{shopping} in the stores...h&m+

while in NYC i decided to run into h&m on 34th street to check out their h&m+ offerings.

i snapped a few (blurry)pics with my iphone.

{celebrities} curves on the red carpet

i love awards season!

seeing all the fashion and bling and just the excitement in the air. 

 and add to that my twitter peeps, 

(who brought the Academy Awards to me via my stream 

because i was out on the streets of NYC...thanks ya'll) 

it is so much fun.

and it has been especially fun seeing women with curves walking the red carpet.

i love that my favorite curves rocker of the season,

Academy Award, BAFTA Award, Golden Globe, NAACP Image Award, Sag Award Winner
Octavia Spencer 

(said in a high pitched proud sista girl voice) 

worked with a designer who aint brand new to curves.

Tadashi Shoji frocked her in color and sparkle and showed off her curves.

{shopping} what you talking 'bout willis

i lurve Coach bags...

note some of the ones that i own here, here, here, here and here.

they are made of such good quality leather that will last forever.
i have only had a problem with one bag over the years
& the customer service i have always received is stellar.

once i literally walked into the Coach store at Columbus Circle in NYC during a visit
without a receipt and my purse full of all my stuff and told the sales associate
what my problem was and walked out with a new one with no issue

i love good service

and this season, they have so many cute new bags out and

i seriously want the new Willis bag in every one of the many colors it comes in,
but especially these two!

the original willis bag was at one time their best selling bag ever.
it's one of the classic styles that they have brought back but i am lovin'
the curves of the new version and the fun colors

{life} is a delicious big apple...

I am sitting in a cafe, sipping a chai & very slowly devouring some Laudree macarons writing this post from NYC.

It's heaven.

Being in NYC always seems to simultaneously wear me out and rejuvenate me.

I will write more soon but i wanted to take a moment to check in and i hope your weekend is fueling you as much as mine has me!

p.s i am using the blogger app for this post. It's shockingly kinda limited in comparison to other blogging apps i have used...more on that later

{events} Chic Swaps Sweater Swap Recap

The first Chic Swaps event is officially in the books.

The ladies were swappin and shoe shopping.

As always with the events with the V & V girls and Amber, there was lots of laughter and fun.

Oh and i debuted new hair!

my dress
And as you can see, I wasn't joking in my last post when i LOL'd at the fact that we always end up with some animal print on!

{events} Chicago Fashion Connect Mixer

I attended the first Chicago Fashion Connect (CFC) mixer of 2012 and it was networking and socializing @ it's best.

One of my favorite things about the CFC mixers is that they color code the name tags.




I also love that they always choose a really great location.

{events} heel clickin for the weekend baby!

TGIF fam.

i am so glad it's the weekend! not that it means i don't have work to do, because i still do but it does mean that i slow down just a wee bit and i have a couple of fun to do's on my list.

first, i am super excited for the Chic Swaps sweater swap, which is taking place Sunday!

Amber has opened up the invitation, so if you are one of those last minute girls, there is still time to just click over and purchase your ticket and join in the swappin.

she has even added a ticket for that girl who doesn't feel like going thru her closet and bringing items but wants to take some new to her ones home. (LOL for the name...lazy swapper and that would totally be me!)

oh and don't forget that there will be shoes and jewelry and more on sale from violette and vive la femme plus other goodies!

so, i hope to see you curvy ladies there! it's gonna be a swappin good time.

and as i posted yesterday, the shops at 900 N. Michigan are hosting a shop tax free weekend, so i would remiss if i did not drop in and get in on it. oh and don't forget to print your shopping pass!

what's on your weekend to do list? i hope it includes some fun!

{shopping} silicone + neon = love

i have seriously been bitten by the neon bug.

first it was my shoedazzle bag, which is crazy bright!

Now it's this crazy cute silicon neon wallet, that i must have.

i am still deciding if i want the lemon or the orange and/or if i want the cosmetic pouch and/or coin purse.

{shop} tax free @900Shops!

for the 4th year in a row, the fine folks at 900 N. Michigan are hosting a tax free weekend!

here is your chance to shop at over 40 of our fav shops and not pay that 9.5% buzz kill sales tax.

click the pic to print your savings pass.

{rock} OOTD: fiery...floral...leopard...

i am that girl, who likes to wear the color of the day on holidays, 

so of course i rocked some hot red on valentine's day.

and true to form, i also threw a bit of animal print,
leather and even flowers in the mix...

{elevate} blah..blah..blah

Source: imgspark.com via Curvatude on Pinterest

today i refused to let the naysayers with their "why do we need a fake, commercial holiday, you should give love every day" rants taint my valentine's joy.

{elevate} motivation...

Source: imgspark.com via Curvatude on Pinterest

{lovin} fab five...

this fab five features some links to things that i think are way cool...

this rendition of hello again from amos lee...it always makes me want to sway my hips...

there is a fab new home opening today that the folks at bare necessities
have created just for we girls with curves.

over 81 brands, 1,000+ items and a sweet range of sizes...viva la curves

i am geeked about fabulous service that allows you to create a custom pillow from instagram photos

here are some of my instagram photos that i would use

speaking of photos, have you checked out my pinterest pins?

there is so much visual stimulation...i'm obsessed!

fab five out!

{rock} OOTD: zebra and furrr....

this is one of my favorite dresses (last seen here).

i have had it for almost three years and i seriously do not wear it enough mainly because 

it's made of a silk/cotton combo, so i have to be really careful about snags.

normally i have worn a thick black belt with the dress but i decided to wear my 

gold skinny belt as just an accent to tie in with the gold jewelry that i wore.

dress: inc via macy's | coat: jessica simpson via ideeli | 

purse: b. makowsky (last seen here) | belt: asos curve | bangle: macy's | earrings: love and pieces

i love that it has sequins along the neck and hem...

the "boots" that i am wearing are actually the booties that i wrote about here and boot covers

more pics on my facebook page.

{luxuries} gettin uber...

one of the things that i loved about living in harlem, was that it didn't matter if it was 4am, i could always find a taxi or town car.

the thing i hated about both was that you never know what surprises you might encounter, i.e, smells, drivers on their phones, etc.

but what i loved about the town cars, was that they were spacious and relatively comfortable.

i am big on comfort.

so, needless to say, i was geeked to give uber a go.

uber is an on demand private driver service, that you can summon via text or phone app.

{rock} OOTD: going red for women...

as i wrote about in yesterday's post, today is Wear Red Day, so it's a perfect day for me to pull out this fab Kiyonna dress that i purchased months ago but hadn't worn yet!

{shopping} bright neon lights...

as much as i have been loving a lot of the trendy neon items, i am not the girl to spend a boatload on trends.

and with my new monthly shopping budget being capped at 200 bucks, i am really vigilant (and wicked proud) about how i spend it.

so, when i came across these fun neon bag from shoedazzle, i knew i had to have one, especially since i had a credit, meaning i didn't have to tap my february budget to purchase.

SCORE!

i snagged the neon green. i hope it's as fab in person as it is online.

{events} Go Red for Women

Every year Go Red for Women is one of the numerous causes that I support that is near and dear to my heart (pun intended).

I have written before about my history with heart disease and I am all for events that bring more attention to the cause.

Once again the first Friday in February is Wear Red Day with numerous events taking place all over the country (Chicago Meetups here).

So plan to rock your favorite red and share the awareness!

Learn more here.

Also, the AHA has partnered with Macy's to offer discounts with the Wear Red Sale until Sunday the 5th.

To save an extra 10- 20% off online, use promo code: RED

To save in-store: Wear red or use your Macy's card and/or purchase a Red Dress Pin for $2 to get the extra savings. {Macy's will donate all Red Dress Pin proceeds to American Heart Association's Go Red For Women movement.}.

{see their website for all the details and exclusions}

Oh and don't forget the Bleeding Heart launch taking place here in Chicago Friday night.

{events} Randolph Street's Winter Market, Passions and Vanities,

Once again the fine folks at the Randolph Street Market are bringing something fun and new to brighten our winter days with the debut of their winter markets.

First up is Passions and Vanities.  It will be gems, couture, art, antiques and other endearing vices and more.

I am so looking forward to it.

Side note: Chili, cold beer & a big screen TV lounge will be set up for those who want to get their shop on and check out the Super Bowl.

Learn more and get tickets here.