Thursday 19 January 2012

Any publicity is good publicity....Or is it?

When I won Brastop's Model of the Month December competition, I immediately contacted my local paper, The Sentinel, to generate a bit of publicity for Brastop and the competition. I went to speak to a reporter, who asked a few questions, then met a photographer for lots of fun shots with my bag of bras I took with me, including Curvy Kate, Ewa Michalak and Freya. I'm hoping to get some of these photos to use here on my blog, so keep your eyes peeled.


Now....I have some issues to say the least with the article...Hmmm....32G? I haven't worn a 32G since before my diet, which was about 18 months ago! I told the reported that I was a 28GG and she looked shocked, so I went on to say that women are often scared of bigger cups and that they shouldn't be, because if they went for a proper fitting then they would probably BE in the cup sizes they're so scared of. It seems that the reporter didn't listen to me and added 4 inches to my band size *RAGE*, as so many fitters and online calculators do. 

The other issue is that they mentioned I'd been buying Brastop's magazine for a year, which is also untrue. The Brastop magazine, which can be read online here, is free and sent out to customers. It hasn't been running for a year either! Also, the prizes listed in the article aren't 'runner-up prizes', they are prizes for winning the Model of the Month competition. 

It's all so wrong...I wanted to set the record straight here, just so you know the truth!

Note to reporters: LISTEN TO YOUR SUBJECT!

Friday 13 January 2012

More about me...

So you've seen me in online in my smalls for almost a year now, time for you to learn a little more about me!

I hit the grand old age of 30 last August and I can't say I was looking forward to it. I'm frequently told I don't look my age but that still doesn't stop me being my age! It's bizarre turning a 'milestone' age. You start to question what you've done with your life, what you've achieved and what you haven't. Then you shrug your shoulders and get on with it!

I work as a diabetic retinopathy screener at Glyn Jones Opticians in Hanley, Stoke-On-Trent with my wonderful boyfriend Ian who's an optometrist and one of the directors there. I'm working towards getting my City and Guilds qualification in my job role, which doesn't sound much, but there's so much seemingly pointless work involved and it's essential for my role. My job involves checking what the patient can see on a test chart, instilling dilating drops and taking retinal photographs. I only wish I could tell my diabetic patients off for not looking after themselves, as sometimes they seem only too proud to tell me how they like to cheat on their diets and have a cream cake and sweets each week. It's so sad that they can't see the risks sometimes. I love my job and I'm lucky enough to work alongside my boyfriend so I get to see him every day :)

When I'm at home I like nothing more than sitting on the sofa with a dog by my side while I sew tiny dresses, shoes or crochet hats for my BJDs (Ball Jointed Dolls). Here are a few of my creations...





I realise it's quite an unusual hobby for a 30 year old but that's what this post is about; the me behind the bras. BJDs aren't toys in any sense of the word. They're collectors pieces and the price reflects that. The small dolls above cost around £160 each and are from Fairyland and Latidoll . The most expensive doll I have is my Minifee Miyu which cost £320 second hand. She's truly stunning though and you can see the workmanship quite clearly. Here she is;

My other passion is my dogs. I have three shih-tzus and adore them. I'm one of those freaks who refers to them as my babies! I just love them, what more can I say? 
Unconditional <3

My favourite band is No Doubt and has been for a long long time. I adore Gwen Stefani and have a huge collection of her L.A.M.B handbags and Harajuku Lovers bits and bobs. My favourite TV shoes are American Dad (I love Roger!), Family Guy, Criminal Minds, Don't Tell The Bride and wildlife documentaries about sharks, snakes, spiders, whales and dolphins. As for movies, I love The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Studio Ghibli movies and Tim Burton animations. Oh, and Harry Potter of course. There's no better movie series I'm afraid. End.

Anyway, enough of my ramblings, you know a bit more about me now, I just hope I didn't bore you too much!

Another passion of mine *graphic content*

If you're a friend of mine on Facebook, or follow me on twitter (@kel-kitty), you'll have noticed that from time to time I share stories about whaling and captive cetaceans.

In a word, it's wrong, but I won't ram it down your throats. Please just take a few minutes out and read this post.

 My only word on this is to think twice and do your research before you visit Seaworld or any seaquariums that happen to keep cetaceans. It may be on your bucket list to swim with dolphins but please be aware of the reality of it all. The majority of the dolphins you see in Seaworld and similar come from places like the Japanese slaughter  fishing village of Taiji in Japan. Pods of dolphins and false killer whales are herded into the bay and slaughtered brutally by teams of Japanese 'fishermen', who stab them in the spinal cord and bleed them as their family members watch helplessly, knowing their own fate. The dolphin meat is then sold and consumed in Japan, despite it having high levels of mercury. It is often served in children's school lunches without any regard to the chemical risks.

Don't forget, they are high functioning mammals just like us. Only the prettiest dolphins survive which are then are carted off to seaquariums worldwide for families to take their kids to.

If you can stomach it, please watch The Cove for an on-site view of Taiji's killing season from the point of view of a team of activists.


Left; the sugar coated fantasy. Right; the harsh reality.

It's also worth saying at this point that if you're in the UK, there are a number of sites to see dolphins in the wild, notably Cardigan Bay in Wales, a popular spot for the everybody's favourite, the Bottlenose dolphin. Yes, off the British coast. You don't need to go to Seaworld and support the slaughter really, do you? For further information on the Cardigan Bay dolphins or to adopt one (I'm an adopter of Nic Nic), go to the Sea Watch Foundation. I you'd like to adopt a whale (I adopted SOD), see the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society.

If you've taken the time out to read this post, then I'm eternally grateful to you, and if it's made you think twice about your dream of swimming with dolphins, better still.

Thursday 12 January 2012

2 more from Curvy Kate!

Rich jewel colours, ruffles, bows, oodles of detailing...It can only mean one thing, another Curvy Kate Showgirl review!

I have to admit, every time I open my lingerie drawer, I let out a sigh at the sheer beauty of this first bra. It is truly beautiful! It is Curvy Kate's Thrill Me in Jade/Fuchsia. It's base colour is supposedly jade, but I'd call it more of a turquoise. It's trim is a bright, contrasting fuchsia, and works beautifully against the jade.

I was fortunate enough to receive this bra, along with all the bottoms; the thong, high-waisted brief and the shorts as a Christmas present from my lovely boyfriend. I prefer the shorts out of the three, as they have cheeky ruffles across the bottom and also have detachable suspenders. The high-waisted briefs are something I've not tried before, and although other women find them flattering, I feel they make me look bigger somehow. I love the thong as frills at the top of each leg, so cute! 

For size reference, the bra is a 28H and the bottoms are all in a 14. As always with Thrill Me, back down, 2 cups up is my general rule, but this must only be used as a guide, as you may find they fit you differently. op to bottom, shorts, thong, high-waisted brief.





Again a Christmas present, this time Curvy Kate's Tease Me in Black/Almond. I LOVE Tease Me, it's so sexy AND supportive. The almond colour makes a nice change from the brighter colours from past seasons, and I must admit, I wasn't a fan initially, but seeing it in the flesh changed that. I just have the gorgeous shorts in this set, with ruffles on the back and detachable suspenders.

Again, in a size 28H and this time the shorts are a size 16.

There's nothing more I can say about these sets that I haven't already covered. I just think they are gorgeous!

Thanks for reading
<3

Dolores, Dolores, let down your hair....

Just before Christmas I'm ashamed to say binged on Collectif dresses and tops. They were running a 40% off sale at the time, so that's how I justified it! The style in question is my favourite 'Dolores'. All prices featured in this post are correct at the time of publishing. For size reference everything here is a size 8.

The cut of the Dolores with it's ruched centre and sweetheart neckline means that you get a sensational cleavage and room for the girls too. The sleeves are puffed, giving the Dolores a distinctive gypsy style. The Dolores range features tops, flared dresses and tops made from stretch cotton to hug your curves in sizes 8-22, and come in a huge range of kitsch patterned and plain fabrics.


L-R: Dolores fitted Cherry Stem dress (with and without cardigan), £45



Above is the Dolores doll dress in navy polka dot, £50. I wanted to show a few different looks with this one, as I think it's pretty versatile and can be worn for shopping on a summery day or for a big night out. In the third photo I'm wearing a fabulous red puffy Lola petticoat, £39, which adds volume, drama and a splash of colour as you move in this amazing dress.

Now for the tops!


The first photo is the Dolores feral leo top, £25. My god do I LOVE this top?! Again, it can be worn casually with jeans (mine are high-waisted and from Primark), or it could be dressed up with a pencil skirt for a sexy night out! The second photo shows the Dolores top in black, £25. Again, this could be dressed up or down and is a good staple for any wardrobe. I also got this in white for the same purpose.

Collectif is my favourite place to buy 50's style clothing. Their prices are reasonable, and their clothes are beautiful. I particularly like how they have a basic range of shapes, then simply change the fabrics they use each season, ensuring you'll always have your favourite shape to come back to. If you love 50's styling, you'll love Collectif!

Mwah! Thanks for reading lovelies! x


Friday 6 January 2012

Finally I've won something!!

So on my quest to be photographed professionally in my smalls I've been entering Brastop's 'Model of the Month' competition every month since it started back in July last year. Yes, you guessed it, I won December's title!

I can tell you I'm thrilled to bits and have already landed an interview with the local paper (again) to try and drum up support for some votes when the time comes. I'm sure the people at The Sentinel are sick to death of me now, since I was only in the paper a month ago for the third time last year! It's all unpaid so they can't really complain!

As part of the prize I'm to attend another professional photo shoot and make over at the end of the month, and I'll be put through to Brastop's overall Cover Girl competition, which is when I'll need your votes (pretty please, you lovely people <3)! Please do check out Brastop.com, it's the only online bra shop I'll go back to again and again! Nice plug there Kel... I'll leave you with one of my winning photos ;)


As always, thanks for reading! x