Dressing for my Fibromyalgia

Firbromyalgia has ruled my life for the last year and for most of that time I had no clue what was causing me so much constant pain. It has affected my hands and feet quite seriously and has made some items of clothing nearly impossible for me to wear without help to dress which at 33 years old quite honestly sucks!

Buttons have become my nightmare my hands just won't work well enough to do them up easily so I have begun to avoid half my wardrobe! Simply be recently sent me a few bits to try out for the summer, and I decided to focus on clothing suitable for my hands that wouldn't leave me stressed and a gibbering wreck.

My first outfit features a beautiful and simple top which I am dying to buy a new skirt to wear it with but today I teamed it with my gorgeous floral trousers from Very.

Crochet Sleeve Top C/O Simply Be

Trousers - Very (previous season)

Pink Brogues - Clarks (previous season)

This top is so simple to wear, no buttons or clasps not even a zip! Perfect for me to throw on without stressing and struggling. It also comes in a coral colour that is just perfect too, I would love to see it in back or purple colours I would live in them! 

I ordered this in a size 22 as I knew it would have no stretch and it is pretty spot on, any bigger and it wouldn't have worked for me. 

I have another outfit I put together for you which I will post on sunday most likely as I have a BBQ to go to tomorrow night. looking forward to a night out!

For all you readers out there who suffer from chronic pain, do you have any advice on clothing that works well for you. 

Mhairi

xxx

*Top provided for review free of charge, all words and opinions are my own. 

Fatshion Faceoff - Maxi skirt

Maxi Skirts are one of my favourite wardrobe staples, as a short girl they can be quite hard to wear (well for me anyway) but when I find a good one I wear it to death! 

This summer I found it really hard to find one that I loved enough to splash out for so when I won £100 worth of Pink Clove vouchers I was glad to spot one on their website I wanted to try. I have to be honest though I haven't worn it much as I couldn't decide what top would look good with it as it is quite straight up and down, but I came up with an outfit I was pleased with, I felt comfortable yet stylish.

Skirt @Pink Clove - Blouse C/o Simply Be - Cardigan - Very Old New Look

I only managed to get one full length picture and my feet are missing so sorry. 

I teamed the Blouse/ skirt combination with my Wide belt to stop it all looking boxy.

Boots C/o Simply Be

I teamed the skirt with my Shoe boots from Simply be as they are great with skirts as it doesn't end up tucked into them.

A Little Close up of my new Glasses from SpecsPost

Head on over and check out the other gorgeous Fatshion Faceoff girls, I bet they look stunning!

Hanna The Wardrobe Challenge (UK)

Olivia Wait Until the Sunset (Australia)

Mouna Brussels Fatshion (Belgium)

Dani http://www.diyfatshion.com/(USA)

Plus Size Swimwear Challenge - Tesco

Plus Size Swimwear Challenge

Well hello again and welcome to our Plus Size Swimwear Challenge, myself and 3 other bloggers are challenging ourselves to try out some plus size swimwear, and be brave enough to blog about it. 

For me this is a huge thing as I can tell you that it is at least 5 years since I even went swimming, so swimwear has not been a priority for me, but I need to get fitter and swimming is an excellent way for me to do this.

Swimwear for me is doubly challenging, firstly I am plus size, obviously,  but I also have a very large bust at a 36/38H I struggle to get decent fitting bra's let alone swimsuits, I need support and plenty of it!!

The first swimwear I have been sent to try is from the lovely people at Tesco's, I choose the Panache Natalia Fuller Tankini top and bottoms in a 38G which is the largest size they do.

We are all following the same 5 step review to give a consistent report across all the swimwear.

So here goes.

Appearance 

The swimsuit is beautiful in person with vibrant colours and nice thick material.

I love the fold down panel on the bottoms as it made me feel more secure and helped hide my pre menstrual (sorry for the TMI) bloated tummy, this I like, I loved the purple trim on the top but not the bow on the bust so much as because it is round lace like ribbon it just doesn't look nice tied and wont sit right at all. 

It has nice little metal panache tags on the top and bottoms which thank goodness aren't in awkward positions and are just kind of cute! yes I like strange things :) 

Fit

This is where this Tankini fell down for me, the bottoms fitted beautifully, but the top was a strange one!

It has a full insert bra with 2 hook and eye fastenings with 3 rows which I love! I hate fiddling with bikini fastenings and they always snap on me! 

The problem I had is that the Bra fits my bust really well, but the swimsuit itself does not have enough material to encompass my ladies so it pulls down and shows the wires, not I think I am slightly bigger than the cup size of this tankini but I found it odd that the bra section fits so well but the suit is low on material!

I am not sure if Panache themselves make this in a bigger size but it would be interesting to try in some bigger sizes to see if it corrects itself with a bigger cup.

Comfort

The Tankini is very comfortable and if you have a smaller bust than me, I would highly recommend it, the bottoms give a nice silhouette and the material is lovely, I unfortunately can't vouch for it in the swimming pool as I am one too ill to manage walking there and two my ladies would most likely fall right out of the costume as it is. I am thinking of trying a stitch or two to bring the material to the wires so its a bit more secure but wanted to show it as is for the purposes of the review.

Coverage

The coverage for me is excellent, apart from the obvious boobage issue, but the top is nice and long easily reaching just past the top of the bottoms, and the bottoms themselves are tight but not bulgy and cover my amply bottom nicely. the back comes up high enough for there to be no lumps and bumps on show.

Performance

Well I cant give you a review on swimming performance but i performed jiggle tests and laying down tests, and it looks good, my boobs stayed in and it was comfy to lay down in so for a summer sunshine holiday I would be happy to take this with me either with the little stitch in or with the larger cup. 

Excuse the shorts but I am not well enough to worry about bikini waxes at the moment :)

Value

Well the Tankini isn't the cheapest item that Tesco's sell but if like me you have a big bust it might be a good option to look at, the price of £52.50 might be a it high for some, and possibly would be for me if it is only getting used for a one off holiday, but if I can wear it happily at the swimming pool too, then I will pay this happily if it gives me the confidence to go! 

Value is subjective, if you can afford it, go for it if not I would try something from Tescos other ranges. 

Overall I do love this Tankini, and if I can make it work, I would be a very happy girl!

Make sure you check out the other fabulous ladies taking part in the swimwear challenge.

Becky - The Ramblings of Mrsbebe

Gina - Fat Fit Fine

Sara - Confusedbrit