Curvy Autmn Lookbook - Work & Weekend!

Hello my lovelies!

I don’t know about you, but in my little part of the world it has started to get decidedly colder… autumn is finally here! Although winter is my absolutely favourite season, autumn comes a very close second. I am a creature who loves cold weather outside and a roaring fire inside. Autumn is the perfect time to start lighting the candles and setting the fire. It’s a beautiful time of year, perfect for long walks, hot soup, romance novels and plenty of scarves and fluffy socks.
When it comes to autumn style I have two looks. A work look and a weekend look. I work quite a distance from my house (a three hour round trip here and back) so when I am at home I really like to get comfy and enjoy spending time with the hubs and our boys. I know a lot of people relish going out at the weekends and “having a good time”, but there is truly nowhere I would rather be than in our little house, snuggled up on the sofa, having a laugh at some rubbish TV show or having a full on WOW session (Warlords of Draynor is out soon, whoop whoop!) with lots of junk food - and my autumn looks totally reflect this.

Weekend Casual
 
I love comfort, and my casual look is comfy but still smart enough that I could throw on a pair of TOMS or some boots and go for a coffee without any fuss.

When it comes to the weekend I'm all about comfort. I like to wear something that's cosy enough to lounge around the house in but also tidy enough that I can be out the door without too much fuss. Jeggings are perfect weekend attire - a cross between jeans and leggings they are the perfect blend of comfort and smart. I got these ones from Matalan for £12. Pair them with a t-shirt and a chunky cardigan and you've got an outfit cosy enough to laze about in, but stick on a pair of TOMS or some biker boots along with a woolly scarf and you're good to go meet a friend for a coffee. I got the Hogwarts logo t-shirt from Primark and the leopard print loose fit tee from H&M. The TOMS are from Schuh and the black leather bikers boots are Steve Madden for Dune. The double loop cream and gold scarf was a Christmas gift and the multi-coour Damask scarf is one I brought back from Budapest a few years ago. The bag is from Romwe.

Work Smart
 
My work look is still comfortable but definitely a lot smarter. Loose jumpers and jersey pencil skirts are my staple along with thick tights and chunky heel boots.

I bought this black pencil skirt from Matalan for £12 recently. It's made of a lovely comfortable stretch material and is a really flattering length. As far as I know they still sell them, or at least something very similar. The grey jumper I got from Romwe and the black and white stripe jumper I got from H&M in August. I really like pencil skirts and loose jumpers together - there's just something really smart yet cool about it. I match them with these Irregular Choice boots and my coat from Primark. I prefer boots over flats or heels during the Autumn as the weather can be so unpredictable here. It can be dry one minute and tipping it down the next. In my opinion a chunky heel is always better than a stiletto for work, it's more sturdy and it’s definitely more comfortable to walk in than a skinny heel.

I hope this gives all you curvy gals a bit of inspiration for your autumn style. You are all beautiful just as you are and I hope I can help you learn to love yourselves no matter what your size or shape - it doesn't matter if you are a size 6 or a size 26, your body size/shape does not define you.

Stay stylish,

Kiki x

Autumn Haul - Primark, Matalan & Romwe

Hello my lovelies!

I've just finished shooting my autumn look book, which will be up in the next couple of days! I'm so excited to share it with you. This post is the haul I've been promising for what seems like forever! I had some issues with Romwe, but for the most part they have now been sorted. There's just the issue of a returned jumper and no refund. I'm happy enough for them to put this into store credit, or to resend the jumper to me with the correct value declared to customs, but so far I've had no more communication from Sara Gan. That's the only downside to Romwe - their customer service is terrible.

So here's a few bits and pieces I've been gathering up over the past month:



This jumper is from Romwe, its a lovely knitted silky soft material and is really comfortable on. It cost £15. I wear this to work and at the weekend. I think this jumper is so versatile, its the kind that works well with fitted work trousers and skirts but also looks great with jeans or a skater skirt/dress. I feel that purchases like this become a real wardrobe staple, and are a really worthwhile investment, especially at only £15.



The only thing I found a bit weird was this tag on one of the sleeves. I don't know why it was there but I managed to get it off without damaging the stitching.





This bag is also from Romwe (£24). It is gorgeous. I've used it a few times already and is much bigger than it seems. It has a long strap so it can be worn cross-body and also has a sturdy handle in case you want to use it without the shoulder strap. I love cross body bags because they are so convenient. Having your hands free is such a blessing when you're out and about. I hate having a handbag constantly slipping off my shoulder.



These adorable little pumps are from Matalan. They cost £12 and I love them because they remind me of Michael Jackson shoes! I feel like I can Moonwalk when I wear them.



I've bought three packets of these footsie socks this past month. They are brilliant for keeping your feet warm on these cold days when you are wearing pumps and at only £2.50 per pack they are great value.



This is the first time I have ever bought makeup from Primark and I have to say I am so impressed. I got a lip crayon, eyebrow pencil, lipstick and eyeliner from the P.S. Love... range. I've been using the lip crayon everyday. It's pretty sheer, but super moisturising. The eyebrow pencil is now my go to eyebrow product. It is so simple and quick to use do my brows in the morning using this. The lipstick is really rich in colour and has great staying power, while the eyeliner is great for the lash line and the water line. All these items cost between £1.50 - £2.50. I also invested in a Real Techniques beauty sponge - I am in LOVE with this sponge. It is soooooo easy to use and makes my foundation look flawless! I recommend that everyone get one of these pronto. Check out Vintage or Tacky on YouTube for the best tutorial on how to use it. It costs around £5, which is really affordable.



I got this vanity roll from Primark for I think £10. It might have been a little less, but I can't remember. I travel quite a bit for my job and as soon as I seen this I knew it was going to come in so handy. It has three clear zipped compartments on the inside for organising all my toiletries and makeup and a small silver hanger on the outside so I can hang it up in the bathroom. It's a total space saving item and I can't wait to put it to use.



These adorable pyjamas are also from Primark. The bottoms were £6 and the top £4. I think they are so cute and I totally want to curl up in these in front of the fire.



I get a new coat every autumn/winter simply because I wear it so much over the cold seasons that when the time comes to put it away and break out the summer clothes I realise how tatty and worn it is. I got this gorgeous faux fur collar one from Primark for around £30. The hubs says it looks like Santa's coat, which makes me love it even more... I've dubbed it the Mrs. Claus coat. It's more an orangey red than a true red, but this just screams autumn/winter to me.

And that's it, that's the lot for now. I hope you like some of these pieces and they give you some inspiration.

Remember to look out for my autumn look book in the next few days. You can subscribe to my blog on here or follow me on bloglovin'. Remember to follow me on Twitter and Instagram for daily updates.

Big love,

Kiki x

House Clearing, Caveman Keto and Eat Water Slim Pasta...

Hello my lovelies!

Sorry for the big gap between posts, last week was a little bit mental. I’ve been clearing out the attic, toolshed and utility room in preparation for ordering a skip in a couple of weeks. I can now at last say the toolshed and utility are completely cleared and the attic is basically cleared too, just a few bits and bobs of old paper work to sort out, which feels so good! I had been feeling a little like things had stalled a bit on the house, we are so close to being able to say it’s completed that I just wanted to make an extra push to get the rooms that needed the most work and clearing completed instead of avoiding them.

Keto has been going well. I’ve lost 5 pounds total. I did have some carbs and sugar over the weekend, but although it was over the 20g a day I’m allowed, it wasn’t massively so. The breakfasts and dinners are really easy, but the lunches are a bit boring. They have me a bit stumped to be honest. I’ve tried to pep them up this week by making up some keto bento but I’m really missing sandwiches. I tried to find some flax bread. I’ve read about it online and it seems to be a pretty good low carb bread replacement, but I couldn’t get any in my local health food store so I’m looking for a recipe using almond flour as I was able to get some of that.

I’m thinking of getting a deep fat fryer and using lard in it, but I’m really not too sure if all deep fat fryers are compatible with lard? I’ve been reading a lot of Caveman Keto’s blog and he uses one to make deep fat fried cheese and keto chicken nuggets and they sound delicious! I’m also going back to the Eat Water Slim Pasta. It is so low in carbs and will be a great filler food for with a meat and sauce. Pasta dishes were my go to quick meal before keto.

Also the Romwe stuff arrived, yay! So my haul is ready to go and I’ll get that up during the week along with a Curvy Autumn lookbook. I’m very excited about this. It’s my first proper fashion’y blog post and I’m excited for you to see my outfit choices.

Big love,

Kiki x

Romwe Update & Keto Progress...

Hello my lovelies!

I have a couple of updates for you today on this lovely crisp Monday morning. I hope you all have a lovely weekend and that your Monday isn't too bad!

Romwe Update

So I finally got a letter from Parcel Force about this customs and duty that I supposedly owed on a Romwe package - turned out I did in fact owe £19.95. I told them to send the package back to the sender as I wasn't paying it. Of course I'm not going to pay £19.95 customs on a £10 jumper, that's just madness!

So the big mix up on this customs thing was apparently because the package was sent by a third party supplier for Romwe based in Germany - whenever they sent the package they declared it as worth a significant amount more than the £10 I paid. I can only assume this was a mistake. The customs guy couldn't/wouldn't tell me the figure it was declared at, only that it was a "significant amount". I am guessing that when Romwe's third party supplier in Germany sent the package they have accidentally put the decimal in the wrong place, i.e. rather than writing £10.79 they have put £107.9.

I'm not 100% sure what happened but I have emailed Romwe to say the package is on the way back to their supplier in Germany. If they want to send the package to me again with the correct value declared no problem, otherwise I'll be seeking a refund through PayPal - not because I'm overly worried about £10, but because of the principle of the whole thing. After all it is their mistake.

Keto Update

So I've been on Keto since last Friday and have found it surprisingly easy. I found it so easy in fact that I am convinced I must be doing something wrong? Bacon and eggs for breakfast, chicken and coleslaw for lunch and turkey burgers with lashing of cheese and mayo for dinner? This can't be right. Everything little neuron in my brain is screaming "STOP, DON'T EAT THE CHEESE! PUT DOWN THE FUL FAT MAYO! YOU CAN'T HAVE CREAM IN YOUR COFFEE!", yet the scales this morning told a different story - I'm four pounds lighter... really... FOUR POUNDS! Now I know this is probably just water weight but to be fair I've never come out the other side of a weekend lighter than when I went in.

I haven't felt any real cravings for carbs or sugar yet, but that said, I am only on my fourth day. I figure I must be in keto now as I've lost some weight and feel like I have more energy, but I haven't had any of the usual 'keto-flu' symptoms that I read about online. The more I read about the keto-flu, the more I think that it only occurs in people who are making the keto transition while incorporating some intense work-out sessions. I haven't changed my exercise at all - I'm still just walking my dogs every day - I live by the sea and I think sea air is really good for the lungs so a good long walk along the beach with the dogs is what I enjoy. It makes me feel good.

I'd love to hear from any of you lovelies doing keto. It is definitely similar to red days on slimming world, except you add the fat instead of taking it away. I'm excited to keep going with this. I was reading on Ketogenic Queen this morning about how she likes to have a 'cheat meal' whenever she hits a plateau, I guess this is to trick the body into burning fat again, like how on Slimming World if you plateau you mix up your days and add a speed day or two in. It's a handy tip! I'll definitely keep this in mind along my keto journey just incase I plateau.

Hope you all are having a happy and healthy Monday. You are all beautiful no matter what size or shape you are - never forget that!

Big love,

Kiki x

Keto...

Hello my lovelies!

Now you all know been a big fan of Slimming World since my first go at it over three years ago, but just recently I've been hearing about the Ketogenic Lifestyle where you basically train your body to burn fat by eating a high fat, low carb and moderate protein diet.

I first heard about it from the lovely YouTuber Kaeyi Dream from A Wild Kaeyi Appears and In the Little Dream - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVbR82kX83oRAxe9XESvijQ. She uses it to control her fibromyalgia and she says that it also helped her lose weight and gives her more energy.

I'm up for any diet plan where I can eat bacon and eggs for breakfast every day (that's why I joined Slimming World!) so a diet where chicken and coleslaw is an accepted lunch, well I'm in.

To me this is a lot like the SW red days, but without skipping on the fat. No need to trim the bacon and I can cook in oil/butter etc, I'm sure you get the jist. It's a lot like Atkins.

I figure I'll give it a month and if I don't feel it's right for me I'll be straight back to eating the SW way... I'll just maybe add a few more red days to my week.

I also found this very helpful blog detailing one girl's Keto journey - http://www.ketogenicqueen.com/

Let me know if you've ever tried this or what you think about it.

Big love,

Kiki x

Romwe

Hello my lovelies,

I've got quite a lot of bits and bobs gathered up since I've been "treating" myself with makeup and clothing instead of food and am going to do a bit of a haul post about it all for you. Only problem is I'm still waiting on three items I ordered off an online store called Romwe (which I ordered on 25th August).

I'd heard lots of great reviews about it through YouTubers I subscribe to and thought it would make for excellent low-cost "treats" - I don't want to break the bank with these things! Unfortunately I think they are trying to scam me out of more money, which is a bit disappointing. I paid around £50 for a handbag and two jumpers and now they are emailing me asking that I contact them to pay another £20 duty and taxes (they have sent two package and two emails so I presume they actually are looking £40 total), but I have never had to pay duty and taxes direct to a foreign company. Normally the postal service (Royal Mail/Parcel Force) contact me direct about shipping costs.

Considering I bought four bridesmaid dresses from China for my wedding last November and had to pay £40 tax and duty on them (which was calculated based on the total value of the items - £260) I think Romwe are trying to con me out of money. Maybe they don't realise that I buy quite a lot of things from China and know the tax and duty costs and where to pay them?

I've emailed them saying that I'm not paying that and that they need to either send my packages and stop messing around or just refund me. Luckily I've paid through PayPal so can open a case through there and have PayPal refund it out of their account.

Now that I've had this problem I've googled some Romwe reviews and found quite a lot of unhappy customers - people who have not received items and people who have, but the items have been rubbish. I think they must send popular YouTubers items to have them reviewed in order to scam subscribers into making purchasers. Obviously I'm not suggesting that the YouTubers know about this in any way, they probably think they are showing their subscribers affordable fashion from a trusted seller. Of course I could be completely wrong and this could be a big misunderstanding - we shall see.

I'm a bit down about it all really and to be honest I've had two cream buns today to make myself feel better, which actually makes me feel worse because I've probably just maxed out my syn quota for the week.

I've also calculated the costs on the tax calculator I normally use (which has always been accurate) and it has said that I should have to pay £10.13 maximum for all three items. I don't know if you can clearly see the screenshot below?

I've been doing so well with Slimming World, but I am an emotional eater - if I feel bad I eat, if I feel good I eat... see the problem? I've replaced feel good eating with buying little inedible treats, but don't have a replacement for the feel bad eating yet.

I'm sorry this post isn't very helpful or inspiring, but sometimes I just feel like eating a couple of cream buns and putting on my pyjamas to watch NCIS. This is one of those times.

Hope you are all doing a bit better than me today!

Big love,

Kiki x

Motivational Meal Plan Mondays

Hello my lovelies!

I don't know about you, but weekends can be my downfall. It's very easy to fall off the Slimming World bandwagon when your other-half offers to buy pizza... and garlic bread... and chips.... *ahem* on a Saturday night. So today I just wanted to do a quick Slimming world Monday meal plan for you all. I know a lot of you have very busy lives and need something that is not only quick and tasty, but is also SW approved - especially on a Monday! 

When I have a lot on my plate (no pun intended) I revert back to the good old green days - for me carbs are a little gift sent from heaven to make me feel full, satisfied and full of energy.

This is my typical busy day meal plan:

BREAKFAST - HEa & HEb

Two Weetabix with sweetener and semi-skim milk

Coffee and semi-skim milk

LUNCH - 3.5 syns

Uncle Ben’s Vegetable Express Rice (2 syns)

Small can of Heinz curry flavour baked beans (1.5 syns)

Water or a Diet Coke

DINNER - 2 syns

Batchelor’s Pasta ’n’ Sauce Macaroni (2 syns)

Water or a Diet Coke

SNACKS

Muller Light Fat Free Fruitopolis (1/2 syn per pot) - I would normally have a coupe of these.

In general a busy day for me would use up more syns than if I had time to make completely free meals but I don’t think this really matters. SW is about learning how to eat healthy no matter how much time you have and it gives you plenty of options to help you do that. Of course a little preparation would help me stay syn free on these days, but to be honest sometimes I’d rather use a couple of syns and have an easy life than struggle around an already busy schedule to prepare meals in advance. 

Today’s total syn count will be 6.5, which keeps me well under the 15 syn recommendation and I’ll have used 1 HEa and 1 HEb. If I’m feeling a bit luxurious tonight I might add another HEa worth of cheese to my Macaroni… the frivolity!

I hope you are all having a happy and healthy Monday! Don't worry if you've fallen off the bandwagon over the weekend (or even with that cheeky Mc D's on the way to work this morning), every meal is a fresh start!

Big love, 

Kiki x

You are beautiful, unique and valued...

 
Hello my Lovelies!

I know it’s not easy to stay positive when you are on your weight loss journey, and IT IS A JOURNEY. Some of the worst things people can say to me is ‘how much weight have you lost?’, ‘can you eat that on a diet?’, ‘your being very naughty eating that’, ‘that’s such a bad food for weight-loss’ and ‘did you hear that such and such has lost over two stone already’.

I hate the way people think they have the right to judge me based on my weight and what I eat. I am on a weight-loss JOURNEY… and it will take me a while to lose the weight. The most important thing to me is that I am secure in myself no matter what my size or shape. My weight does not define me and it shouldn’t define any of you either. It shouldn’t change the way people talk to me or look at me. No one has the right to judge anyone based on their weight.

I am by no means a gym-bunny, but I’m no couch potato either. I don’t eat pizza and ice-cream all the time, but occasionally I do. That’s not a big deal. It’s life. People eat pizza. If you want pizza, eat it. Life is not about deprivation. Life is meant to be enjoyed. Don’t turn down a dinner invitation because you don’t want to eat something that may not be 100% Slimming World.

I firmly believe that SW teaches us the principles of healthy eating for life-long health. It is not a diet, it is a way of life. By making small changes, bigger ones will come, but it won’t happen overnight. I believe that the slow way is the best way.

I am not going to the classes this time around because I don’t want to be weighed. I don’t want to feel the disappointment if I stay the same weight, or horror of horror, gain half a pound! I don’t want to explain myself if I have a gain. I’m not ashamed to fluctuate in weight. It’s normal. The body stores and loses fat all the time.

Each and every one of you are beautiful, unique, valued and LOVELY in your own individual ways. Embrace and celebrate that.

Big love,
Kiki x

A quick supper of Feta and Tomato Stuffed Chicken

Hello my lovelies!

This is a super quick, super easy slimming world recipe that I threw together last night for a quick supper. This is for two people so just multiply the ingredients as necessary.

I served this with salad and Mash Direct chilli baby bakes. I’m not too sure how many syns they are, but I don’t think they could be that many. If you are worried at all about using something that you don’t low the syns for then please just use the baby boiled potatoes in the micro bag (the ones from Tesco - I hope you know what Im taking about) or rustle up some SW chips or a baked potato.

I was also going to use up the rest of the asparagus and tenderstem broccoli for some extra super free but they had gone off… oops!

STUFFED CHICKEN

2 chicken fillets

50g feta cheese

Handful of Plum or Cherry tomatoes

1 chopped scallion (green onion)

4 strips of bacon (fat cut off)

LETS COOK!

1. Get your oven heated up to 190oC and chop up your tomatoes and scallion.

2. Place the chicken breasts on a large piece of grease-proof paper and give them a bash until they are about 1.5 cm thick (I cover them with greaseproof paper before bashing so the chicken doesn’t stick to the rolling pin)

3. Top them with the copped tomatoes, scallion and some crumbled feta. Cover with bacon and put in the oven. I just put mine straight onto the rack on the greaseproof paper.

4. Cook the chicken for 30-35 minutes depending on how crispy you like your bacon.

(Sorry, I had already started!)

It was super quick to make and really tasty! I hope you like it. Let me know if you try it or if you have any quick supper ideas like this. Bon Appetit!

Kiki x

Just a quick one...

Hello my lovelies!

Just a quick post to let you know that I'm doing a bit of a redesign on my blog, but don't worry, although the background and blog title may change, the posts will still be the same. I just want the blog template to reflect what this blog is about a bit better.

Let me know what you think!

Kiki x