Review : Snag Tights

You know when you see people raving over something and you think it can't possibly be that good, so you avoid it for fear of being disappointed? This has been me with Snag Tights. Every blogger adores them. I've seen my Facebook friends gushing about them. But they can't be that good because they just can't be. When they released a pair of Halloween tights I decided now was finally the time to order a few pairs and give them a go for myself.

I ordered the 'Candy Skulls' design, as well as pair in plain black and 'Colonel Mustard', all in 80 denier. The 'Candy Skulls' design was £9.99, and the non-limited edition pairs were £6.99. The more pairs you order the more discount you get, starting at 3 pairs, so I got 10% off my order.

Snag Tights sizing doesn't work just by dress size. It has two different sections, Athletic and Curvilicious. I fall into the Curvilicious range obviously and I'm 5ft 11. According to their size guide anyone over 5ft 9 and a size 20 should order their largest size, a size G. So I ordered a G in every pair. 

The first thing I have to mention is their packaging. No plastic at all! Each pair of tights came in their own paper packaging, and they were all sent in a recycled brown paper parcel. Love that!

I was really excited to try them and immediately planned an outfit around them so I could wear them the next day. The tights aren't what I consider to be a 'normal' tight material. They are so much softer which is a huge bonus because I find regular tights really scratchy and they usually irritate my eczema. These felt so nice and not at all like any other pair of tights I've ever worn.

They have a huge amount of stretch without going sheer, and would very easily fit someone taller and fatter than me. And I am a person of the long legged tall variety! The crotch sat where it should and the waistband happily sat on my waist, perfect. And they remained there, exactly where they were supposed to, all day. After food shopping, after playing PokemonGO, after the pub, I did not have to adjust these tights once. I was baffled! I didn't think that was possible.

So the next day I wore the mustard pair to work. And once again, I didn't have to adjust them even once. Truly some sort of sorcery is afoot. For a pair of tights to be comfy all day long, and not need adjusting at all is something I didn't think it was possible. I usually end up living in leggings all winter and they are never long enough, but instead I am going to invest in a bunch of Snag Tights! They have a range of fishnets and my inner goth is screaming with delight at the prospect of trying them out.

I fully believed there was no way these tights could live up to their hype, and I was completely wrong. I understand now why people who have bought these wax lyrical about them, because I find myself doing the same.

If you haven't been sure about trying Snag Tights, I highly recommend giving them a go!

Much love,

Kitty xxx

Black Heart Creatives Earrings

Last year I took my plugs out of my stretched ears to wash my hair and just sort of forgot to ever put them back in. They've shrunk back up but aren't like a normal ear piercings, but what they are perfect for is hoops and dangly earrings. I haven't owned any earrings in over 10 years, so when I saw Black Heart Creatives run their recent sale, I couldn't resist grabbing myself a few pairs!

 

My first choice was easy. I'd had my eye on these for ages. These Cheese Plant Hoops were an absolute bargain at £15 in my opinion. When I say these are a statement piece, they really are huge hoops! I love cheese plants but they are toxic to cats unfortunately, so no cheese plants for us, so instead, adorable cheese plant earrings. Winner!

These Statement Vine Earrings are available in gold or silver findings, and are only £10. I opted for silver which is always my preference in jewellery. These are also absolutely huge, and I love the way the chains attach to the hooks for your ears. I love plants and plants for my ears make me happy.

And the last pair I got were Custom Drippy Heart Earrings that say 'CREEP' in the middle. I picked the iridescent acrylic because I love the way it shines and picks up on other colours. At £13 these could not be resisted. I chose to have 'CREEP' written on them in a nod to one of my favourite horror films, Creep (1 & 2, the sequel is amazing too!). It's an awesome found footage horror film and the third part is in development. I was tempted to get 'Peachfuzz' on them but figured that would raise a lot more questions than 'Creep' would!

Supporting indie businesses is so important and I really recommend Black Heart Creatives. I bought these just after they'd gone viral on twitter meaning  a real spike in sales for them, and they sent out an email unprompted to let me know their turnaround time would be a bit longer than usual as a result. I never mind waiting longer for an order from an indie business and BHC are a one person team so I was so excited for them to be doing well. They have a whole range of plant inspired jewellery that I am very tempted by, because I always need more plants in my life!

Much love,

Kitty xxx

PS. Shout out to my Mum for the excellent hand modelling, because holding earrings and taking photos of them is basically impossible!

'You Have The Right To Remain Fat' by Virgie Tovar Review*

Do you know who Virgie Tovar is? You should! If you want to learn about real body positivity, and fat positivity, she's a true shining star to turn to. Tovar is an author, an activist, and all around badass. She edited 'Hot & Heavy : Fierce Fat Girls on Life, Love & Fashion', was a plus size editor for Buzzfeed, and founded Babecamp. Babecamp is a 4 week online course to 'Lose hate, not weight', and is designed to help you break up with diet culture. Tovar is someone I am so grateful I discovered when I first realised there was a whole plus size community online that felt they deserved better and deserved to take up space. She has been liberating and life changing for so many people, so when I heard she was publishing a non-fiction book, 'You Have the Right to Remain Fat', I could not wait to get my hands on it.

From the very first page, this book feels radical. 'A call for the death of fatphobia' shouts from the inner sleeve (which by the way doubles as a handy bookmark, it's the little things), and Tovar continues to smash through fat politics, demanding change, whilst also managing to be warm and endearing. She talks of teenage years and a young adulthood that are all too familiar to those of us that are fat, punishing ourselves for not achieving the impossible. I have to give a particular shout out to the chapter 'Internalised Inferiority and Sexism' which really got to me, addressing the ways women and femmes are diminished that they don't even realise.

This book may be small in stature, but it is mighty and powerful, the book you didn't know you needed but that will change your life.

If you are just beginning your journey to self acceptance, I cannot recommend it enough. You'll read things that you never thought you'd see someone dare to put into words, things you thought but never uttered. There are so many stories I recognise myself in, and I'm sure most women and femmes, fat or not, would see themselves in them too. Truths leap out from every page and shake you into realisations you didn't think you were allowed to have.

Tover manages to write a book that is both an essay that is educational but accessible, whilst also revealing societal truths through tales that will be oh so familiar. You'll see yourself, and how to break free.

Much love,
Kitty xxxx

*book was gifted to me for review purposes. In no way does this impact upon my opinions which are entirely my own.

Colourpop Lips and Eyes : Polite AF and She's A Beach Babe Bundles

It's finally time for part 3 of my recent Colourpop haul (I told you I bought a fair bit!), and this time it's two of their bundles, Polite AF which is a super shock shadow set, and She's A Beach Babe lip product bundle.

She's A Beach Babe retails for $18.50, but I bought it reduced to $15. It contains 3 full size lip products in a mixture of finishes, all in more summery lighter colours.

The set is part of their collaboration with Eva Gutowski who is apparently a Youtuber I am too old to have heard of. The packaging is a slight twist on their usual clear tubes with silver tops, with the addition of an animal print-esque print, and a more handwritten style font than their usual. It's cute!

Left to right - Party Wave (ultra blotted lip), Love Bite (ultra blotted lip) and Just Surfed (ultra glossy lip)

Party Wave and Love Bite both have the same finish, the ultra blotted lip. This was one of my favourite additions to the Colourpop line last year, it's lighter than their ultra mattes and works really well for a more natural look, which I often look for in the summer. I think they are really versatile tones that could work well on a lot of skin tones too. Just Surfed is a gloss, which is generally my least favourite type of lip product, but it's a bronze tone filled with silver and pink glitter that is really delightful! It could easily be used over a darker lipstick as a topper too. 

Polite AF is a set of 6 super shock shadows in tones I would describe as more autumnal or neutral, all are fairly classic colours for your makeup bag. Usually I opt for a green or other bright colour on the eyes, but I could not resist this set. I've recently fallen back in love with brown tones and this looked ideal.

I think these looks darker in real life than they do in the photos on Colourpop's website, I tend to use a single colour at a time so don't mind that at all, as lighter colours aren't ones I usually reach for.

Left to right - Deep Dive, Drift, Birthday Girl, Birthday Cake, Stereo and Sequin.

Stereo is the only colour I can't really see myself reaching for regularly, because it's very dark, almost black it's so dark, but in winter on those more goth feeling days it will still have it's place. Drift is a gorgeous cranberry red, I never thought of using red on my eyes but I saw a photo of Sara X Mills wearing reddy tones a little while ago and it really made her green eyes pop. I have green eyes too so I just have to try it for myself. The other colours are all gorgeous brown and bronze tones that I know I will find myself reaching for regularly. Birthday Cake has a bit of a rose gold tone to it, and I love the purple glitter that creeps through in Deep Dive.

All in all, I'm really pleased with everything I picked up this time round! Colourpop have totally taken over my makeup collection and for good reason.

Much love,

Kitty xxx

JML Finishing Touch Flawess : Colourpop Lips

JML Finishing Touch Flawless Hair Remover* Review

Let's talk about facial hair! Everyone has it, me included. Some people remove it, some people don't, and as a woman or femme with facial hair, it can be tricky. I remember being a teenager and having someone make a comment about my moustache and being horrified, and it's something that has stayed with me. I'm very fair, but the hair above my lip has always been darker, so much more noticeable. I have quite a furry face generally (cheeky Green Wing reference there) with a lot of peach fuzz fluff, and it does make me self conscious. I tried laser hair removal a few years ago and while it helped, it is less successful with fair hair and I found that it didn't shift what I expected it to. Since then, I've mostly shaved the remaining lip hair with a normal razor when I've noticed it, and often quickly run it over the furrier sections on my cheeks. Many women and femmes are able to embrace their facial hair, but I'm afraid right now I'm just not one of them, so I was eager to try out the JML Finishing Touch Flawless Hair Remover*.

The hair remover retails for £19.99, and requires a single AA battery. 

It comes in a matte white finish with gold trim, almost like a giant lipstick tube in design. It's discreet and classic, you wouldn't mind it being seen in your handbag in public, it's not obvious what it is at all.

The razor itself is the classic rotating blades design that many of us have seen in men's electric razors. It's still enough to easily remove lip hair without being concerned you are getting too close to your nostrils. It's easy and comfortable to use, and really did the trick. It easily removed my lip hair, and my peach fuzz.

To use it you slide up the little gold bar at the bottom of the gold section. This starts both the rotating and also turns on the LED light which is really nifty for seeing those smaller and fairer hairs! It comes with a small brush for cleaning the head and popping a new battery in is incredibly easy as the top gold section simply pulls out.

This has definitely made it's way into my makeup bag and will be coming with me on any travels just in case. I've always used shavers designed for men in the past, but this smaller and more lightweight design worked really well for what I wanted it too, and looks cute to boot.

Much love, 

Kitty xxx

Colourpop Lips : An Actual Outfit Post

*denotes an item gifted to me. I was under no obligation to review, but I really liked it so did!

Bralettes with Tutti Rouge's Rougette*

It's been around a good six months since I last wore a wired bra, and it's one of the best decisions I've made for myself. I wear bralettes or non-wired bras exclusively, and the comfort factor is real. I've never worn a bra that was truly comfortable, so bralettes were the way forward for me. So imagine my excitement when Tutti Rouge announced their new Rougette range, which included two bralettes!

Tutti Rouge very kindly sent me the Madison Bralette* to try out. It's available in up to a XXXL and a FF/G cup. I'm wearing the XXXL in the DDD/E/F cup, the last time I was measured for a bra I wore a 42E/44DD. Plus size bralettes, especially in larger bust sizes are a rarity, so I was thrilled to try this. Leopard print is an absolute favourite print of mine, especially combined with lace. It's a sexier style bralette which is a rare breed in itself, as usually they tend to be a little plainer and simpler. It retails for £15, which I think is an incredibly fair price. I've bought bralettes on the high street for around the same price, that have nowhere near the attention to detail this bralette has.

It has smooth satin cups, a thick black elastic band, lace trim and little gold heart details and hardware. The whole bra, including the elastic, is really soft. I like to wear clothes before I review them and wash them, and this looks exactly the same after a couple of washes. Cheaper lace tends to bobble easily, this isn't the case here at all. My amazing tiger paw necklace* is by Sugar & Vice by the way, I'm obsessed with it.

The bralette has a traditional bra fastening and adjustable straps. As you can see, I don't wear mine at the same lengths on each side, most people find they have one breast bigger than the other, my bigger breast is around 2 cup sizes bigger. I therefore tighten the strap on one side much more than the other. One advantage of a bralette in this sort of style is that it doesn't matter than there is such a size difference between my breasts, because the cups don't act like normal bra cups.

I did find the elastic rolled a little as the day wore on, but I could probably have done with a slightly bigger back size as the XXXL translates to a 42 back and I'm just on the cusp of the size. Overall I'm so pleased with this bralette, and am excited to see Tutti Rouge release more bralettes in fun styles!

Much love,

Kitty xxx

PS. Shout out to my husband for taking these photos and giving me antlers in that last shot.

PPS. This blog is a first for me. I've only reviewed lingerie once before on my blog and I've never taken what I consider to be 'proper' photos like this for it. So I hope I'm not too awkward!

*Denotes an item gifted to me for review purposes. In no way does this impact upon my opinions which are entirely my own.

Girly Grunge : Glitterati

Girly Grunge with Navabi*

Music is one of my biggest fashion inspirations, and every autumn I am filled with the urge to bring out my inner 90's grunge kid. I love 90's Seattle grunge, Alice in Chains and Pearl Jam being my favourites. It makes me think of acid wash jeans, biker boots, plaid shirts, and long curly hair. I like adding in my usual mix of girly, and this lush Navabi Manon Baptiste Checked Midi Shirt Dress* is the perfect way to bring in my own touch of 90's grunge.

Paired with my fave Plus Equals pleather jacket, and my new ASOS glitter boots, it's the perfect way to wear a more feminine grunge inspired look. I am obsessed with this dress.

Navabi are high end plus size fashion, and with every piece of clothing I have from them that quality and care is so evident. This dress is 100% cotton. Cotton clothing is so rare in plus size, and to find something that is 100% cotton is even rarer. It feels so gorgeous on your skin, it's one of the softest things I've ever worn, and it's lovely and warm too, ideal for autumn.

I got my usual size, and it fits really true to size. Being 100% cotton it has no stretch at all, so if you are someone who has a particularly large bust you may need to size up just to be safe. It's a classic shirt dress style that flares out towards the bottom of the dress, skimming over your hips. and features a tie around the waist. You could very easily style this with a black jumper over the top of it for added warmth as winter hits, the collar peaking out would be adorable.

I mean could this be the more perfect dress for autumn?! I'm 5ft 11, and this dress hits me just under my knees which is fairly standard for a midi dress on me. Most people would find it to be a true midi length. The sleeves just reach my wrists, I usually roll sleeves up because they don't reach long enough, but I can get away with these down. 

I also love that this dress matches my hair now the purple has faded into more of a greeny blue. I think this dress has quickly become an absolute favourite piece that I own and I just know I'll be getting so much wear out of it.

I can see myself adding a whole lot more check print to my wardrobe this autumn!

Much love,

Kitty xxx

Crown & Glory Glitterati : Why I'm Still Playing Pokemon Go

*denotes an item gifted to me for review purposes. In no way does this impact upon my opinions which are entirely my own.

Autumnal Flowers with Lindy Bop*

I'm never a big fan of florals in spring, it just seems too predictable, but when it comes to florals in autumn, I love them! When I saw this 'Audrey' Wild Garden Print Swing Dress* from Lindy Bop it was instant lust! Florals on black is the high glamour goth I dream of.

Dress - Lindy Bop*

Jacket - Old New Look

Boots - ASOS

Gold hairband - Creations by Liv Free

I love to wear girly dresses but still have them feel very 'Kitty'. So stompy glittery boots, a faux leather jacket and dark lipstick were an absolute must. It's the sort of dress you could style in so many different ways, I tend to be more on the alternative spectrum so this is my version!

There are two important things to note about this dress. Number one - it has pockets. Pockets! Love a dress with pockets. Who doesn't?! Number two - this is one of the dresses Lindy Bop has released as part of their new range of size 28 dresses. I'm thrilled to see them expanding, there are currently four dresses available in a size 28, but it's a brand new roll out and there are plans for many more. I can't wait!

It's a lovely silk material, so perfect for a winter wedding with black opaque tights, a jacket and a fascinator. It also has a black belt that comes with it, that also importantly, is the right size for the dress. I've bought vintage style dresses from other shops and while they've increased the size of the dress, they've sent the same belt they would with every size dress, not here, it's the perfect size.

I also have to do a shout out for these boots. ASOS have just started selling up to a UK size 10 in women's styles for shoes and boots and I'm so happy to see a major retailer expand like that. It really gives me hope that one day I might be able to just walk into a high street shop and buy my shoe size off the shelf. Maybe one day. These are part of their wide fit range, and while they are wide enough for my wide feet, they aren't quite wide enough for my plus sized ankles. I can't zip them all the way up, but they are sturdy enough that they stay in the right spot when worn like this, so I can deal with it.

I really love this dress and am already scheming on events I can go to just so I can wear it. It's so lovely and the pockets make it true love.

Much love,

Kitty xxx

Curly Girl 6 Months On : Goodbye iPhone, Hello Samsung

*denotes an item gifted to me for review purposes. In no way does this impact upon my opinions which are entirely my own.

Goodbye iPhone, Hello Samsung and GoCustomized*

My phone contract ran out a couple of months ago, and after much thought about what to do, I decided that it was finally time to say goodbye to my iPhone. I've had an iPhone constantly since 2009, but it was the right time to make the switch. I've replaced countless screens on my iPhones, even with a good solid case and tempered glass, and the battery life just hasn't improved like it should over the years and new models. The fixed amount of storage space also left much to be desired, I always had a 16GB phone because anything bigger was just ridiculously expensive on a monthly plan, and generally meant a higher up cost payment as well.

So it was time to say goodbye to my iPhone, and hello to a Samsung Galaxy S8. And I am SO so pleased I made the jump! It took a little bit of getting used to, but it's really user friendly and quick to respond, especially compared to my old iPhone 6. One of the biggest differences I noticed right away is the screen resolution is just incredible in comparison. Everything is so much clearer and has so much more detail than it did on my iPhone. Even PokemonGo looks 10x better!

The other big plus is the battery life is massive compared to any of the Apple products I've used, and you can add extra memory cards to increase your storage. So your storage is literally endless and you can take all the photos you could ever want without ever running out of space. The only slightly weird thing compared to an iPhone is that the fingerprint technology is actually on the back of the phone, next to the camera lens, so you have to be careful not the smear the lens and use your pointer finger instead of a thumb like you might on most other phone models.

My husband has the S7 Edge, and I was surprised to discover that Samsung have changed their charger port in the S8, which means we can't share chargers. It's the sort of thing Apple have done a few times and it's annoyed us both, but for some reason didn't expect from Samsung. It does however have a fast charge when used with the official Samsung charger and cable that takes around an hour and a half to go from flat to 100% charge!

The other thing I needed as soon as I got my new phone, was a new case, because I am incredibly clumsy and wanted to protect it as much as possible. GoCustomized kindly let me design my own Samsung Galaxy S8 Tough Case* with them. You can have any photo printed onto them, so of course I had to opt for one of my favourite photos from our wedding day. It's a photo taken on 35mm film so it is grainy, it's not that it's been printed badly. It's a little paler than the original image, but otherwise very true to the photo I chose.

I opted for the full wrap case to provide the most protection I could, it has a lip that extends above the screen so even when landing face down, the screen doesn't touch the floor at any point. It fits the phone really nicely, and is a mixture of silicone and hard plastic. The buttons all have a silicone covering and work easily through the case. 

I'm in love with my new Samsung, and especially with the high quality photos it takes, and it's mega battery life. If you've been debating making the switch, go for it! I can't recommend it enough.

Much love,

Kitty xxx

My Facial Injury 3 Months On : Brides, Get Your Arms Out!

*denotes an item gifted to me for review purposes. In no way does this impact upon my opinions which are entirely my own.