Today’s post is written by YLF forum member and recessionista blogger, Khris (“chewyspaghetti”) who lives in the California desert with hubby and two fab kids. Khris impresses me with her fabulous and effortlessly casual, Mum on the go style. Her outfits always show personality, verve and just the right amount of edge. But what impresses me even more is Khris’s commitment to losing 100 pounds, AND keeping it off. Every time Khris posts an outfit on the forum she looks smaller than she did before. So without further ado, here is rapidly shrinking Khris and her story.

About a year and a half ago I began to be concerned with my health. I have been heavy my entire life, and my body was starting to show the strain. I decided that I was not prepared to live with an illness that my weight had caused, and I set about to make changes in my life. I had lost weight before. Five years ago, I lost about 25 pounds. I did it by eating a low carb diet and exercising, but I was not able to maintain the loss.

But I started trying again. The first thing was to have a goal in mind, and that needed to be a big one. At that point (according to every chart or calculator that I could find on the internet) I was Medically Obese – meaning 100 pounds overweight. I figured that if I were 100 pounds overweight, then I should lose that 100 pounds and not be overweight for the first time in my adult life. I didn’t have any experience with normal weight ranges, so I did some investigation on the internet and spoke to my doctor to make sure that was an attainable goal. With assurances in hand, I set about my journey. I set a goal of losing only 1 pound per week, knowing that it would take me two years to reach my goal. I wanted to make slow lifestyle changes and build upon them. I knew that whatever I did to lose the weight, I would have to continue to do in order to maintain it- and maintenance was my ultimate goal.

Weight loss has changed me in ways that I would never have imagined. I have discovered that I have reservoirs of perseverance previously untapped. It has not been an easy journey, and it has not been smooth; but it has been deeply rewarding. I am creating a whole new relationship with food and exercise, and my body as well. I can only hope that when I reach my goal (*when*- not if), these changes will have solidified. I am currently 61 pounds into my weight loss, with 39 more pounds to go. I’ve dropped 6 pants sizes, and about a size and two widths in shoes.

I had always been interested in fashion and clothing, but my weight loss (which was rapid at the beginning) required me to replace my entire wardrobe from season to season. I decided that this was a good opportunity to be a little more adventurous with my choices, knowing that things would only fit for a limited amount of time. I discovered You Look Fab, and began reading it daily. In no time at all, the forum at You Look Fab became not only a source of inspiration, but a sounding board for my changing body. Often, my eyes and brain needed time to catch up with my body. I was not always able to recognize in the mirror what others could see more plainly- be it shape, fit, or change.

I did not just lose weight, but my shape changed dramatically. I had to learn how to dress a completely new body, and discover my style as a normal sized person. The struggle has been as much mental and emotional as it was physical. The wonderful ladies on the You Look Fab forum have been a huge source of encouragement and support through this process, and I continue to cherish their input and feedback on fashion and weight loss as well as other subjects.

Remember that you can read more about Khris on her blog: Chewy Spaghetti.

When Barbara (“Babe”) won the “Mrs. O, The Face Of Fashion Democracy” giveaway, she agreed to review the book for the rest of us. Barbara did just that, and here are her reflections. Thanks so much for your time and effort, Barbara. I thoroughly enjoyed reading your review!

When I was a young girl and my parents took our family on a trip to Washington DC, it was not images of the Washington Monument or Lincoln Memorial that stayed in my mind for years afterward. It was the display of dresses at the Smithsonian Institute. Dresses first ladies had worn for their husbands’ inaugural ceremonies.

Add to this the fact that the nomination, campaign, election, inauguration and administration of Barack Obama has captured my attention more than any of the previous presidential histories I’ve lived through, and you can understand why I am delighted to have won Angie’s raffle and the chance to review the new book by Mary Tomer, Mrs. O ,The Face of Fashion Democracy.

If you don’t love Michelle Obama when you buy this book, you probably will after you’ve read it. And chances are, once you open this book you won’t put it down soon. Be warned: it will cast its magic spell on you. It’s more than a treatment of the first lady’s wardrobe. It’s also a concise look at how the fashion industry works in America now.

Click here to read the rest of Babe’s review »

Despite a rather wet start, it was another night of glitz and glamour at the 82nd Academy Awards. Surprisingly, pastel tones and light coloured gowns were the order of the evening. Nude, blush pick, lilac, silver grey and metallic shades were a plenty. There were few black and red gowns, many more patterned gowns and virtually no necklaces.

Here’s my rundown of the gowns and suits. First, the best dressed lasses:

1. I have a tie for first place! Both Vera Farmiga and Helen Mirren took my breath away. Vera’s dark red sculptured pleated gown was spectacular and the colour was delicious against her creamy white skin. Unfortunately, the picture you see below does not do her dress justice, so I hope you saw her on stage in all her glory. Helen’s silver grey dress with tulle shoulder wrap was simply stunning. Perfectly age appropriate and alluring at the same time.
2. Sandra Bullock was beautiful in a sleek and retro shimmery gold gown with lace insets. She epitomized old Hollywood glamour perfectly, the red lips and asymmetrical hairstyle adding a great final touch. Her acceptance speech was the best of the night and I’m thrilled that she won the award.
3. Queen Latifah was dazzling and so, so, so pretty in an extremely flattering one shouldered lilac gown. The colour against her skin was magical and she looked as elegant as ever.
4. Jennifer Lopez wore a dramatic gown that was a technical work of art. Wow! It was a little too pastel for my liking, but exquisite nonetheless. A real show stopper.
5. Oprah Winfrey never looked better. Her midnight blue, wrap top gown was gorgeous and she oozed femininity and a regal grace that was hard to beat.

I also liked Rachel McAdams’s muted water colour floral gown and Maggie Gyllenhaal’s printed strapless blue gown because they were different and risky. Tina Fey looked lovely in a beaded black asymmetrical gown. Sarah Jessica Parker‘s dress was fab from the side and back, but I wasn’t fond of it from the front. Meryl Streep looked classy in a long sleeved white gown with a plunging neckline. Good for Meryl! I loved Barbara Streisand’s tuxedo’d dress ensemble and immediately thought how fashion forward she was compared to many of the other women. Zoe Saldana’s gown was my least favorite of the night until I saw it on stage. It’s astounding how much better it looked on stage than on the red carpet.

The best dressed blokes:

1. Alec Baldwin was flawlessly clean cut in a classic tux with bow tie and later a black suit with skinny black tie. I loved his slicked back hair and the way his white cuffs peeked out from under his jacket sleeves. He and Steve Martin made the best Academy Award hosts ever.
2. Robin Williams was fabulous in an all black, textured tux. His goatee and specs absolutely rocked.
3. Gerard Butler was devastatingly handsome in his classic tux, but his accent is still his best accessory.
4. Tom Ford was just what you’d expect: PERFECT.
5. Jeremy Renner looked dashing in a black suit with silver grey tie and twinkle in his eye.

Robert Downey Jr. was adorable in an oversized blue bowtie and blue tinted specs. Super cute. Zac Efron looked superb is a 60’s inspired black suit and hip hair. Morgan Freeman, Jake Gyllenhaal and Colin Firth looked distinguished and fabulously polished.

I wasn’t very impressed with Jeff Bridges, George Clooney, Keanu Reeves and Sean Penn. Perhaps unruly hair and unkempt facial fuzz can be explained by their current acting assignments, but there is no excuse for a sloppy top button on a dress shirt. This is the Oscars and you should look exceptionally turned out.

I’m excited to compare Oscar fashion notes, so over to you. Who made your best and worst lists?

Today’s post is written by forum member Kim (“queenie”), who lives in San Jose, CA with her adoring husband and four teenage sons. In a house full of boys, girly time is precious and rare! So I asked fab, fun-loving, exuberant Kim if she’d like to road test some accessories from Outfit Additions, and here’s the result. Be sure to catch the opportunity to win a gift coupon at the end of Kim’s review.

I love to play with accessories to add style quotient to my outfits, so I was honored when Angie asked me to review some of the silk items from Outfit Additions. After browsing the website I chose the small wallet in carbonado, the clutch in cherry red and two belts — one in turquoise and the other in a lovely midnight blue vine design. The clutch, wallet and turquoise belt are 100% silk, while the midnight belt is 100% polyester.  I was quite impressed with the quality of these items. The fabric is of beautiful quality and each item is meticulously crafted. There are no loose threads or crooked stitching on any of the items I received. The colors are vibrant and rich.

The small tri-fold wallet was put to use immediately. I like to carry two wallets — a full size to carry the myriad of cards and coupons that I manage to accumulate, and a smaller wallet that holds my driver’s license, bank card, credit card and cash. This is the wallet that I throw into my gym bag or grab for a quick trip to the store for one or two items. My current small wallet had seen better days, so I filled this pretty little wallet with my items and have been happily toting it along ever since. It feels soft and luxurious in my hands and services me quite nicely. The tri-fold design keeps everything put and I don’t have cards and coins spilling out into the bottom of my purse.

The clutch is actually more of what I would call a full size wallet. It has slots for several cards, cash and coins. I love the cherry red color of this clutch, although I would love for it to be designed more as a clutch handbag that I could fill with lipstick, cell phone and compact for an evening out. I did play around and snapped it over a long gold necklace I have. That proved to be a fun way to make it look more like a little purse.

To be honest, I was initially uninspired by the belts. While beautifully made, I was not thrilled with the design of the D-ring buckles and didn’t see the belts as ones that I could easily integrate into my wardrobe.  However, after playing around in my closet, I soon discovered that I was dead wrong. I used both belts to accessorize several different outfits from clothes that I already owned. I paired them with my fanciest black dress to create a slightly more casual outfit and was also able to add just a bit of pop and polish to a simple outfit of jeans and a knit top. I wore the belt both in the belt loops of my jeans and layered around my blouse or dress. I was pleased with both looks.

I would have preferred a more dressy buckle than the D-rings, but I played around a bit with weaving the belt through the buckle and found that creating a type of knot around the buckle and letting the end hang added some fun visual interest. The turquoise belt is 100% silk and will be a fun accessory to use in my wardrobe this spring. The midnight blue belt is 100% polyester and has a more matte finish than the silk.  This belt pairs well with the blacks and blues in my wardrobe.

If you’re looking for something different than the typical leather wallets and leather belts, stop by and browse the offerings of Outfit Additions. The selection of rich colors is quite enticing and the quality of the pieces is impressive.

Outfit Additions is giving away a $100 gift coupon to one lucky YLF reader. To enter the competition, please fill out this online survey. To confirm your entry, leave a comment here on YLF saying that you completed the survey. We will pick a winner by using a random generator. Please complete the survey and leave your comment by midnight, Wednesday 10th March.