OMCZ 5 - Bare arms or cold shoulders

Hello lovelies,

Outside My Comfort Zone is a monthly fashion challenge organised by Steph. It hasn't been long since last month's post as I was really late putting it up.


This month's challenge is about bare arms or cold shoulder tops. I've cheated slightly by wearing cap sleeves today but I have plenty of bare armed photos from the past like here and here. The idea with this challenge is that the theme each month is out of the comfort zone for some of us who do the challenge. I'm not too bothered about bearing my arms any more. If it's hot, I'm not going to boil to save someone else's eyeballs from seeing my fat arms.

God I look tired in these photos, and I am. My step dad is back in hospital again having more intensive treatment. He has a rarer form of non-Hodgkins than they previously thought. It's very aggressive, but is supposed to respond well to treatment. Because it's a bit more specialist he's not in the local hospital to them, and I worry about my mum being on her own, as well as my step dad's outcome. He's got 5 days of intensive treatment ahead of him starting Friday, and then about another 8 months' worth afterwards. Any good juju you can conjour up will be appreciated. God knows how my mum is coping - I feel like I'm weighed down with concrete and I'm not even there to see it first hand.



I'm wearing:

Top, gift from my cousin
Harem pants, past H&M
Shoes, last year Everything 5 Pounds
Hair slide, July Crown & Glory Glitterati subscription box
Necklace, Jewel Street

Do you mind wearing sleeveless tops? Or do you cover up?

Thanks for reading,



Leah xoxo

Kill 'em with fire or kill 'em with kindness?

Hello sweets,

Something that any woman on social media knows is that there are a lot of people out there who enjoy making women feel shitty about themselves. It's almost like a sport to them. Add fatness into the woman + social media equation and you may as well wear a bullseye on your front.

Last night I got a comment on my fatkini photo on Instagram, and I decided to respond to it. I normally block concern trolls/health judgers immediately and move on as my self worth doesn't hinge on other people's opinion of me and I don't usually care to engage with nasty-minded fools.

Yesterday the family got a bit of bad news and when people I love are going through shit it reminds me to treat people with compassion even more than usual. Hence rather than telling this person to go fuck themselves with a chic 1970s pineapple ice bucket (as I once instructed one concern troll) I decided to respond like a responsible adult.

Here's what they said and how I replied.








It's entirely up to you whether you choose to engage with haters on the internet. Let that sink in. You do not have to respond. If you respond you do not have to respond politely. (Seriously, people who are rude then get butt hurt if we aren't polite in response need to go choke on a pineapple. And people who whine when harassed people take their accounts private and can no longer be harassed need to choke on a medley of pineapples of all shapes and sizes.)

I usually report comments - if they're particularly gross - then block the offending account as I'd rather concentrate on the great people online. For some reason I decided I would engage with this person - I'm not sure why. I went into it taking the higher ground and assuming they are capable of a critical thought and a change of opinion. From past experience I would say thinking optimistically about concern trolls is futile at best and utterly demented at worst, but I live in hope of being proved wrong one day. :)

All I can hope is by being fearless in my self-love it encourages people to think a little differently about themselves and others. I live in hope that all it needs is a shift in perspective to stop concern trolls/health judgers from turning their shitty behaviour into shitty habits which ultimately culminate in them living shitty lives. I choose to love people on a daily basis because when I'm ashes in the wind or rotting in the ground I want my legacy to be pure love. How we treat others is a choice, and I want to be remembered for more good than bad. I want to be remembered for lifting people up, not bringing them down, or else it will have been a wasted life.

So sweet peas, a reminder - no matter what you look like you deserve to live a life free of stigma and ridicule in your body. Whether you are dieting or happy as you are. Whatever you eat, whatever exercise you do, whatever whatever whateverrrrr. There should be no qualifying behaviours for a person to be treated like a uh, yanno, person.

What say ye about health judging people and concern trolls? Kill 'em with fire, or kill 'em with kindness?

Thanks for reading,
Leah xoxo

Outfit | Fatkini part one

Hello loves,

I've gotten back into Tumblr recently and it's made me realise how far removed blogging is from the kind of ballsy representation of fat bodies on Tumblr. Fashion blogging is all about perfect poses, the right lighting, the right scenery. Tumblr is dirty piles of clothes on the floor, smeared mirrors, fat rolls, cellulite and no effs given.

So with that honest representation of bodies in mind, I've decided to share some fatkini pictures here. I've bought 2 fatkinis/bikinis/two pieces (or whatever else you want to call them) in the last two weeks.

FOREVER 21 PLUS TROPICAL PRINT BIKINI I posted a photo of myself in the other fatkini on my personal Facebook page with a little message and I thought I would share what I said here. (I'll share the other fatkini photos on another day.) This is what I said:

How would you feel if you saw me or someone as fat as me on the beach in a two piece? Would you laugh behind your hands, point, or feel the need to tell me I'm disgusting? Would you take photos or video to share on social media to mock me? 

All this and worse has happened to other fat women. 

This isn't brave of me. This is what my body looks like today. Next week it might look a bit different. It waxes and wanes with hormones and IBS flare ups, but very little otherwise. My body doesn't signify laziness, or dirtiness, or disease. It's just a fucking body, yet on reading the average newspaper or magazine, people like me are viewed like the Antichrist. 

My body deserves to feel the sun on it the same as anyone else's body does. My concern is about my joy, not anyone else's eyeballs, and if no one likes what they see, they can look in another direction. Choice and a head which can turn are magical things *sarcasm*. Next time you see someone who isn't in possession of a 'bikini body' or who looks a bit different to the norm having fun regardless ask yourself do they deserve the same joys that you do? I'm hoping you'll agree they do. ;)

This fat body WILL be on the beach in a 2 piece this year and no fucks shall be given. The feeling of the breeze and sea on my body will overrule the fears of stupid people being tools because they've developed a belief system in which 'perfection' is currency. I opted out of that crap and I'm much happier for it. 

FOREVER 21 PLUS TROPICAL PRINT BIKINI IN 3X
I'm wearing the top and bottoms in a 3X. The top isn't as supportive as I'd like as I've got a mild case of armpit boobs, but the bottoms are very comfortable so I'm keeping them. High waisted pants are never that high waisted on me because my bum and belly eat up so much fabric, but these bikini bottoms give slightly more coverage than my other F21+ bottoms do.

FOREVER 21 PLUS TROPICAL PRINT BIKINI IN 3X OOTD

Bikini top, Forever 21+
Bikini bottoms, Forever 21+
Plimsolls, New Look wide fit

I will post the other fatkini photos in a few days.
What do you wear to the pool or beach?

Thanks for reading,
Leah xoxo

Sandra Bland

Hello sweet peas,

There's a something little different from me today. With the eyes I have on this page it would not be right for me to ignore the injustice of the Sandra Bland case.

Source

 Content warning - racism, violence.
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Sandra Bland was a beautiful, vibrant, 28 year old black American woman who was pulled over by a police officer in Texas for failing to indicate a lane change. The situation quickly escalated, and it ultimately led to Sandra being pulled out of her car at the threat of being tased  - "I will light you up." - violently thrown to the ground, knelt on, and taken into custody. 3 days later she was found dead in her cell, allegedly hanged.

This video is really upsetting, but a necessary watch to frame the hideous overreaction of the arresting officer. One of the most heartbreaking parts of the video is when Sandra is protesting that Trooper Encinia slammed her head into the ground, telling him she has epilepsy. He coldly replied "Good!" What a heartless piece of shit. 



You can also check the hashtags #Sandra Bland #SandyBland #JusticeforSandraBland etc on Instagram and Twitter, but there might be some upsetting photos there so I advise caution. Tumblr is also a good source of news as it happens from the States.

No matter what your opinion on Sandra Bland's death, there is no doubt that countless black families are mourning lost family members after a run in with the police. Eric Garner. Freddie Gray. Michael Brown. Tamir Rice. Walter Scott. Learn their names, learn their stories.

Why is it black lives are considered disposable in many countries, but especially America? Why are so many unarmed black people dying at police hands? The more I research suspicious black deaths, the more videos of police brutality I find, and I am sickened. And then I check the white-run media, and instead of seeing the perpetrators of these murderers of black people investigated, I see a trial by media - of the VICTIMS. Not only do they die at white hands, but they're painted as criminals after the fact to suggest they deserved to die at white hands. Fuck my life. This is why it's so important to search out media which carries unbiased news of black issues, or media run by black people.

When I saw Sandra Bland's mug shot photo, and saw the light totally gone out of her eyes, I can't describe the feelings I had. It got me in the gut and I nearly threw up. Perhaps I felt just a millionth of the rage black people face, and have always faced. And it made me SO angry. I can no longer keep quiet.

For the last couple of years I've avoided talking about issues of race because I was scared. Scared of not knowing enough, of putting my foot in it and making things worse. Scared of being confronted with my own racism (many black people say all white people are inherently racist as we live in a society where we benefit from other people's lack of privilege.) How could we not be racist, no matter how well-intentioned we are, when the world is shaped after us, to the detriment of others?! Over the last couple of years I've read a lot of news from black news sources and bloggers, silently soaked up as much information as I could, and I faced my own discomfort. When you start to read media from black sources, prepare to be uncomfortable a lot.

Over the last couple of years I heard the stories of black lives snatched from this earth like wheat from the ground and raged impotently into the ether, not knowing what to do. I still don't know what to do, but I know what NOT to do. Now is not the time to keep silent. Now is the time to yell it from the rooftops.

Now is the time for people like me - who want to help but have no idea how really to be of use - to keep the names of these dead souls on our lips. Say Sandra Bland's name. Share stories about her life and death. As new cases of police brutality emerge, share them widely. Open other peoples' eyes, perhaps open your own. Demand better for black people, no matter where in the world they are.

Things have got to change. The time is now. Sandra Bland's mother requests that everybody keeps her name alive. Will you do your part?

Thanks for reading,
Leah xoxo

Beauty | MUA Luxe shimmer sticks and how to use them*

Hello pickles,

I have some new things from MUA to show you over the next couple of weeks. Today I have MUA Luxe bronze and highlight shimmer sticks which are full of pretty sparkles.

MUA Luxe shimmer stick bronzer and highlight swatches

These sticks are £4 each and twist up just like a lipstick. The highlight is lovely, and gives the look of sun bouncing off skin. The bronzer is a little light for my face at the moment since I'm quite tanned, so I've used it heavily so it shows up on camera.

MUA Luxe shimmer stick review and swatches
Bottom right - blurry shot to show the sparkles


The photo below shows unblended swatches of the bronzer. To blend the sticks you can use your fingers or a brush. I used a flat, rounded tipped foundation brush to blend mine, using gentle downward strokes as I didn't want to risk it 'balling' up as some creamy face products can when you blend in a rough windscreen-wiper motion.


WHY HIGHLIGHT/CONTOUR?

Highlighting is all about bringing areas of your face forward, and using contour or bronzer is about making things retreat. Highlighting gives a healthy, youthful glow to the face which gives the look of the sun falling on areas which naturally catch the light, and it's a great way of cheating on dull skin days. Using bronzer or contour gives the illusion of depth, which is why I used it under my cheekbones to give them the appearance of being deeper than they are. Using highlighting and contour/bronzer in combination helps give the face definition.

Here's how I used the highlight and bronzer. 


You can also use bronzer or contour to drastically alter your face, but I did a quite light, natural look in this instance. By using a dark product at the sides of your face you give the illusion of a longer, thinner face. You can also contour your jawline and double chins to give the illusion of having less chins - I call it the fat girl contour and I'll cover that another time. :)

Another place you can use bronzer is in your cleavage to give the impression of a bit more oomph! Just apply between your girls and blend up and outward in a v shape. It really works. It's an old drag queen trick. ;)

MUA also do a shimmer blush stick, which is also £4. Buy here or on Superdrug.com and in Superdrug stores (depending on stock levels.)

Do you highlight and/or contour?

Thanks for reading.
Leah xoxo

*These items were sent to me by MUA but my opinion is honest and my own.

Travel | Piran Meadows Resort and Spa

Hiya!

When we went to Cornwall recently, we stayed at Piran Meadows resort and spa, a gorgeous home-from-home not far from Newquay.

James's mum and dad found a reduced 4 night break, and seven of us went on a family holiday. James and I shared a caravan with his mum and dad to share the cost, and his brother, our sister in law and our baby niece stayed in one nearby.

The word caravan doesn't do the accommodation justice though, not at all.


The park itself is beautifully landscaped with not a bit of litter to be seen anywhere. I didn't see so much as a discarded chewing gum wrapper the whole time we were there. The caravan is the most luxurious one we'd ever stayed in, and I didn't think that possible after the caravan we stayed in at Easter. As to the cleanliness when we arrived, the only way I can describe it is forensically clean. You would imagine no one had ever stayed there before you. If you pass a staff member on the site, they'll say hello and make conversation, and not the kind of 'Oh, this is my job and I hate it' conversation, but an actual 'How are you? Is everything OK for you?' conversation.

Our caravan had 2 bedrooms and 2 toilet/shower rooms. James and I had the twin room, and the beds and bedding were to die for. We've both never slept so well in our lives. In fact, coming home to our own bed has been such a frustrating experience we're going to email Piran Meadows to ask them which mattresses and bedding they use. I think I only managed to keep up with everyone else on this holiday (after the busy few weeks beforehand) because I was crashing out every night as soon as my head hit the pillow. That NEVER normally happens. I toss and turn for hours each night.

In James's mum and dad's bedroom they had an en-suite and a massive walk in wardrobe, and even in our small bedroom there was ample storage.

Our bathroom

Our bedroom



There were lots of luxurious features like a flat screen in the living room and in the main bedroom, and plenty of plug sockets everywhere. Normally on holiday in a caravan everyone is antsy to get their phones and gadgets charged up, but despite us all being tech-heads who'd taken a minimum of 2-3 gadgets each, we were fine. Not only that, but there is free wifi on the whole park! Hell yeah.

Having 2 showers and toilets was wonderful as well, as there was no morning rush to get everyone ready. There was a full size fridge-freezer in the kitchen and plenty of good quality non-stick pans, not those hideous cheap ones you usually get which get ruined the first time you use them. (If you've ever stayed in a caravan you'll know what I mean because every single caravan I've stayed in thus far (dozens of them over the years) has used the same cheap crap.) There was a fire in the living room which got roasting hot, as well as radiators and a heated towel rail in the bathroom. And luxurious fluffy white towels are already in the caravan - a bath sheet and hand towel each. The beds were already made up, and there was a welcome pack in the kitchen with tea, coffee, biscuits etc. Everything has been thought of.

We only ate onsite once but the food was to die for. SO good. There are lots of facilities - a swimming pool, onsite bar and restaurant, spa and gym, bowling lanes, pool tables, play areas for kids, etc. On some of the more expensive accommodation like the lodges, they have hot tubs on the veranda! Oh my days. There are a couple of things some people may see as drawbacks - there's no evening entertainment, and the onsite shop is tiny. I frankly hate the cheesy evening entertainment that most caravan parks have and didn't miss it at all (I didn't even note the lack of entertainment until James's mum pointed it out) and we always do the shopping at a supermarket on the way to a destination anyway.

Would we go back to Piran Meadows? HELL YES. With bells on. As soon as possible! James and I want to go back next year.

If you're heading to Cornwall and want to stay in a central location in stunning style, then Piran Meadows is for you. It's worth every penny of extra money compared to its competitors - but I don't believe it has any real competitors. Caravan holidays will never be the same now they'll be held up to this standard! I know caravan holidays have a bad rap, but this place is not a caravan park as you know it.

https://www.darwinescapes.co.uk/parks/piran-meadows-resort-spa/
https://www.darwinescapes.co.uk/

Thanks for reading,
Leah xoxo

I wrote his post entirely of my own volition and have not been compensated for it in any way.

My week

Hey lovelies!

I've been a bit absent from the blog on and off this week, and I thought I'd share why.

Firstly, I had an Instagram photo posted on Buzzfeed, alongside several other awesome women. Say whaaaaaat?

JUST ME LEAH BUZZFEED MENTION

Read all about it here.

Theeeeeen I had an article which featured me published on Digital Hub, amongst some other rad blogger ladies.

JUST ME LEAH DIGITAL HUB ARTICLE

Read here.

And to top it all off in glorious fashion, yesterday I got to do a phone interview Jess of Jess and the Bandits, Evans' new #StyleHasNoSize embassador, pop/country singer, plus size inspiration, and all round sweetheart. That interview will be up next week.

Also this week I've taken my first photos in a fatkini (epic!), existed off about 5 hours sleep a night and gone slightly bananas (I'm running on fumes!) and now I'm preparing to have my mum and step dad stay with us for 4 days from today.

Life is suddenly busy, and wonderful, and overwhelming, and all good things at once. I'll leave you with a song from Jess and the Bandits. I can't get it out of my head.



Posts might be a little sporadic over the weekend as I'll be looking after my mum and step dad as best I can (wish me luck, ha!) but I have SO much to share with you.

Have a great weekend, and I'll see you on the other side.
Leah xoxo

Outfit | OMCZ 4 shorts*

Hiya lovelies,

I take part in a monthly challenge called Outside Your Comfort Zone with a bunch of lovely ladies and the theme this month is shorts. The challenge is organised by Steph and I'm almost a month late posting it. Oops.

Well, I don't actually possess any, but I do have comfort shorts, for chafing - chub rub as it's known in fatty circles. Then by fate Donatella's sent some new 20 denier anti chafing shorts for me to try out, so I wore them for the day and will review them here. They come in black and beige, in 2 sizes (3X-4X, 5X-6X) and in short and long. I'm wearing long ones.


Firstly, being 20 denier, they're cool and lightweight, which is great for this hot weather we're currently having on and off in the UK at the moment. I wore the shorts out on an errand to the post office and around the house all day. They have two seams at the back and one in the front, which I like - I can't bear tights with two seams at the front. I find them so uncomfortable. They have an inch wide stretchy waistband and are hemmed at the knee.

I didn't find myself sweating wearing them and they kept me cool, but it was a day when I didn't have to do a whole lot of walking. Some people have fat inner thighs, but my inner legs touch right down to above my knee, and if I had done a lot of walking I think I may have had a little soreness. I know this from experimenting with lots of different denier tights in the last couple of years, and generally for an active day I need 50 denier or more to stop my legs from cooking one another. They were very comfortable to wear and I hardly knew I had them on. They stayed put too, something I was worried about as there was no elastic at the knee.

I'm wearing the shorts in a 5X-6X and there was ample stretch in the shorts themselves, but I found the seams to be slightly less stretchy. You can see in one of the photos above that one of the seams is peeking out from under my dress, so it's quite a way from sitting at my crotch. Despite this the seams didn't rub and weren't uncomfortable, as the seams are finely made. By the end of the day there were some ladders on the seams where they were stretched over my bounteous behind, but it didn't affect my comfort and there were no actual holes or rubbing.


The shorts are £4.99 and I would say they're perfect for summery occasions where you may not be walking too much, such as weddings or other occasions where you're wearing a dress or skirt and may not want to add to the heat with leggings. With careful use and if you're less blessed in the bum than me and putting less strain on the seams, you may get several wears out of them.


My tights tips:

  • When I'm putting on tights of any denier I remove my rings and file my nails to make sure there's nothing sharp to snag on.
  • If I'm wearing fine denier tights (up to about 40 denier) I make sure my feet are moisturised so there's no icky hard skin to catch the tights. There's nothing worse than laddering a brand new pair of tights as soon as you put them on! 
  • Hand wash fine denier tights and air dry. I machine wash thick tights. 

I'm wearing:

Dress, given to me by Mookie
Comfort shorts, Donatella's*
Fake Melissa jelly shoes, eBay

Do you wear comfort/anti chafing shorts? Or do you use an anti chafing cream? Even when I was hardly plus size I always chafed. It's not just something suffered by larger people, it depends on the placement of your pelvis. Donatella is due to bring these shorts out in smaller sizes, so that's great.

Now I've decided to love my legs despite their scars and discolouration, I might actually buy some proper shorts!

Thanks for reading.
Leah xoxo

*The anti chafe shorts were gifted to me but my review is honest and my own.

Perranporth and OOTD

Hiya fruit bats!

Here's another holiday post, this time from Perranporth in Cornwall. Perranporth is lovely - the sandy beach is so long and as it's a long walk to the shore there's lots of room for people to sit and play. While we were there we saw beach cricket matches, kite flying, more sand castles than you could shake a plastic spade at, and even horse riding. The beach is maintained by lifeguards as the surf is rough and it's common to see lifeguard trucks weaving in amongst beach goers to get down to the sea.


You may spot I'm wearing crocs, fake ones at least. Whenever I go to a beach I always have shoes at hand to protect my feet from stones and sharp sand. Fibromyalgia makes my feet really painful and I don't take any chances, even on a sandy beach like Perranporth. I would've taken my Havaiana's that Rach gave me for my birthday but was worried they might get carried away with the tide. (I have two great Rach's in my life, 'hometown Rach' and 'Canada/just-married Rach'. The shoes were from hometown Rach - I've known her since I was about 5, growing up in my then hometown.) The straps on the back of the crocs come in handy for keeping them on my feet.

There are lots of caves and rock pools for the intrepid to explore at Perranporth at low tide, but I'm too accident prone to risk it. There's always a sense of 'Nah-uh, things are challenging enough already, I don't want to add a fall into the mix.'





I'm wearing:

Kimono, past season Yours Clothing
Vest top, past season Asda
Harem pants folded up to the knee, past season Simply Be similar
Crime-to-fashion shoes, bargain shops everywhere
Sand up my legs, Mother Nature and sun cream

It was a really hot day and the sea was so refreshing. We bathed our feet in the currents as we walked down to the sea, then I went in the very shallow waves. My balance isn't good and I'm still wary after my tumble in the sea last year. The waves in Cornwall are great for surfing in many places - which makes them not so great for paddling/swimming, as the currents can be so rough.

I took my shoes off for the walk back once I'd realised it was totally safe - Cornish sand is a lot softer than Sussex sand. Ah, cool water and breeze on my feet, lovely!






One of the best things about going to the beach for me is feeling the air on my feet and other places. I've bought 2 fatkinis in the last 2 weeks and will have a blog post coming up soon. What do you wear to the beach?

Thanks for reading.
Leah xoxo

Outfit August 2015

Hello honey buns!

Happy Monday - I hope your week gets off to a good start.

Last year I organised something called Outfit August and it was about the simple joy of getting dressed - no pressure at all. I intend to do it myself again this year and welcome you to join me. It's a great excuse to dig through your stash and pull out rarely worn items to put a new spin on them. It's for everyone - all genders, all ages, all sizes - and representation from people of colour, disabled people, LGBTQ peeps, alternative folks, androgynous dressers, the little seen chubby men, etc etc are all important so please feel free to take part. Diversity is the bomb.



I walk this line between being the girl who often hangs around the house with my hair in a bun or messy pony tail, fresh faced and in my comfies, or feeling the pressure to be this glamour puss with perfect hair and makeup (and often failing, ha!) Then there's more pressure in wanting to pull it out of the bag when I'm sent stuff to review as I want to do things 'justice'. It's a relief to cast that off for a month and just celebrate putting outfits together for FUN, you know? Because that's what fashion should be! Self-expression, joy, playfulness.

In many respects putting on a dress is the easiest thing in the world for me - pull it on over my head and I'm done, throw on some shoes and maybe a necklace or hair flower et voila. It's in separates I tend to find the most pleasure in (once I shirk off my lazy 'I'll just put a dress on!' urges) because there is virtually no end to the combinations I could wear things in.

I'll be digging deep through my stashes, not just clothes but shoes, jewellery, belts etc. I'm such a lazy dresser most of the time, this is my time to get creative. I will probably wear some new stuff, but will mostly be concentrating on putting a new spin on older items.

If you would like to join me, please feel free! Let me know in the comments and I'll add you to my list.

By the way, you don't have to post every day. I probably won't, because something always comes up. You can post to your Blogger/Wordpress/Tumblr or just Instagram and/or Twitter. Whatever suits you! All I ask is that you post a list of links to the other people participating at the end of each Outfit August post. We might all find someone new to follow, and that's always going to be a good thing, right?

If you'd like to join in feel free - let me know so I can add you to the list. I'm going to leave the banners in the comments so you can yank them. One is 750 pix wide, the other 500. Don't forget to hashtag your posts ‪#‎OutfitAugust2015‬ on Twitter and Instagram, and I'll retweet/regram them.

Thanks for reading, and spread the word - the more the merrier.
Leah xoxo

Photo Story #10

Hiya!

I hope your weekend has been a cracker. Today's photo story photos were taken in May, in Lewes, when James and I were there with Mike and Mookie. There are always lots of photos left over from our meet ups.

Something I find ironic about a lot of imagery to do with churches and God is that it's quite bloomin' evil-looking. The twisted spire, the heavy metal cross atop the gate, the evil looking sword. Put the right filters on the first photo and it could be a cover for some kind of black metal album. ;) This is St Michael's Church in Lewes town centre.


Sculpture of St Michael

Moving on from the church, I liked the contrast between the aged hinges and the brightly coloured paint.

We didn't visit the castle, but I'd like to on another occasion.

Of course I can't finish without another photo of Mookie and I. :)

Thanks for reading,
Leah xoxo

Porth beach and OOTD

Hello loves!

One of the best things about going on a family holiday with a 2 year old (who isn't yet running everywhere) means that everything is done at a 2 year old's pace, which suits me down to the ground as a disabled woman. There were 7 of us on holiday - me, James, his mum and dad, his brother, our sister in law and our niece.

These photos were taken from Porth beach, near Newquay. There's a gentle sloping walk up to the top of the cliff with plenty of benches all the way to rest on. I've never appreciated benches so much since I've been disabled. I sat down at the top on the scrubby grass at the top to rest (very prickly, not recommended - it hurt my bum!)


Once again I'm wearing an outfit with comfort in mind over style. We didn't sit on the beach itself as it was so windy there was a mini sandstorm.







The scenery here was lovely, and I could've quite happily stayed all day as the sea and sky were so blue. It was exquisite and I wish I was back there now. :) James and I might go on our own next year. 4 days in Cornwall (which is what time we had) is lovely, but just a taster of the delights she holds. 2 weeks is the best amount of time to explore Cornwall, and I've been lucky enough to do that a couple of times in the distant past.

I'm wearing:

Kimono, past season New Look Inspire
Dress, H&M+
Lace trimmed leggings, Yours Clothing
Shoes, Everything 5 Pounds
Faux designer bag, eBay

I must've had these leggings from Yours for about 3 years. I've worn them so much they've faded somewhat but they're still going strong and are very soft. I rarely put the links on for Everything 5 Pounds items as they sell out so quickly and it just leaves me with dead links to edit out. 

Thanks for reading. Where's your favourite place to go on holiday?
Leah xoxo