LA Chronicles

I had an amazing opportunity to attend BlogHer in LA. Blogher is a two days conference, featuring vendors and speakers. The conference is all about getting women bloggers (and quite a few men) of all different backgrounds together and will host seminars to help take your blog to the next level. Before the conference, there were some things on my list that I had to do. 

First: Go to In & Out Burger

One thing that is always on my list to do when I land in Cali, is to get a double combo from In & Out. I love a good burger (to all the men out there, the way to my heart is burgers and cupcakes- find me greatness, and we are set), and In & Out is my go to when I'm here. After a five hour flight, a little comfort food, makes everything better. 

Second: Visit Torrid Headquarters

Rocking my Torrid Girlfriend Jeans, with a Torrid Graphic Tee, and Matisse Sandals.

Living in NY, I get a chance to meet with a lot of the brands I love because they are based on the East Coast. Torrid, on the other hand is based in California, so when there are any events, unfortunately I can't attend. Since the IG Wives were heading out for BlogHer, I thought it would be a great idea for us to take some time out and visit Torrid Headquarters. Ecstatic could not describe how I felt when they agreed to meet with us and give us a tour. 

Darlene, Sandra and I got a chance to chat with Torrid's bra guru/designer, and talk about the challenges in plus size lingerie, as well as what Torrid is doing for the market. As a plus size gal that wears a 38H, it's hard to find bras that are 1. truly a full coverage bra 2. pretty 3. constructed well. Once you are past a DDD, the options for nice lingerie are cut in half. There are a lot more brands out there than before, but you have to put in the work and look for the right brand- and when I say look, I mean shop online. Options in stores are unfortunately very limited. Torrid is looking to expand their bra offerings past a G (YAY!!!). Great thing I learned about their process is that they will have tons of volunteers to wear the product as well as their employees. if the bra doesn't make the grade within a certain percentage, they go back and re-work the fit. I can respect the diligence the team puts in to their product. 

Next we got a chance to talk to the denim and dress designers. For those of you that have been following the blog, I am all about the boyfriend jean, but when I saw the girlfriend jean from Torrid, I wanted to give them a try. I must say, that I'm in love with this jean. I love their fit, they hug the curves, and come up on my waist. A lot of jeans gape in the back due to my butt, but these passed the no gap test. I went with a size 16, and they fit well on me. A lot of times denim starts off well in the morning, and by the end of the day, it's stretched out and looks sloppy. These took from the plane to the visit, without the least bit of sagging. Torrid is known for their great denim options, and they are expanding with more types of fits, lengths, and premium denim washes. When it comes to shopping, whether you are plus size or not, looking for a bra or jeans I feel are the hardest ones to tackle. I'm happy to say that Torrid is there for us to provide us options online as well as in store. 

Getting a chance to meet all the different people responsible was a treat and a great way to kick off my visit to LA. Stay tuned lovers for more fashion, fun, and sun in LA!! Muah!!

BTS

If you have been following me on Instagram or my Facebook page, I am in this month's issue of Plus Model Magazine!! August is the Denim issue, and the lovely editor Maddy Jones, asked the Instagram Wives (The Instagram Wives are myself, Suit's, Heels, and Curves, and La Pecosa Preciosa) to come up with ways we like to wear denim. One of my looks was white on white. Summer is still going strong, and I love an all white ensemble. 

Photo Cred Stanley Desbas (@desbasphotography)

This look is Melissa McCarthy Seven7 collection white pencil jeans and sequin top. I love wearing sequins during the day. Having a little sparkle during the day puts me in a better mood. Also, the great thing about this outfit is that you can wear it casual like myself with sneakers, or dress it up with some cute heeled sandals for a date night. My blogger boo Grown and Curvy Woman came along to the shoot and took some behind the scenes pictures. 

I had so much fun shooting. Granted, we were in the middle of a heat wave, but taking turns in the bloggermobile kept me cool in between takes. If you haven't checked out the latest issue of PMM, don't worry, here is the link to check out all of the lovely ladies and men in the Denim issue. 

Lemonade

When you are a professional shopaholic, there are some items that when you see them you are immediately smitten. Then you become a woman obsessed. Your mission is to make that item your by any means necessary. The latest in my fashion hunt was this yellow dress from Eloquii dubbed "Lemonade". I knew when I saw it on Snapchat, it was going to be pure magic.

As soon as it was available for purchase she was in my cart and on her to way to her new home. There are some dresses that you see and you wonder if it's going to work, and then there are some; and you just know. There was never a doubt in my mind that this dress would not work. I wasn't the only one lusting for this dress, because it sold out in about a week (do not worry, they are ordering more, so make sure you sign up for out of stock notifications). 

This ruffle dress is just perfection. Now I am not the biggest fan of the color yellow, but this dress completely converted me. There is ample room in the arms, and the tie waist makes it easy to adjust. Bonus for this gal, the dress matched perfectly with my ankle tie fringe sandals!! Since I am being bold with color, I decided to go ahead and rock this with my Sofia clutch. This is one of my favorite bags. It just goes with everything. 

Do you have that must have item you need in your closet? Let me know in the comments. 

Gingham

There are things that always come to mind when you think of summer. For a city gal like myself, it's icee's, playing in the hydrant/sprinklers, and fairs. Summer was in full swing when the county fairs came to town. No matter what type of fair I went to, one thing was constant- gingham. Now some fifteen years later, gingham is all over the runways. That is the cool thing about fashion, something simple like gingham can be re-interpreted in different ways to what I like to call "Country Gal meets City Chic". 

The gingham print on this Eloquii midi immediately made me think of my summers going to the county fair. It's definitely an item that is versatile. It can be dressed up for work with some cute heels, and a button up, dress down with some white sneakers, like my Stan Smith's, or with a tee and sandals to brunch. I like to switch things up, so for today's post I wanted to wear my sneakers but with this flirty crop top. Wearing ruffles when you are busty can be tricky, but this top fits well, and does not add on extra bulk. 

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I love wearing sneakers with my midi skirts. It's a fun may to mix feminine with masculine. Bonus, sneakers are COMFORTABLE!! Do you wear sneakers with your skirts or dresses? Sound off in the comments.