Fall-ing back into the groove...

Hi everyone!

I have to thank you for being so patient and checking back to see if I have updated. I can see you visited and I have been neglecting my blogs a little lately due to being so busy and trying to figure out my next move, in life. To make up for the break however, I have prepared several little videos and pictures to share with you, as well as multiple posts this week. I hope you can forgive me for my time away :)

I think if I were in Canada right now, this post would be considerably more poetic because I could tell you about how beautiful everything looks as the leaves change colour and the smell of fall takes over, but alas I am in the concrete jungle of Paris, where it seemingly is just getting colder and the few trees that there are, are not changing colour.( I suspect that the trees are not in fact real, but that I can't be certain about, as the leaves begin about a giraffes length up and I cannot reach to check). Regardless, one thing I can say is that, as it is dark in the morning when I wake up, by the time I ride over the "Pont D'Alma" on my way to work, the sky is a canvas of orange and purple and showcases the Eiffel Tower beautifully.

I am still loving work and couldn't be happier with my job. I have been looking for things to do to keep my life interesting and exciting while I'm still in the city. Last week, I went to see one of my favourite French musicians, Christophe Mae, at Paris Bercy, which I would say is Paris' equivalent to the ACC. The show was incredible and we were so close to the stage. Just a little closer and I think I could have shook his hand and then of course never washed my hand ever again.  It was really nice to go and see a concert and I was blown away by how good the show was. There were African dancers and singers, a full band, dancing, audience participation, and an uneventful pre-show act, which to me sums up all the necessities of a great show. Here are a couple of pictures and a video so you can pretend you were there with me: (Please excuse the quality of video and pictures, my camera does not do well in dark spaces)

If you like what you heard in my shoddy video, check out this link where you can hear more of his stuff. It's French, upbeat and a little islandy!

I have also been trying to take in a little more culture when I can, so I have been going to the Bastille market on Sunday afternoons. The market is known for being cheap and good for fruits and veggies, which I can tell you is not something grocery stores in Paris do well. Most of the time, the fruits and veggies from supermarkets are on the verge of going bad and  I never eat everything in time. Fortunately, the market is full of good quality produce and it costs next to nothing. I sometimes make it a challenge and bring a small amount of money, like 10 euros and see how well I can do. Last time I came home with over 8 kilos of stuff -  it was a trip well worth the carry home. I will also add that I get proposed to at least once each time I go, by the merchants. I still cannot figure out if this is a sales tactic that works well for them. Surely I would consider buying my potatoes off the man who has the courage to ask my hand in marriage as opposed the man who does not!!!

Regardless, last time, on my way home, I stopped to see this street band that was really gaining a crowd. The music was so fun and groovy and although you can't see in the video, people were dancing together off to the side. I think in retrospect, I would have loved to live in the Bastille area, because it is young, hip and teeming with creativity like this:

Now I'm sure you are all wondering about the strikes in Paris, and France in general, as I have had plenty of people ask me what is has been like here. I have to say that, perhaps I am missing something big, but nothing has really changed in Paris other than the transit is slow and disorganized, or at least more so than usual, and sometimes they decided to not run my bus home for no apparent reason and without telling me. I know there have been riots in other cities and there have been strikes all over Paris, but nothing so big has happened that has made me think twice about leaving my apartment or not going out. I can assure you that all this business about Lady Gaga canceling her show in Paris because of the strikes is a clear example of how the international media is blowing the situation out of proportion. I'm pretty sure that Miss Gaga herself could still have come to Paris without fearing for her life... but the media will do what the media will do. (To be honest I wasn't crushed in the least about her not coming, I just found it to be the most humorous of examples when it came to the real situation in Paris.) To assure you further that things are fine here in Paris, the regular strikes for things like animal rights are back on as per usual, which to me proves that things are slowly going back to how they were. I even took a photo for you all to see:

I will be back this week with a couple of posts as I have been working on a couple new projects that I want to share with all of you, so be sure to visit soon!

I want to thank you all for reading and commenting as often as you do, it really makes me happy to know that people back home are still with me :)

Sending love to you all!

 

Spec.

Happy Halloween!

Hello everyone!

I am back finally with a pile of things to share with you over the course of this week. I wanted to pop on tonight and show you my last minute halloween costume that I put together for a little Halloween party we did at work. The theme for all the organizers was pirates, so with everything I had in my wardrobe, this is what I came up with:

 

I wore a nautical themed shirt from Torrid, some cheap hoop earrings, a white map printed bandana and some H&M gold bling. You can't see sadly, but I am also sporting some heavy black Torrid motorcycle boots to increase my toughness on the Pirate scale. :)

The pARRRRty was great and it was nice to see a few kids dressed up and participating in some good quality scary Halloween games. I felt like I was back home during the party, holding candy bags while kids played games, doling out candy to everyone, and making bad pirate jokes to everyone.

I'll be back soon with an outfit post so stay tuned.

Happy Halloween everyone! I am missing my Canadian celebrations and in Paris, things have been really quiet.

SimplyBe gets classy NYC style: Check out their lookbook!

Hey all! I wanted to share with you the SimplyBe lookbook because, first of all, I am completely in love with the pink shirt in the first photo, and second, I am loving all of the looks in the pictures. I really like that there is a mix of work wear and going out styles and they haven't forgotten comfortable weekend chill out wear. I've just recently started working a 9-5 office job, so I am in the process of doing a closet overhaul, that involves a need for major classy 'you can tell I work in an office because of my pencil skirt' wear. It's all very exciting! You can check out the entire LookBook for SimplyBe right here!!!





Tell me what you think! Are you guys liking the styles? I'm also excited to see stores expanding and changing the plus size world, it's great!

Falling For New Fall Collections

It seems that all of a sudden a huge cluster of amazing dresses have appeared from all of my favourite online retailers. I am a dress and skirt nut and wear pants, maybe once a week, and it requires that all my tights are in the wash. As you can imagine I have been a little dress high all week because I can't wait to get paid and pick one or two... maybe three. (I'll do my best to show some self restraint!)

I always love a good party dress and the new Monif C collection is beyond amazing. The pieces are so colourful and interesting, and my favourite is this sexy red and black lace number. Check out the new collection here on Monif C's website.



Next on the list is a dress that just appeared on ASOS curve's page and it is blue and covered in sequins! When the sequins trend began I had a hard time warming up to it, and now I kind of just want to wear sequins all the time. I think they inspire happiness in some strange way. Check out Asos Curve here!

Next up is not quite a dress, but certainly could act as one. It's a playsuit! I have yet to find a playsuit/romper/jumper type thing that fits me properly and that doesn't make me look like I am wearing  a diaper, but I have great faith in this one from ASOS. I like the print and the cute because it really works with tights and plays off much like a wrap dress than a playsuit. Also, if you are not in Europe, Asos just went live with their USA site  and the shipping is free with the USA- hip hip hooray for amazing retailers landing in North America! For those of you who aren't aware, I am a Canadian in France, so while I enjoy the easy access and affordable shipping to France, I will soon have to return to the motherland where customs, and shipping cost an arm and a leg, and sometimes a foot - this launch is a big step forward for availability of curvy conscious and affordable clothing for North American girls!



My last little bundle of favourites comes from Faith 21 and while I found several things, I did up a little Polyvore snapshot for you all. I like these three dresses because they are very everyday, and once I squeeze into my tights in the morning, it would take nothing more than to slip one of these bad boys over my head, pick some shoes and head out the door. I am also having a rather hard time finding a pair of jeans that fit right and I really like these because they remind a bit of pin up style capris, only they are longer. I don't know if I even have to say why I like the two pairs of shoes, because clearly they are just awesome! They also announced that Faith21 will be turning into Forever21+ so don't be surprised if you see the Faith21 gone, its' still there under it's new name. Also, I have to say that Stiletto Siren over at Lips, Hips and Fashion Tips looks fabu in the black and grey zipper dress! Go see her on Lips, Hips and Fashion Tips with Stiletto Siren.

I am eagerly awaiting an Asos package at the moment and will be sharing with you my new arrivals once they finally get here.  Any other dress addicts out there? What are you drooling over lately??

The Leaves are falling and things are happening!

Hello everyone!

I can't believe how busy it has felt in that last couple of weeks! Paris has finally decided to adopt fall weather permanently it seems, and I wake up with that cold fresh air coming in my shutters each morning. It's quite nice actually, although it makes me miss Canada more. Anyways, I am back with a couple of pictures from Blog de Big Beauty's book release/signing, which was great!

Stephanie in her new La Redoute Collection and I am wearing a red and black striped shirt from Torrid, Spanx black tights, and a little black wide elastic waist skirt with an exposed zipper in the back by VAMP. My spectacles necklace is from Asos - I can't stop wearing it, it just makes me so happy.

The release was held at an adorable book store in Paris called the Arbre à Lettres. There were so many people there including so many wonderful other bloggers that I finally was able to meet like Gaëlle-Vanessa from  Les Pitreries de Vanoue! You should really go check out her blog, it is awesome.  There line to meet and have your book signed was full of fans and long time readers of Stephanie's blog and the atmosphere was really friendly. I was super happy that Stephanie really gave everyone a little bit of time and wrote a lovely little note in each book. I can't wait for her fall collection for La Redoute to come out. As you can see, she is wearing the blazer with the pink inside that I am slightly obsessed with. So thanks Stephanie! It was really fun!



If you haven't already had a chance to get your copy of the book you can buy it online at La FNAC here. It's definitely worth it, as it has so many great pictures and explanations and suggestions for any fashionista!

When Mum came to visit...

Despite talking to my mum very regularly on the phone, it's just not the same as having her with me. A couple of weeks ago, I was fortunate enough to have her come and visit me in Paris. Now I think when she arrived, she may have thought my apartment was small based on webcam shots, but didn't REALLY know how small it was. I like to call it quaint. We only had a week together, and thankfully, having been to Paris before, my mumsy wasn't too upset about not seeing all the touristy sites. I just wanted to spend time with her, and it didn't really matter what we did.





On the first evening, we made a dinner of fresh cheeses, warm baguette and sat and talked. We had spent the afternoon walking down in the St Michel neighbourhood and the Marais, but alas with jet lag, and me having worked part of the day, we settled in to bed early. Now, if you know my mum and I, you know that it is difficult for us to sleep in the same room as one another as we giggle and chat too much into the wee hours of the morning. This is precisely what happened.

Let me share with you the topic of the evening. How the Chunnel built? Brought on, no doubt by the fact that we were set to go through it in a couple of days, to London. Popular questions included: Does it really go through the water? How did they get the tubes in the water? me - Can you see the fish as you go through? etc etc. This took a serious Wikipedia session to solve before we could rest in peace.

The following day, I had to go to work, so mum went on a bike tour of Paris, which I hadn't heard of anyone doing until she told me about it. Mum's internet travel research for the win! From the  sounds of it, you really get to see all the good parts of Paris, with little tidbits of the obvious tourist stuff.





That evening we had a lovely little dinner at a French bistro called Chez Janou, in the Bastille area. I love Bastille because it is so vibrant and fun and the food was delicious. We also had wine which felt very French... throw in the cigarette smoke and warm baguette from the tables next to us and it's about as French as it gets! hon hi hon hi hon! (French laugh)

It was so nice to come home after work and have my dearest Mumsy waiting for me. We did quite a bit of walking around downtown but had to prepare for our trip to London for the weekend!

The following day, Mum came to visit the embassy to see where I work just before we were leaving for the Eurostar to London. I felt very important as I am currently using an enormous office of a lady who just recently retired. ( They are fixing up my actual office where I will share a space with another person) For now however, I am livin' it large in an office 3-4 times bigger than my apartment.

We headed back to the apartment to gather out things to go to London. Now the last time I went to London I was mugged on my way home in the train so this time I was being super vigilante and to my surprise actually saw pickpockets lurking around the metro at the train station this time. It pays to be alert here, that's all I can say. Anyways, I am happy to inform you all that neither Mum nor I got mugged or had a bad experience, unless you count the metro workers strike which caused a rather gross, hot and packed metro ride to the train station... but that's just Paris.

The train was great as per usual and I think Mum finally got had a good nap,while I studied for my UK citizenship test. We whizzed through the Chunnel and all of our newfound knowledge of it disappeared as neither of us was paying attention while we went through. We emerged into London and hopped on the tube, shockingly, it was raining. We arrived at Paddington station and walked to our hotel. Our hotel looked like a row of houses on a quiet street and was quiet nice. The staff didn't know what tissues were and brought us napkins, as well as when told that the room was extremely cold, put the heating on to 35 degrees, and provided beds that compete with rocks in a comfort competition, but we weren't there for hotel, we were there for the city!  On our first day, I made mum have a real English breakfast because I like that sort of thing. We then made our way down to Oxford street so I could see a new clothing line that I had been dying to see.

We spent the day roaming around the shops and enjoying our little vacation. Thanks to mum's savvy research we found a couple amazing restaurants where we sat, chatted and enjoyed some good English food. We also went to Portobello market, one of my most favourite places in London, saw my beloved bed-knobs and broomsticks characters, and I introduced Mum to whoopie pies, which I hear are catching on back home in Canada. Clearly I have contributed to this newfound discovery in some way!



 



On Sunday, we went to the Orangery, which is a tea house inside the Kensington Gardens and next to the Palace. It was so charming as they brought little tea sandwiches on white napkins and deliciously orange smelling tea. It was exactly how I would imagine an English tea house, that perhaps the Queen would have her tea in. Here is a photo of me by the strange silo shaped bushes.

 

This man was feeding the squirrels, and they would come right up to him, sit on his hand and eat the nuts they were given, it was really neat.

After our little tea break, we went to see this really fun exhibit at the Kensington Palace. They had turned the palace into a sort of fairy tale where each room represents a different fairy tale or story, and the princesses from each story are real princesses from the English monarchy. It was very regally decorated and the lights were low with all sorts of mysterious montages and exhibits. There was even a game that required us to find all the names of the princesses as we went through the exhibit.  I really loved the exhibit and thought the Kensington Palace was quite lovely. I was expecting it to be a lot less beautiful inside, and was pleasantly surprised.

The weekend was really fun and went by way too fast. I still am completely in love with London, and wish I could go every weekend. Because of tube work, a lot of lines on the tube were not running from many stations while we were there, so we took the regular double-decker city buses everywhere and it was nice to just put around the city and see it from above ground, it really gives you an idea of how the city is connected.

Sadly, on Sunday evening, we headed back through the Chunnel to Paris. We were greeted by the usual sketchy crowd at Gare du Nord, and hopped as fast as we could into a taxi home. Home sweet apartment!

On Monday, I had taken the day off and was determined to show mum a couple of places that I love in Paris. The first, was Sacre Coeur. I love the view and the amazing old architecture. It really is amazing to see. It also gives you a real feel for what Paris is like, and how old and beautiful it is.

We spent our last day together again walking the streets, we went back to the Marais, visited Le Bon Marche, saw the Moulin Rouge and then had a little farewell drink with my friend Thibaut at The Great Canadian Bar, which I will point out, had an Australian server.

I was so sad to see my dear mumsy go on Tuesday morning. The shuttle picked her up so early and I wanted her to stay forever! But alas, all good things must come to and end. Now we are back to our regular Skype chats where we discuss the inner working of train tunnels, whether Paul McCartney and Angela Lansbury are the same person or any other ridiculous random subject that may come up.

Goodbye Summer! Hello Winter!

Ok ok I know there is Fall in between, but since I just did a bathing suit post and am going to follow it up with a winter coat post, the titled seemed only right. I always have so much trouble finding a nice winter coat that fits well in the shoulders and is versatile to wear with lots of things. Randomly, while in London a couple of weeks ago, I saw this coat, and they had my size, and so I think it was fate and therefore I bought it. I also got these shoes at New Look - and I am in love with them. They are comfortable and look like oxford/dancing type shoes. 

Red Coat - Next (London)

Shoes- New Look (London Oxford St)

I must say I was surprised to see that Next had things that fit well on me. They are all a little just on the size but I think for the price the quality is what I would expect and the clothes are stylish too. I can't wait for a little chill in the air so I can whip out this gem and wear it! What will you all be wearing for winter? Any favourite pieces yet?

Bathing Beauty

Hello my lovelies!

So I know it's October and that my days no longer involve summer activities like swimming, nights on the patio and full time relaxation (not that I did much of any of these things this past summer, but this is what summer should be to me). Since I didn't have a real working camera for the summer, I never really got to share with you my favourite summer things.  Also, I was inspired to bring back out my suit because Frances from over at Corpulent did a fantastic post in a two piece. This makes me want to yell mom-like things like "You go girl" and "rock it"... because it is great!

When I went to purchase a bathing suit, I knew I didn't want something generic and too speedo-ey if you know what I mean. Because let's face it, I love to swim but I'm not a pro swimmer. No suit is going to make this curvy frame more aerodynamic! (You would be surprised the things they advertise on swimsuit labels.) I wanted something cute, colourful and flattering... and I got exactly what I wanted. I can't tell you what a relief it was, because I usually dread shopping for things like this.  So here you have it... Curvy Katie the bathing beauty: a pinup style suit from Pretty Things Boutique in Halifax, Canada (Check out their site - they ship internationaly). I am also wearing a little polka dotted head wrap from Dorothy Perkins.







I have had such a busy week and have so many things to blog about, so check back this weekend as I will be posting up a storm. I will be posting more pics on my facebook page - check it out and LIKE me! http://on.fb.me/cOykhs

xoxo

What I wore today...

Hey everyone!

So Paris has been ultra-strange weather wise lately, and after several chilly days, it randomly went back up to 21 degrees. I thought this was a sign that I could get a couple of more wears out of my beloved Evans  Ruby Belle collection dress. I bought this dress at the end of the summer off the sale rack and tried to squeeze in as many summery days with it as I could but felt it wasn't enough. Today I fall-ed it out with black tights and a light cardigan from Uniqlo(who by the way make wonderful cardigans.)  I had no time for a morning photo so instead took them when I arrived home - excuse my crinkly dress.





I absolutely love this dress and will probably try and convince myself all winter that it is suitable to be worn despite the sunny flamingo birds.

I paired it with a simple  pair of all black suede oxford style shoes from Andre, featured on an old blog here and my usual black H&M black bag, that is in rough shape and in need of replacing, so I am not showing you it :) My tights are Spanx - and I love them. I will do a post about them later to tell you why, because for me, they are the be all and end all of tights.

Hope everyone had a delightful day!

xo

Curvy Katie

Beth Ditto Delights

Hello!

So I'm here to tell you all about my little jaunt to London from Paris this past weekend! I was able to get my hands on two pieces from the Beth Ditto collection, which I was so excited about. I was a bit bummed that the red and black baby-doll style dress was sold out and is online too, but found two other pieces that I am in love with, so it's ok.  When I saw this dress on Beth in all the ads I new I had to have it. I love it, not only is it comfortable but fits so nicely too. Please excuse the fact that I look super grungy, I had just come home from London and it was very late :)

Booties - New Look - available now!

Bracelets- H&M set of 4 - old collection

Here is the high waisted Beth Ditto collection skirt and this is officially another one of my favourite things in my closet. It goes on so easily and I can pair it with a fancier shirt for evenings or a T-shirt during the day.

I am wearing shoes from New Look - old collection, that seem to have taken on a much lighter colour in the photo but are a darker grey in real life.

So on my to get list are the high waisted jegging/jeans and the black and red dress, that I am hoping will come back at some point. The collection actually surprised me quite a bit, as I was expecting it to be more out there like her previous collection. However, it was all beautiful and feminine. My only negative would be that some of the pieces were lazily stitched or the buttons had come off. Other than that it truly all was beautiful and I am so happy I got a couple of things!

It's getting chilly out...

So the weather has turned pretty quickly here in Paris and I think it's safe to say that it is definitely fall outside. I am so excited because I love sweaters and tights, not to mention there are so many awesome collections coming out! I have a post coming about my adventures in London with the Beth Ditto collection but I'll save that for after. First, here are a few of my fall favourites.

Apart from the Beth Ditto collection which I am a complete nut for, I am also loving all the greys, brown-greys an blues at Evans this fall. I am a sucker for a stretch mini skirt and this one is on my to order when I have money list ... yes my list is enormous in case you are wondering.

Ohhh Asos, how I could surf your site for hours. When I was in London I searched high and low for a pair of pants like these cords, the trouser style that I could role but found none that really fit the way I wanted, and now I feel silly because I had somehow missed them on the Asos site. I also am excited to see a rush of animal prints again like this mini skirt! In the top left corner is a gold metal cuff with a velvet lace and just underneath are the wicked Asos jean shorts that I can't wait to try.

Anna Scholz - Zipper dress

I was reading up on the Anna Scholz blog and checking out the new things on the site and I came across this zipper dress. I am so pumped to see velvety fabrics back in these kinds of pieces. They look so luxury-rock and are really comfy.

Stay tuned for pics of the Beth Ditto collection that I managed to get my hands on while in London. Thanks for reading!!!