Fashion: Grading on a Curve

Hello everyone,

Today I will talk about the switch I do at least twice a year.  What I mean is the switch in my closet. I, obviously, have too many clothes and we live in a small apartment so when the seasons change I need to change my closet. My lovely husband has built shelves in the garage so we can store my clothes in plastic totes and they stay safe in their “off” season.

One of the best parts about doing this regularly is that it gives me the opportunity to get rid of the clothes I don’t wear anymore or that I did not wear all season long. I also try on a lot of the clothes that were put away to make sure they still fit me and still look ok to wear. This way I refresh my closet often and don’t keep things that don’t need to be kept. I am somewhat of a pack rat when it comes to my clothes, shoes and jewelry. I will be honest, I have a hard time getting rid of stuff but I have been making progress with this.

Anyway, the time has come for me to change my closet to look more like a spring closet. Of course, I could technically have spring, summer, fall and winter closets but since Portland, seasons blend a bit, I usually do spring/summer and fall/winter.  What I have found is that if I wait too long to change out the clothes, I end up buying clothes for the coming season that I probably don’t need. Chances are I already have similar ones, so the sooner I change things out the cheaper it becomes.

Another great thing about changing your closet is that you feel like you have new clothes every season and it is a new beginning every few months.  Also, the sense of cleaning and giving are great. I give away a lot of the clothes that don’t make the cut. Furthermore, my dad always says it is good to open up room for new and better things so it is a win all around. It does take a full afternoon sometimes but at the end the feeling of accomplishment is the best! When I put clothes away I try putting them by groupings of kinds of clothes, like exercise clothes go together, light long sleeve shirts, heavier sweaters, etc.

Anyway, if you are like me and have a lot of clothes, give it a try and swap out your clothes based on the seasons. It is GREAT!!!

Thanks for reading,

Juliana

Hello everyone,

I just would like to share my latest experience with all of you. Last week I went to a conference for teachers and for some reason I thought it would be a more casual environment. Since it was in New Mexico and the weather was much nicer, I decided to take my spring clothes out. As I was packing the bag I made sure I had comfortable shoes since I wasn’t sure how much walking I would have to do there. From the shoes I decided the clothes. To be very honest I repacked the bag a few times as the weather predictions changed throughout the weeks prior to the conference. (Yes, I am one of those crazy OCD people who pack their bags weeks in advance…)

I had to present at the conference and the first outfit I had chosen was going to be a semi professional outfit but since the weather was predicted to be nice, warm and sunny, I decided to change the outfit and chose a much more casual one. Well, when I arrived at the convention center in Albuquerque I immediately felt underdressed, many of the teachers and presenters were wearing business dresses and suits. I, on the other hand, had casual pants with tanks and kimonos.  I felt very comfortable but very out of place. I am not sure why I made the decisions I made since usually I have a pretty good idea of how to dress for any occasion. It could be a matter of local culture since I did notice the people from the East coast seemed to be more business dressed and to be honest I think here in the northwest we tend to be a bit more casual.

Who knows what the real reason is and how it really works, I just have to say that some conferences are very casual and others are more formal. I do have another conference coming up in April and now I have to decide what I will take….

I don’t have pictures of my outfits but I will share one of the pictures from the trip with you here.

Thank you for reading,

Juliana

Hello everyone,

In the video above I show how to tie two different kinds of scarves in 6 different ways total. I just wanted to say that the silver dragonfly I use is actually a hair clip that can be used with scarves and the elastic I showed with one of the ways, I made it myself. It is just jewelry elastic and some beads put together. I have actually made several in different colors so I could mix and match.

I only showed the ones I did because they seem to be less common than others. Let me know if you would like to see more and I can work on another video.

Thank you for reading,

Juliana

Hello everyone,

Today I decided to talk about wearing scarves…. The ones you see above are not even a third of the ones I have.  One could say I am obsessed with scarves, shoes and jewelry since I have so many of all of them.  I can’t say that I am obsessed with scarves; however, I do love wearing them because they help hide my belly (which I am very self-conscious about) and they bring color to plain outfits.

I have scarves of every color, and every style. I try using them in all different ways but more recently I am really into the long ones that just hang in front of me. The longer the better, but they are more difficult to find that is for sure.  The infinity scarves are cute but depending on the outfit I am wearing they can be too much around my neck so I wear them with only one loop and hanging down in the front.

For traveling scarves are great too. You can pack all plain white or black tops with different bottoms and each day have a different scarf. They take less room in the bag and bring a pop of color to every outfit. I also like the pictures of myself wearing scarves better than the ones I am not.

In the winter, scarves are nice to help keep you warm and stylish. In the summer, you would need some lighter scarves and maybe ones that just hang down in the front so that it is not so hot.  Spring is a great time for the pastel color scarves, there are so many cute ones it is hard to not buy them all… And in the fall scarves can bring some interest to a plain brown outfit.

I am working on putting together a video of how to tie the different scarves, so come back soon to check it out.

Thank you for reading,

Juliana

Hello everyone,

As I sit here watching yet another Hallmark Channel movie, I got to thinking that there is one interesting tradition Americans tend to have that we didn’t in Brazil.  In the US people tend to dress with the colors of the holiday. I started thinking about this because on the movie the girls are shopping for special red dresses for their dates on Valentine’s Day.  At Christmas time, red is around again and some green to go with it. Every store you go to you see the prominent colors of the holiday of that specific season.

Easter time is the pastel color time, St. Patrick’s day is green all around, 4th of July is red and blue, Halloween is orange and black everywhere and Thanksgiving is the well known fall colors, orange, browns, and dark greens. It is always so interesting to see people dressing according to the season, I never saw that growing up. In Brazil we did not dress according to holidays. Also, because our seasons are opposite of here, Easter would not really be pastel colors and more like fall colors. Christmas is so hot that I think we only worried about wearing comfortable, light weight clothes. The only holiday we wear a special color is New Year’s Eve because of the superstitions surrounding it. That night most people wear white.

With all that being said, I have to say that I see the appeal, and I do like seeing everyone in reds and pinks. So, if you have a special date this Valentine’s Day, look through your closet for that perfect red or pink outfit. Also, what I have done in the past was wear black and use a cute red or pink scarf. This way your pop of color goes with the holiday theme.  I don’t own a lot of red clothes (even though it was my grandma’s favorite color), so the scarves work, I even have some that have red and pink.

Happy Valentine’s Day!!!

Thank you for reading,

Juliana

As I sit here drinking my tea, I am trying to come up with what I should write about this week. So here it goes…

As much as I love having new clothes and I am a true fashionista, it can certainly hurt our pockets, especially if we want to have what is coming out new in the market. I usually wait until the season is well on its way so I can find the stuff on sale, but sometimes you just can’t resist it. Last week I wrote about the Plus Size event at Maurices and I did end up buying the new clothes from the new line. The good part was that I had many rewards and discounts that helped make things affordable and that is usually what I do. I always have coupons and specials so I can buy things. I hardly ever buy things on regular price. I even feel guilty if I were to buy things in regular price. Everything eventually goes on sale so it is just a matter of time.

We usually can save money on staying in on the weekends. We are not big on going out much at night anyway so very seldom we go to a bar or something of the sort on Saturday nights. This certainly helps with our budget. We also don’t drink much alcohol so going out is usually cheaper for us anyway. So today we went out a bit in the afternoon with the kids, I did buy some stuff even though I shouldn’t have and the best part was that in the morning we went to a park and I got to bike for just a little over 8 miles and that is a great start after a couple of years not riding. The boys got to walk around outside and spent at least a couple of hours away from their electronics.  Successful day overall…

Sorry today wasn’t as exciting but I thought I would just share a regular Saturday in our house and add a bit about saving money.

Until next time…

Thank you for reading,

Juliana

This post was sponsored by Maurices - Hillsboro

Let me tell you more about the party at Maurices.

Another great piece was the Kimono I was able to get. It is so cute and I am so excited to wear it this summer in one of my trips. I love it because I can wear them over my tank tops and I don’t need to feel so self-conscious about how tight things are on my body.

Another big thing this spring is the plaids. I saw a lot of cute plaid shirts. Since I love yellow I got this one. It has a cute detail on the shoulder and It looks great with jeans.

Take a look at the party feel of today and stay tuned because they plan on having these parties more often now. If you have not checked Maurices out in the past, it is totally worth the time and the Spring collection is so cute.

These graphic shirts have some very clever sayings. One was cuter than the other…

Thank you for reading and come back to see what I am up to… New posts every week.

Juliana

Hello everyone,

As many of you know this blog is a new endeavor for me and frankly when I decided to write about fashion I did not think through how I would feel looking at my own pictures and having to feel proud of them. This has certainly been a lesson in feeling vulnerable and still putting myself out there. I have always considered myself a fashionista, but through the years I have gained and lost weight quite a bit and have been many different sizes.

I have been judged based on my size a lot too and it is not always easy to see the looks of disapproval of people or even hearing comments such as “You are so lazy!” “What are you two up to?” (Referring to only me), “You only eat sugar and sweets.” “Why don’t you eat healthier?” “Why don’t you exercise more?”

To be honest, I have been exercising on a regular basis for the past 15 years and it does not seem to help much as far as losing weight goes. I continue because I know it is the healthy thing to do but it does not help me lose weight. Therefore, people sho see my size assume I do not exercise because most people think those who exercise are skinny.  I have tried many different diets in my lifetime too and while some were successful I have finally come to the conclusion that unless I want to live eating on a diet for the rest of my life I will never be able to maintain a lower weight. What I mean is that I would need to never eat anything I actually enjoy eating, because the day I go to a restaurant and have a treat I immediately gain weight which is very frustrating. So lately I have made the commitment to make some healthy choices when I can but I also don’t deprive myself of things I enjoy. I am just really careful so that I don’t continue gaining weight, rather I try to maintain my weight even though it is not an ideal weight.

Anyway, going back to making myself vulnerable, this blog has sure put me out there. I guess when I see myself in the mirror I don’t really see how big I am, when I see my pictures is when I realize where I really am. Don’t get me wrong, this has been great to help me accept myself and be comfortable in my own skin. I hope this blog can serve as an example and a comforting idea for other women out there who don’t always feel good about their shapes. I would also have to say, that buying beautiful clothes and accessories helps a lot when it comes to our self-esteem. I know we should be able to feel good about ourselves despite of material things but it is not always easy to look at the mirror and feel that way. It sure helps when you see yourself in a certain outfit that just makes you feel incredible. It can go a long way for your self-esteem and self-confidence.

So, my suggestion to all of you, is to get out there and find that one piece that makes you feel good. Frankly, it does not really matter what others think, what really matters is how YOU feel in the outfit that matters the most. Taste can vary so much from person to person that it would be very difficult to please everyone anyway.  Also, another small tip is that you don’t need to spend a lot of money, you can find something you love and still be a bargain, which are my favorite finds. Many think that you can only look good if you spend a lot of money, I don’t think that is true, I am a savvy shopper and I always hunt for the good deals. Make sure you try things on and find that perfect piece.

Thank you for reading,

Juliana

Hello everyone,

One thing that has always been a big thing for me is how people should look professional at work and so many miss the mark. I have heard many times how people should not be judged on the way they look and the clothes they wear. Well, I have always disagreed with that because it is somewhat in our nature to judge others for a myriad of reasons. Now, do I find that ok to do? No, I wish we lived in a world where nobody ever judged anybody but that is simply not the reality.

I know I am judged on a regular basis on the fact that I am overweight, many might not say anything to my face but I know they are thinking.  In Brazil, I am considered lazy and have been told that to my face even though I exercise on a regular basis. In fact, people have suggested that I am lying when I say I exercise, because based on my size I must be lazy and eat all day. Just to set the record straight, I don’t think I am either.

So anyway, because we tend to judge each other, in order to get the job of our dreams or keep the job of our dreams, we need to dress in a certain way so that we look professional.  There are different expectations depending on the industry you work in, I myself am a teacher and our dress code is a bit more relaxed than other jobs. (I used to work at banks and that was way more traditional and conservative than schools)

Here are 10 easy tips that should help in most work places:

1. Always cover up, would it be appropriate for church? If not, maybe leave it for the weekend outing.
2. Leggings are not pants and you should wear a very long tunic or a skirt with them.
3. Work places are not always the place to try your more trendy outfits unless you have a very relaxed dress code.
4. Short, mini skirts are not for the office.
5. Spaghetti straps have no place in the office either.
6. Blazers/Jackets can help any outfit look more professional.
7. Traditional sheath dresses are always a good option and it looks good in most body types. (Find the best cut for your body).
8. The bra should never show in any outfit for any reason.
9. Plain rubber flip flops do not belong in the office either. Leave them for the pool.
10. Always look groomed, and clean. Your hair should look clean and nails should be groomed. Depending on the job, there are strict rules about the length of your nails and if you can or not have color on them.

Hope you enjoy these tips and that they are helpful!

Thanks for reading,

Juliana