger Tee Dress from 17 Sundays. But, for so many of them, the neckline is a bit of a frustration. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t mind higher necklines, not everything I wear has to be focused around my boobs. BUT, some variety would be nice.
This dress isn’t too bad, the neckline is wide enough not to be half choking you when you sit down. But keep an eye on the blog next week, I have this graphic tee dress with the highest neckline ever (excluding turtlenecks). And while I love it (dress it up or down, whatever) a wide, deeper neck would be nice. Any suggestions for hacking that sort of thing myself? Keep in mind I don’t sew. Haha.
But for now, check out my current favourite!
Wearing ASOS Curve Mini Tea Dress (UK24), random, old AF sandals (similar’ish) and Quay Australia sunglasses.
As a teenager, and much smaller plus size person than I am now, finding things that I wanted to wear was impossible. I’ve talked about this before (over and over and over again). There was no chance of finding a cute cami dress, that’s for sure. A smock maybe, but camisole, not that I could find.
Anywaaaaaay that brings us to today.
I’m thirty-five years old, and I’m living my best teenager life. Which basically means that I’ve been inspired by discovering what it is that I love to wear these days. Whether that be something like this, the ease of low fuss fabrics or casual t-shirts both regular and as dresses. You might have noticed. It’s casual AF over here.
You guys know, over the years I’ve been through a lot of looks (gah, peplum) and styles but it’s funny how things come full circle. Here I am, right back where 13-year-old me started. She had a clear vision for your style but was never really able to execute it.
Poor kid.
I think maybe we need to trust our younger selves a little more. Perhaps those kids knew what was up all along. That said, she also wore snap side tracksuit pants with knitted crop tops, sooooo there’s that. Haha. But really, something I’m trying to do is have more fun with my style.
The worry about whether I’m dressed age appropriately or wearing clothes that flatter me had started to creep back in. I think that had a lot to do with my anxiety and how I was dealing with people. But, it’s nice to step back outside that and have some fun. Highly recommend; five stars.
Wearing ASOS Curve Midi Cami Slip Dress (UK24), ASOS Curve Stripe T-Shirt (UK22) and Converse Sneakers (similar).
When I gave up the last of my office jobs, I gave up wearing corporate clothing AT ALL. It’d been in steady decline for a while, but that was the nail in the corporate coffin. My wardrobe was made up of relaxed fit dresses, casual tee’s and sneakers; soooo many sneakers. I was out of the game, so my wardrobe reflected that. And I was totally okay with that.
Then I started to notice the gaps. An event to attend here and a meeting that required something a little extra there. I realised that as much fun as I was having at the casual end of business casual, I needed something that served the other end. Enter the Neena Wrap Dress from Alison Dominy Designs.
It just happens to be in one of the best possible colours for my skin tone. Can’t be sad about that. There’s something simple about a wrap dress that appeals to my new casual look. The soft fabric and comfortable fit are just like wearing a tee and soft pants, but I’m dressed up and ready to business. Or a party for that matter.
It’s a Monday morning outfit post just like old times! Can’t argue with the good vibes of THAT. I hope you had a great weekend, team. Mr Suger and I were kicking all sorts of goals. When Saturday afternoon came around we had some time on our hands, we made ourselves outside our house presentable and went for dinner.
Who even ARE WE!?
I took the opportunity to try out some of the newness that had been arriving at my house over the past few weeks. An order from ASOS, another from 17 Sundays. Throw on some old favourites (though almost everything is still available online! Christmas miracle) and I was good to go.
To be honest I’m not sure when the last time I wore heels was… Maybe after my double stacks (falls)? Probably not, but it’s been a while. I’ve always been pretty confident in heels, but taking those falls really made me unsteady. Not something that impacts me greatly day-to-day (hello, working from home!) but there really is nothing worse than not trusting yourself to actually walk.
Anyyywaaaaay.
There we go; an actual outfit post. What can be easier to put together than a slogan tee, denim jacket and joggers combo? For me, nothing! When I’m wearing pants, this is an easy go-to look for me. Swap in as many layers as you need (or want) and pile on some accessories and you’re good to go. If you give it a try, tag me on Instagram; I wanna see!!
And just like that, I’m back in the game! I’m not making any promises with the whole outfit thing, but while we’re having fun and enjoying creating this kind of content again, I’ll do it! Let me know if you need any information about the sizing and fits. It’s been a while since we did this, so I’ll be around to answer any questions you have.
Look, I hate to brag, but for me these days, work wear is super casual and pretty much always includes sneakers. After years of working in real estate and therefore offices, it’s the best change! I said the other day that it’s been years since I wore heels for longer than a couple of hours. I mean, if that’s not hashtag goals, I don’t know what is! Haha.
My take on ‘work’ clothes these days is more about being able to do what I need to do. I work from my office and on-site at various businesses, where I take photos, video and then will spend time in meetings or offices with their teams. The idea of being in restrictive clothing and impractical shoes, makes me screw up my nose.
It just wouldn’t work.
So I go for classic pieces, items that move with me and shoes that I can wear on a closed shoe site if required. For some, this is a pretty strange combination. Especially the sneakers with skirts and dresses, but it works for me and I’m always ready to do what I need to do. Let me just tell you, those oversized slouch dresses are on HIGH rotation too.
Something else that is essential is a GIANT BAG. For longer trips and day-long photo shoots, I’ve started carrying a backpack. It’s the only thing that works to carry ALL my heavy camera gear. But day-to-day I’ve started using this bag from All Bags 4U (gifted). The tote style fits a camera and laptop easily for jumping in and out of the car. The fact it is leather is a bonus, I can’t wait until it softens up a little and settles in around my goodies.
Alison Dominy Designs Sara Asymmetrical Skirt, City Chic Khaki T-Shirt, Nike Outburst sneakers via ASOS and the All Bags 4U Paddington Leather Tote.
Sometimes I miss the more corporate style, but I’m glad to be at a stage in my business where wearing what I want is an option. So much fun. What do you wear for work? Team PJ’s I’m hearing you. Tuesday is my no meetings, work from home day so I’m keen for some PJ action myself.
