Re-entering the world of ‘fashion’ post Gastric Bypass

As I have probably mentioned here somewhere before I have been overweight for as long as I can remember. In the past this has fed my utter disinterest in fashion. Finding clothes that you can fit in, that are age appropriate and are a vaguely right shape (it seems all kinds of different lumps and bumps were randomly catered for) was a very hard exercise when trying to shop for plus size fashion.

When I was morbidly obese and fitting a size 24-26 the only places I had easily available to me to find clothes were the Farmers plus size section, City Chic, and the plus size sections in shops like The Warehouse and Kmart. Buying anything was hard but especially things like undies and bras were especially difficult. Because I like to try things on I tend not to buy clothes online, not even now. Shopping was not the slightest bit enjoyable and as far from ‘fun’ as you could imagine.

Needless to say when I realised I fit into a ‘normal’ size i.e when I got down to a 16-18, I was suddenly completely overwhelmed with the ease of finding stuff that fitted but also the very vast array of choice that had now opened up to me. To be honest I haven’t deviated too much from my previous preferences in terms of having far too many black clothes and I still have a serious love affair with hoodies.

While I now find it amazing to have so much to choose from I still find shopping quite a frustrating experience. I have no idea how to piece outfits together and don’t really know what things to pair together to get a vaguely fashionable look. To get an outfit for my aunties wedding I spent an hour in Forever New trying things on and had, at one point, four shop assistants helping me by going and getting alternative options. I walked out with an outfit that I absolutely love but my gosh it was a mission.

There is so much to discover about yourself along the way losing a significant amount of weight and I don’t just mean your new physical shape because boy, that takes some getting used to. There’s almost a process of discovery finding out who you are again in terms of style and the image you want to portray with a completely new canvas to work from.

I am going to at some point soon (hopefully) in the future have a proper consultation with a stylist to see what colours really work for me and what shapes I should be looking for in garments to really accentuate the bits about my new body that I love. I have discovered high-waisted works really well now that I actually have the waist and shape to pull it off.

After working with Luke on Kiwi Living for my makeover I have progressed a bit and while I was in England I stepped outside of my comfort zone and got things that weren’t necessarily black but I also got things that had patterns. Even a patterned pair of pants! I still found the range and choice really overwhelming though. The picture above (sorry about the crinkled, just unpacked clothes) shows most of what I got in England. Missing is one blue and white dress and one entirely black outfit but it’s pretty much most of what I got.

Do you have any fashion tips or secrets to pulling together looks that I should know? How did you find your style and has it changed over time or as you have lost weight, let me know in the comments below I’d love to learn any great tips you have!