The perfect seaside holiday outfit

 

Hello lovely people! 

I do hope this blog post finds you all well. I am very happy to report that I'm in good spirits and incredibly well rested after a much needed getaway at the weekend. My beautiful friend Leigh and I escaped to her family holiday home in the southwest of Scotland in the quaint little seaside town of Portpatrick. We had the most wonderful time exploring the beaches and climbing rocks, as well as eating lots of delicious seafood (and drinking plenty of wine)! 

We arrived in Portpatrick on Friday night at about 7.30pm after an afternoon of driving. After dropping off our suitcases we were both keen to see the sights and I wanted to find an outfit that was comfortable and practical for exploring, whilst still looking chic and stylish. Luckily i'd packed this incredible leopard print jumpsuit from Primark that really ticked all of the boxes and fit my criteria- so happily popped it on and went about our evening. 

I decided to pair the jumpsuit with some big gold hoop earrings- my latest obsession. I feel as though gold hoop earrings will be making their way into more and more of my fashion posts as I seem to be wearing them with everything right now! I also added an unusual gold triangle necklace that was gifted to me for my birthday last year as I thought this made my outfit a little more fancy, which was perfect for eating dinner in a lovely little seaside restaurant. 

Another necessity to this little outfit were some sunglasses. Unfortunately i'd overlooked these when hurriedly packing my suitcase (moral of the story, always pack and plan what you will be wearing in advance!) but my friend Leigh sorted me out by letting me borrow these sweet little circle lens glasses from Primark.

If you're a regular reader of this blog you'll remember me writing about being bolder with my fashion choices and trying new things, abolishing any presupposed "standard" or fashion "rules" I was following or had created for myself. This trend is something that really is only growing stronger as time goes on- I am practically living in jumpsuits and dungarees these days and am no longer afraid to show off my arms or tummy. Yay for continuous body positivity!!

This little leopard print number is no exception to that rule- it fits well, is remarkably comfortable and ultimately looks really good on! I'm wearing a size 18 here which fits my 45-36-45 frame nicely and doesn't pull or gape in the wrong places. I also love just how much attention it brings to my rather large posterior! For reference I am 5'7 and I find the legs to be a nice length when wearing flats, if I were wearing heels it may come up a little short, but I didn't need to worry about that on this trip. 

Another thing I love about this jumpsuit is that it has the holy grail of all fashion finds- pockets! Not only is this incredible practical, but the pockets are well sized to carry around your phone, car keys and lipstick and don't detract from the surprisingly good tailoring. As well as this, the jumpsuit also comes with a matching leopard belt that can be used to cinch the waist. The leopard print motif is also one that I simply adore. Often I find that leopard print can be a bit garish (not that it ever puts me off, haha!) but this particular print blends neatly and doesn't come off too strong. 

I do hope that you're enjoying the photos on this blog post- Portpatrick is without a doubt one of the most beautiful scenic places I've ever seen so I definitely took advantage of the surroundings and got camera happy!

One thing that I've been particularly struck by when writing this post and looking at these photos is how strong and confident I both look and feel. Truthfully I've been in somewhat of a confidence slump as of late, I've not been taking any photos of myself and have felt uninspired when it comes to my wardrobe. Luckily I think getting away for the weekend to the beautiful seaside has allowed me to reconnect with myself and my love of fashion and left me feeling uplifted and positive. 

If this outfit is something you like then you can find all of my assorted bits and pieces on the list below:

Outfit Details

Jumpsuit: Primark 

Sunglasses: Primark 

Earrings: Accessorize

Necklace: New Look

Shoes: New Look

 

 

And that's all for me for now beautiful people. I hope you enjoyed my wee outfit post and holiday pictures and please do check in on the blog for regular updates. 

Until next time darlings, 

Lovelustloves x0

What beauty means to me....

Hello lovely people,

A short while ago, I wrote about being involved in a very exciting upcoming project with the wonderful Leyah Shanks - and that is the exact topic of this blog post!

For those who don't know, Leyah is a body positive ambassador, founder of online blog The Body Confidence Revolution and occasional writer for both the Huffington Post and Curva Magazine. She challenges traditional views and stereotypes of beauty, gender and mental health through her tireless pioneering and online activism. In short, she's a pretty amazing lady!

I was fortunate enough to be approached by Leyah recently to collaborate on a fascinating project on a topic that is very dear to the both of us; What beauty means to me. The "what beauty means to me" project is a collection of multi-media works that disseminate the topic of "beauty" and question what is considered to be beautiful and how we can turn this notion on its head. 

At its core, the project highlights just how diverse and varied people's interpretations of beauty really are. It's so much more than simply an aesthetic or how someone looks - beauty comes in all shapes, forms and sizes. Beauty is in the good that we do for other people. Beauty is having the best of intentions. Beauty is not a binary.  

Below is a short film that Leyah directed and produced and I just so happen to feature in. For those that know me you'll recognise that little Scottish twang at the beginning of the video as my voice also!



As another element of the "what beauty means to me" project, Leyah also asked me to collaborate to record a podcast with her, speaking more in depth about this issue. For this part of the project, Leyah and I both reached out to our online followers and asked them the following question: What does beauty mean to you? 

We then chose our favourite responses and spoke about them in greater detail, picking up on the themes raised. Now would be a great time to shout out to my wonderful instagram followers who submitted amazing responses - @bryoneycook @lou.mclou @flippabird - thank you all so much! Your insights to this question were so thoughtful and well received. 

You can listen to our podcast here, and below I've written a little insight into what my personal interpretation of beauty really means.

What does beauty mean to me? 

I used to believe that I could never be beautiful. To me, beauty was unattainable - an impossible standard reserved only for those with the most symmetrical faces, the flattest stomachs, the most flawless skin. As a teen I did little else other than compare myself with my friends and peers, never quite matching up to how beautiful they were. I relegated myself to the fact that whilst I may not be beautiful, I could be many other things. I could be smart, I could be funny, loud, confident and most importantly; I could do good in the world. 

Through years of self-discovery, education and some of the most wonderfully exciting life opportunities this belief eventually began to melt away. I learned that beauty isn't as simple as how you look, it encompasses so much more. Beauty can be found anywhere, in anything. Beauty isn't about having an ample bosom, full lips or a sun-kissed tan - beauty is personal and limitless. 

My actions and beliefs that make me a good person also make me a beautiful person, the two are not separate entities but a combined force that drive me each day to succeed and achieve my goals.  

The idea that beauty is a binary, derived only from what we see in the mainstream media is harmful and needs to end. Beauty at it's very core is subjective; what one person may believe to be beautiful may not match that of someone else. We cannot spend our lives attempting to attain the impossible standard - we need desperately to stand up and realise the beauty that we all possess, the beauty that surrounds us each day. 

To me, beauty is an abstract concept, it can't be defined simply with words. Beauty is an entity all on its own. What I can say about beauty however is that it's something that everyone possesses. It's in the things we do, the things we say and the way we are. I am beautiful- and you are too. 

Until next time darlings, 

Lovelustloves x0