"Body Shape… Perfect Fit" [Diamond]

I’m really excited to discuss the next two body shapes, Diamond and Oval. I’ll be honest; the reason is because I fit into their category.  Another reason is because not that many people really talk about us curvy women. So, let’s get started with Diamond.

Diamond body type has shoulders that are narrower than your hips. Your waist is larger than your bust and hips, with small to medium breast and a flat buttock and you carry some weight in your upper legs. With a Diamond shape it is important to pay attention to your upper body because you tend to gain weight mainly in your stomach and hips, which makes your waist not very defined.

As a Diamond body type your best assets are shapely lower legs and beautiful arms. So, if you’re a Diamond shape remember these… one... balance your bust and shoulder with your waist and two…. adding curves to your upper body is important.

Ok, now what is the best clothing to buy?

Your tops should be:

• Wide V or U Neck
• Off the shoulder
• Boat Neck
• Structured shoulders and Embellishments
• Nipped waist

Your bottom should be:

• Dark colored pants or skirts
• A-line Skirt
• Straight Skirt

 Your dresses should be:

• Empire waist dresses
• Maxi

Your jackets should be:

• Tailored hip length
• Box shape also hip length

Extra tip: When picking your pants and skirts make sure they fall from the widest part of your hip plus, your pants should have simple pockets.

Jones NY Women Boat Neck Shirt $23.70

ASOS Curve Exclusive Marney Straight Leg $56.46

Gestuz Tailored Jacket $84.69

ASOS Kimono Wrap Maxi $65.87

COLOR- Not afraid.................Just Confused (Break Away Wardrobe)

The way to introduce color into your wardrobe is by breaking away from all black everything in this day to day life we live. I know all the reasons and excuses we tell ourselves why we live through our black garments…."its slimming", "I looks chic"…."black goes with everything"…. I tell myself that every day.  The best way for you to work an outfit is to combine a color garment with a neutral one, it will add style.

Reminder…………………….. Stand out colors are the hues that are opposite of each other, i.e. complementary colors. Examples of this is yellow and violent, orange and blue, red and green (Please stay away from the latter, remember it screams Christmas! ).

Here are some fun ways to go color.............

Curvy girlz can shop online!

As women with curves we know shopping for clothes is not easy. Most apparel for plus size woman SUCKS!!.  Retailers and designers tend to put us in outfits that are shapeless or have lots of big flowers, poke a dots and shiny things. These were quite a few of the issues I came across when shopping for the perfect dress for my best friend’s wedding. So, I want to share with you my curvy girl shopping journey.

First stop for me is always Lane Bryant. This store is one of the better ones for plus size women. I found this purple or blue (we are still not sure which color it is) sleeveless pleated dress. It was cute but it kind of made me look like umpa lumpa. 

Ok, so I went to one of the major department stores in Miami, Dillards. I tried on two dresses that were more like wedding attire; one was a black deep V lace black mini. The major problem with this outfit, it showed too much. Fashion tip: When picking out an outfit you have to decide what asset you want to show…legs or chest, never both.  Then, I tried on a taupe and white glitter dress. It was nice but hit all the no no places (I did not like it). 

In my desperation I went to Avenue (not my favorite place). The dresses were too short and flowery, which made me look older.

Ugh! I started to complain to my sister about the lack of fashionable clothes for curvy women and then she suggested “why don’t you try shopping online?”  I looked at her like she was crazy. Shop online? … a plus size woman?... madness!!, but I pretty much had no other choice. So, for the first time ever I went on to ASOS and found a red sleeveless Grecian style dress and purchased it. I have never been so nervous in my shopping life. I had only a month left until the wedding and it would take just about 2 weeks to get here……. What if it was late?... What if it didn’t fit?..... What if it didn’t look good?......Well it took 3 weeks for it to come in and to my amazement it was worth the wait. I could not believe it the fit was perfect. It covered all the areas that I wanted to hide and enhance all my best areas. I paired it with a black open toe studded heal, a yellow clutch, layered pearl necklace and diamond earrings to complete my wedding outfit.

So yeah… curvy girlz can shop online!!

Lets Party Dress

Hey Ladies, I know it is sometimes hard to find the right dress for your office holiday party, plus show the right amount of sexy for this New Years. So, I put together some really cute or head turning party dresses.

Let’s start off at one of my top 6 online stores ASOS, where you can find this perfect mixture of sexy but conservative Belted Pencil Dress for $57.17. Next we will check out this new location Hautelook for the Monique Lhuillier $179.00 party dress. I know it’s a little on the pricey side but it caught my eye and I couldn’t look away… (Isn’t that the point?). No need to be nervous, Hautelook does have some affordable apparel, here is a cute and leggy High-Neck Lace Skater dress for $52.63.   Lastly, ASOS has this gorgeous Cross Back Mini party dress for $39.93. It’s tasteful with a little sex appeal.

Now, let’s bring in the New Years with a bang. BooHoo, has a black and silver Sequin Tutu dress. This $40.00 party dress has a flirty and fun silhouette. Next let’s go to HauteLook again for a $59.00 Julia Jordan Long Sleeve Shift dress. Then, back to ASOS<3 for the $39.93 sexy Sleeveless Deep V dress. Finally, check out Missguided for the head turning Dabra Zip Detail Body Con Mini dress.  

DinaBella's Top Six(6) Sites

Hey, fashion people, we wanted to share with you six of the main site we shop from. Like most of you, shopping is all about staying on trend and finding great bargains. I hope you give these following sites a try.

ASOS: This brand is very popular among celebrities (BOOKMARK it!).  The clothes are on point and they have a great sales area.  ASOS.com caters to all shapes and sizes.  Plus, they have a marketplace that allows boutiques, small business and individual designers to sell their own label, brands or vintage collections.

H&M: Like most of my fellow fashionistas I’ve waited with betted breath for this site to open up in the U.S. Why?   Not just for reasonable pricing, but they give us trendy apparel and great quality material with a European appeal.    Unlike some other sites, they do offer clothing for us curvy women.   Some of the negatives are navigating through this website its not easy for a first timer… and shipping/returns fees are $5.95 each.

Francesca’s Collection: Francesca’s Collection has jewelry (which are adorable!) for any occasion, plus apparel with an eclectic and playful feel to it. They cater to different types of girls; you can be boho chic or that southern girl.

Gorjana-Griffen:  a Jewelry online store that has unique sleek pieces.  There jewelry prices are a little on the high side but the good thing is there is always some type of discount. There jewelry is contemporary timeless pieces and if you love gold this site is for you!

MyHabit: if you are looking for high-end apparel with designers like Christian Siriano, Channel & Calvin Klein with semi-affordable prices this is your site.   Shipping is free and fast. The login, navigation and buying is very easy. The down side is that the items are limited so you have to move fast or someone will take it right from under you.  

BooHoo: This place, keep their trends in order. Just pick a trend and they will show you all the clothing in your category. It’s really easy for you to find the trend you want. BooHoo is extremely affordable and their US standard shipping is free.

Now, the turnaround was really inconvenient.  If you are going to order, make sure it’s not for the weekend or two days away.    Just order at least 3 weeks before the event. ..to our U.S. girls, remember it’s overseas and will take some time.  Another inconvenience (which happened to us) was tracking my purchase.. it was hard finding it, so I just had to wait.