Fashion

Enjoy the beach like a Brazilian

: It has already been the time when the grandmothers used to stay at home crocheting. The new elderly look younger, have more resources or vanity and they really like to enjoy their lives like you or me. What am I saying that? Because in Brazil the two pieces bikini is very democratic. What does it mean? It signifies that girls and women from 0 to 100 wear bikini and nobody become shocked.

You might think that in Brazil everyone walks almost naked on the streets. It is not true. Topless, for example, is forbidden. However, I think Brazilians have different connection with the beach than Americans, for example. While Americans are very practical, Brazilians want to feel beautiful and powerful on the beach. Bikinis in Brazil have better quality, because the customers are more exigent  and they have better cut and finish. Yes, our swimsuits are bold, low-cut and expose more the body and no, Brazilian do not wear small beachwear just to expose their bodies to men.

The first reason for Brazilian tiny pieces is the sunburn. Despite the fact of Brazilian long summer, they really like to look dark all year round and big bikinis create huge stops on the skin. Many brands have tried to insert big cruise bikinis, but they were not successful.
The second reason is the comfort. I have to confess the first time that I have seen those tankinis I got surprised. I would say most probably very few people in Brazil could wear that. It is tacky, heavy, hot and conservative. Maybe some traditional evangelicals can consider wearing that if they create some sleeves, it is my only guess.

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Tankini

Another reason for not wearing enormous swimsuits is or on body. Big pieces spoil the body. How come? It has more fabric and cover more, how come it damage the body. I can explain it with my own photos, all of them from last summer.


This bikini is from a Turkish brand and have good size. Because it is small, it does not exposes my small but while when I wear a bigger size, I look completely flat. In addition, because the panty has a lot of fabric my belly looks much bigger. Who wants to have large belly and plane butt? Nobody, right?


Now you can see the difference between the white (above) and black (bellow) bikinis. The white my body looks younger, especially my butt, although in the black model my butt looks aged. It is not cool. Please, analyze my photos, and pay attention how enormous bikini can kill your confidence shape.

Moreover, do not say bikinis are for young girls. It is not true. In Brazil, it is democratic, remember? So, it is very common among the elderly women.

Bruna Lombardi is a Brazilian poet, writer, model, and film and TV actress. She is 64 years old.

Betty Faria is a Brazilian actress. She is 75 years old.

Susana Vieira is a Brazilian actress. She is 74 years old.

You might say they are actresses, and famous people do not count. Let me present my aunt, she will turn 70 next year. She is retired now, but she used to word as social worker. Yes, anonymous people go to beach on bikinis more often than famous people do, because they are anonymous and nobody will photography them and put on a gossip magazine.

Ah! You also can say they are skinny. Believe me or not, even obese people wear two pieces bikini and it is wonderful. I love when women fell confident and happy with their own body. You do not have to be a Victoria’s Secret model to be amazing.

Preta Gil is a Brazilian singer and actress. She is the daughter of Gilberto Gil, a famous musician and former Minister of Culture in Brazil. She is 42 years old.

Why am I saying that? Because I do believe that women and anybody can wear whatever they want. This religious feeling that creates a sin on the human body is something very delicate and destructive. Women should wear what they like, what they are comfortable, whats makes themselves to feel gorgeous. Cover the body with ugly and boring outfits would not make you slimmer. Other day I have received a question “how to hide the belly with bikinis”. There is way to let it more beautiful, but how to cover something while it is naked or with spandex? It is impossible, for this reason, just relax and be whoever you want on the beach.

Right now I am developing a large beachwear collection for my portfolio. I will not sell any of my pieces, however I will spoil my collection a little bit and show two outfits because I really loved the results. And of course, the designer, the cuts, the modeling and the confection are Brazilian. I did not write this post to convince you to buy my bikinis, especially because my bikinis are not in the market, but I want that you can have this amazing experience of being beautiful even on the beach. 

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Xoxo,

Debora

Baroque Fashion

The word Baroque was derived from the word Rococo which mean excessively elaborate. This was incredibly true in the Vintage Fashion Style of the Baroque period which was popular from 1650 until 1800. Many of the women’s dresses from this period were made famous by Marie Antoinette and Madame Pompadour.

This was considered the age of enlightenment in France and had a dramatic effect on fashion.Pastel colors with light styles took precedence. The dresses of this inimitable Vintage Fashion Style were incredibly elaborate with very wide hoops called panniers. These hoops extended out to the side and were considered to be the rage in fashion. Formal gatherings required the widest hoop where smaller versions were worn on a day to day basis.

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The waistlines were so tight women used corsets to make their waists as small as possible. Thisprovided a beautiful contrast with the enormous skirts. This was when a plunging necklinebecame popular and skirts were opened down the front. The opening displayed a frillypetticoat, usually in a contrasting color.

A new type of sleeve was developed and became known as the pagoda sleeve. They wereextremely tight from the shoulder all the way down to the elbow. The bottom of the sleeve hada flare and was adorned with ribbons and lace.

One of the most popular dresses was called the Watteau gown. The back was quite loose and became a part of the large skirt as it draped down. This style featured a very tight bodice and was worn with a corset. Another popular dress was the robe à la française. This style featured a tight bodice with a very low cut at the neckline shaped in a deep square. The dress had large bows and ribbons running down the front and extremely wide panniers. The trim was lavish and consisted of flowers, ribbons and lace.

Another version of the same gown still retained the tight bodice but the large skirt was worn without panniers. The gown had a longer cut in the back and the result was the formation of a small train. A lace kerchief tied about the neck was the main accessory. Often these gowns were worn with a jacket that had a wide lapel and were quite short.

The chemise à la reine was a loose gown almost always in white. A brightly colored sash made of silk was tied about the waist. This gown was worn without a corset and showed off a woman’s figure. The dress was originally introduced by none other than Marie Antoinette and became a symbol of true liberation.

How did I say yes to the dress?

Getting married in in New York is very uncomplicated, so when we decided to get married we can do it practically in the next day. First, we have to go to City Hall and apply for the license to marry, 24 hours later we can marry.

For the wedding license, I went with the same white wool dress that I wore on New Year’s Eve in Allentown-PA and it was the most accurate choice. The brides wear white at the City Hall. Some brides prefer more casual style, but I have seen brides with several guests, photographers and wearing long and traditional dresses. I find it very exaggerated, but it is perfectly understandable especially if the couple are not going to have a party after a civil wedding. Therefore, my idea of getting married on the next had changed a little bit. After seeing a lot of brides I had the desire to have a wedding dress, or at least a white dress.

I live close to three malls, I went to several stores in the three shopping malls and I did not find a white dress that I liked. I wanted a simple white dress, because it would not have a “bridal shape” so at least it had to be white. I asked my boyfriend, now my husband, to drive me on Saturday to the outlet in Riverhead, I went into all the stores, it did not matter if it was expensive place or not for me, and again, nothing! So I thought about going to David’s Bridal, who sells wedding dresses. I knew that by the title “bride”, it would be a little more expensive, but that was fine. The closest store to us at the time was in Lake Grove and it was great to see the city, ant its malls.

The store’s website suggested that the visit should be scheduled and guided by a salesperson. I hate sellerperson insisting to buy something. I went to David’s Bridal without any reservation, and I knoew it could be an issue because the place was a bridal shop full of white dresses, but I was wrong. We can move freely between the dresses, and try everything that we want. Of course, they have expensive and luxurious ball gowns, but most brides are looking for something more minimalist, or even cheap.

I walked through the store. I was determined to buy a dress above my knees, but I ended up trying on a long dress just to see how it looked. I chose three simple dresses, inside my mannequin. I’m not a demanding customer, I do not try a thousand pieces and I know my body shape and I know there are models that do not look good on me.

The long dress made me look older and fatter. It gave m a barrel silhouette and I eliminated this dress. It had a nice embroidery on the bust, but I felt a grandmother with it.

My doubt was between the two shorter dresses, I tried on them again, I walked for Mohammad. People looked at me, which was a little embarrassing, but I pretended that I did not see them. I know people do not take the groom to buy the wedding dress, but since I do not have a driver’s license, I had no choice. I know I live in New York and I could have bought my dress in Manhattan, but I honestly prefer to shop in quieter places, especially a wedding dress.

I loved the lace of this dress and the pleated skirt was lovely, but I found it with a more springy style, because the fabric and delicacy.

The tube dress I felt well. I do not havw tube dresses, but the thicker fabric looked more winter-like, the all-shinned collar gave the special charm that a wedding dress needed. I just got a little concern with the ruffle in the belly region, which could give me a bigger belly in the photos.

Finally, I decided to wear the tube dress. Because it was more elegant and the fabric ticker.


At the end, I bought both of them, My plan is to wear the other white dress at my husband’s company party in the middle of the year. Since we were in a zone full of malls, I decided to look shoes. I went to Steve Madden, Call it Spring, Aldo, JC Penny … And I did not find anything that I liked. I wanted a simple white or nude pump. I did not want to wear peep toe or sandals, I do not know, for me it is inelegant wearing open-toed shoes in the winter. Also, I do not like super high heels, which I nowadays consider to be dowdy and uncomfortable. I was about to give up when I found a Macy’s, I know there’s one in front of the house, but I decided to come in.
I found several shoes that would match my dress. Luckily, they had all of them on my size, 10. The first shoes I chose because I thought the champagne color was close to the dress color. However, when I put close to the dress I realized it was not! In addition, these strips made the shoe more different, but at the same time, it seemed that I was smaller. Okay, I am six feet tall, but I hate to look smaller. Therefore, I was in doubt between the nude shoe and the white. Surely, the nude I would wear more often. For me white shoe only for bride or women wearing white uniform. Then my boyfriend helped me decide. First, he remembered that I practically do not wear heels anymore. Even though I can wear the nude shoes more time, the chances are small because every time when I have a party I like to buy something new. Consequently, I tried on both shoes for the third or fourth time and Mohammad noticed that the nude model left a gap between my foot and the shoe while the white hugged perfectly my foot. I decided to buy the white pump.

Before I left the mall, I stopped at Uni Qlo, that Japanese shop. I went in to try to persuade Mohammad to buy a yellow flannel shirt I have loved since the start of the season. He did not like it, but in compensation, I found a coat that finished my wedding outfit. I intended to wear my old black long wool coat. When I saw this I fell in love, it was probably more or less the length of the dress, the beige and white would give less contrast than the black and the white. The price was incredible, from $ 150 for $ 50. Very good not to have the average size of the American girls, we find many things in the promotions. I went home extremely excited, I could get married on Monday.
On Sunday, I sent a message to the photographer asking if she could photograph our wedding at the next day. I got a positive response. I texted a friend who would be the witness and she also agreed to come with us, we were getting married on Monday at 8:30 in the morning. I started to get ready, Mohammad helped me with my hair. I ironed our clothes and we ent to Trade Joe to buy flowers for the bouquet.

In front of City Hall has a boy who sells flowers and bands, inside of the place also has flowers and souvenirs, but everything is expensive. I bought hydrangea, which is one of my favorite flowers, and it looks like a bouquet by itself.

On Monday, everyone woke up early and went to City Hall, I mean, almost everyone, I inadvertently sent the photograph to the Brooklyn unit and we were in Manhattan, which delayed our wedding a little bit. Nevertheless, in the end everything went well. The photos of this post were all taken by my cell phone; soon I will publish the official photos.

Places to Shop for Bathing Suits in Queens, New York

As a Brazilian girl I always try to find the most familiar bikini for me.

For those Brazilian who live in New York summer is the ideal time to complain about the American bikinis, the panties seems Melitta Coffee filter.  Am I wrong? Ok. It is not only Americans, but Chinese, South Americans or Europeans bikinis they are huge, like baby diaper. In fact, just Brazilian women wear small bikini. Brazilians like to go to the beach stylist and beautiful, the US women are more basic and practical, they focus more on comfort. So every Brazilian I know complains about having to buy bikinis here in New York. However it has been changing and every year is easier to find a good tiny bikini. I mean, it is not that easy, but it is possible, especially in brands for young girls. 🙂

Can I say something? In Brazil bikini is for everyone, it is a democratic outfit for all, even overweight or elderly women, children, former-president, fitness muse, teen age girls… wear two pieces bikini, and nobody will stare on them with an unapproved look.

I’m not like most Brazilian, because I like big bikini, I have several huge tow pieces bikini, like vintage, retro or pin up style… On the other hand, I have minimal bikinis too, I’m not thong bikini fan, but I’m almost there.Bikini is my favorite fashion item. If you look at my wardrobe right now, you will not believe that live in New York, you will think that I’m living in Hawaii, even thought I still having many bikinis in my wardrobe in Brazil.

However, why do American like huge bikinis? Are they more modest? I don’t think so, I was impressed on the first time that  I went to a club here in New York. The girls went almost naked with transparent dresses, dance lowering up to the ground and rubbing themselves on the guys, I felt in a strip show, I’ve never seen anything like it in Brazil.

Or maybe American women want to hide some imperfections? So that’s why they would choose big bikini. In my research prove that huge bikinis are not always good for my shape. Sometimes it emphasized a defect or created a new one.  I chose black models and smaller size of the store. Generally panties are S and bras are XS. See my photos:

This is my bikini, a good design and size for my body. I took this photo in my bedroom and I used this photo as compared to all experienced bikinis.


In Century 21 I wore a Donna Karan bikini set, her panties had like a skirt that covered the bottom. Besides the horizontal lines let me fattier, the bottom left me with a straighter ass. The top was beautiful, but to be wore with another panties style, these was a set that they did not sell separately.

These panties was high waist and with wide side. The side had a wrinkled, that gave to me few pounds. These huge panties emphasized my rectangular shape. It’s more for a curvy girl, I guess. The bra had a pan inside, it was good to give me more volume. Although It was large for me, my boobs were swimming inside.

The short style model is the worst for my body type, because it emphasizes where I have the high amount of fat, between my legs and my navel. I was straight with no waist. Another thing, being faixinha style, let my butt “flat”. The bra I liked, sometimes it’s hard to find small bra the bastante.

In Kohls with the panty was a little lower, my body became more interesting, it appeared to be thinner and had waist. 🙂 The part behind was the very large as normal American panties and left me with a grandma’s butt. The bra was huge for my boobs but it was the smaller size. 😦

In Burlington the bikini emphasized my belly, I looked like an obese woman, although it was a small sized set. I wonder what kind of woman this bikini is good. The detail in the belly lured me much ass looks chicken.

Old Navy an JCPenny had very similar panties.

…But the back of these panties were too big! In this case the Old Navy I chose XS ba and S panties. I like the bra.

In the JCPenney the bra was a little smaller, and these fringes gave me more volume. Great! ❤

I swear I do not have that huge belly, and I am not a panda bear. I think the Express did not want to sell bikinis. What a horrible light in the dressing room.

The back part of the bra was very beautiful, swimming style, love it. The underwear is very basic, but it would not take this bikini felt good ridiculous because the illumination, I gained 10 pounds at least. I also have cellulite on my legs, but they did not exist… 😦

In Victoria’s Secret a smaller bikini fit pretty well. Look when I said I supposed to avoid huge bikinis, just because sometimes it is not good for me. In this time I had waist, butt and breasts. Actually, my boobs were quite big, they are not like this, good design for girls who does not like having small chest.  This bikini did not let me as a ironing board. Did I prove for you that little bikinis sometimes are better? Of course depending on of my shape. So, I would like to advice American girls who are fit to try to buy Brazilian style bikinis. You can buy it on Ebay (for cool and cheap sets) or with real Brazlian brands. Now the Brazilian currency Real is very undervalued, it is the best time to import stuff from there. 😉

These brands for high school kids are the best finding Brazilian style bikinis. My favorite set in all this research was the Aerie’s bikini.SO cute, unfortunately the photo is blurry.

The bra style is curtain and had an internal cup that made me feel more confident and beautiful. The panties was small, the same size on the front and on the back, exactly like in Brazil.:)  They also had an asymmetrical ruffle, which started narrow on my right and increased on the  the left side of my body. I had waist and butt.

The Aéropostale’s bikini was is also cute. I was sad when I realized that the brand  is closing some stores in the USA, it is one of the few brands that clothes fit on me. The panties was low waist, medium on the sides but small on the butt. The top is so beautiful, I regretted not having bought it.

While making this post, I saw a picture of the model Marquita Pring wearing a top from the brand Balance Tech on the beach. I have 6 bras like that, 3 are large in three different colors that they made it, and 3 are small in three colors too, I love them much. On the other hand, I do not wear them as a bra for beach, they are huge for this propose on my opinion. It is perfectly fine to wear on the beach  but what amazed me, was that Marquita said:

“‘I usually wear small two pieces bikini, with the minimal amount of material as possible. I love to feel free when I’m on the beach.”

But this is not a small bikini at least for Brazilian girls, neither the top nor panties. Then I thought maybe it is tiny for Americans, who knows? I also have one photo where mo mother and I were wearing the top to do exercise last January.

Finally, I realized that the style of bikini is super important for my body. Not always a huge bikini will cover my defects, actually it can create new ones.

None of my photos were treated in Photoshop. My bikini I bought on Ebay.

A Tall Girl’s Dream | Being Able to Buy Cute Pants That Cover the Heels

Many people think that the dream of the tall woman is to find a tall boyfriend. It is nonsense, the dream of the tall woman is to buy a pants that cover your heels.

If you are tall you should live the same dilemma as me; buying a pair of pants that do not look incredibly short on my legs. I’m 5’11ft and I have a skinny silhouette. Here in the United States my mannequin is 2, in Brazil it is 36! So, it is even harder to find pants when you are slim, because smaller size on waist tends to be short on the legs. Why do the brands have this bias with tall skinny girls? Because they have collections for petite and for plus size, but the tall girls are completed ignored. That’s sad!

Of it is not just pants that do not fit on tall girls. Dresses become shirt, a long sleeve top is three-quarter sleeve top. During the winter I have to buy an extra-large coat, for example, to fits on my extra-small body, just to cover my wrist. I feel I am wearing a balloon. Short shorts always show half of my butt, socks over the knees, barely touch the knees. Another nightmare, there aren’t shoes at traditional stores in their number. Maillot, coveralls, rompers, dungarees or camiknickers them have never fit on them.

Whenever I complain that there aren’t pants that suits me, I listen “but I always have to fix the pants bar.” OMG! Make the bar of trousers is vastly easier (and possible) than amend a piece of cloth from the ankle to the heel. And I’m not saying that it’s hard to find pants that fit on me, I’m saying it’s impossible.

Few days ago, while I was searching for a pair of black pants in one outlet, and I was not successful, my boyfriend asked, “what king of pants the models wear?” It is easy to say, they wear the sample. Before sending their collections to production, companies make patters, so the models always follow more or less the same measures as the clothes are made to the model pattern, rather than a model in particular. So for a fashion show or a photo shoot any model theoretically can wear the pieces of the collection with minimal adjustments. That why the models clothes when they go to a commercial scale they disappear, because brands produce clothes on average size of the population.:(

Thinking about it, I went to several stores in Queens, New York and chose high waist skinny pants to try in the majority of stores. I visited two malls, Rego Center (61-35 Junction Blvd, Rego Park, NY 11374) on the first afternoon and the Queens Mall (90-15 Queens Blvd, Elmhurst, NY 11373) on the second afternoon. You can check my results bellow.

Trying the three pants, all were short, hitting my ankles and didn’t cover my navel, although the label said high waist. I like high-waisted pants, because they were good for lengthen my legs. I’m tall, and I like to look even taller.

Marshalls’ pants were quite far from the ground. A note beyond the length of the pants were that horizontal tears let our legs thicker and shorter, which makes me smaller and fatter, if little or chubby avoid it.

In Sears I tried Bongo pants . They covered my ankle bone, but were far from my heel. These pants also had a bad stitching on my right leg (left in photo), weird right?

Again the pants was abundantly short, showed my ankles bones and navel. They were missed about 15 cm of cloth, I was very disappointed in Kohl’s.

I tested three more brands and still frustrated. Levi’s rwas really high waist, covered my belly button. However, they were quite short. The others didn’t hit my heels neither my navel.

I loved these pants Levi’s in Century 21. They were the highest waist pants that I found during this project. However the pants were very short, and showed my ankles bones. So sad, I almost felt in love. ❤

TJ Max was super messy and it was hard to find my size, I tried these pants that have lower waist and the bar was short, very short. These definitely would not be pretty me me in any way, only if I cut and make shorts.

Although the model of Free Heart in Burlington almost touched my navel, the length is very bad. The price was so nice, $ 12, I was tempted to buy, but better not …

Three more pants and still frustrated.

I liked the waist of these pants, although they were not really high. However, the trousers bar was above the ankle bone. – Very strange.

I loved the tears of these pants. But there was a lot of extra cloth on my hips. In addition, the trousers were short in height and showed my ankle bone. Express sells longer legs sizes online, but when googled it, the size 0 was sold out.

The pants in Bebe was very, very short. I believed the bar was about five centimeters above my ankle bone. A shame because I loved her tears.

Then I proceeded to search the pants that could reach my heels, but as you can see, I continued unsuccessfully.

I really liked Macy’s pants, but they had two major problems. In the Queens Mall store the lowest number was 4, my number is 2 for this brand, then they were wide. Could buy online, paying $ 15 of shipping fee, the price of the pants was 25! Another problem was that they were extremely short, I looked like “Beetlejuice”. These department stores discriminate tall and thin women, it is almost impossible to find pants that fits on me.

Aerie didn’t have high waist pants in my size, I wear size 2 at Arie. So I got a legging pants, that’s why they were almost on my knee. Too bad.

Aéropostale pants were very good on my waist. As I expected, they had the same bad length as all the other pants …

J.C. Penny was another store that didn’t have small number. These pants number were number 4, and they were too loose at my waist. I found these design very beautiful, but they were also too short in the legs.

After two days in two Shopping Malls, I finished my pants research. I didn’t find pants that fit well on me, because I am size 2 and 5’11ft. Some brands had long legs pants, however I had to buy on line, paying shipping fee. As always, I felt exhausted, and abort my mission.

Inside of Fitting Room| How Can Lighting Have An Effect On Decision-Making?

How many times have you seen a beautiful dress in a shop window, and when tried it on, ouch! It was a big issue? This has happened to me, and probably to you too. Sometimes we are lean, tall, top-model style, but the problem is not us, it’s the fitting room, believe me.

A lot of brands still neglect the dressing rooms, that are often “hidden” in the store’s background. Maybe they have the expectation that the customer may buy clothes without trying them. Here in the United States it is simple to buy without testing, because in most companies we can return the product without any explanation, and getting the money back. 🙂

Going to the dressing room for a woman is a therapeutic ritual, that can make us very happy when we can purchase something wonderful, or make us very frustrated… Especially with white lights coming from the ceiling. This powerful light is always attenuating my defects such as cellulite, dark circles and pimples .

Why do we need high intensity light? What is the reason for such clarity? Are they recording a TV show? Hope not! Thankfully we do not have this bad light even at home. In fact, I would suggest that white light is good only for beauticians, dentists, doctors and kitchens; in real life, we do not need surgical light. We should have a smoother and harmonious vision of myself.

Thinking about it, I did a study here in New York on well-known stores. I went to two malls, Rego Center (61-35 Junction Blvd, Rego Park, NY 11374) on the first afternoon and the Queens Mall (90-15 Queens Blvd, Elmhurst, NY 11373) on the second afternoon. I visited several fitting rooms with my own outfit and photographed with my phone through the mirror. I did not made any correction in lighting or in my body, the result you can check bellow:

In the dressing room at Marshals’ I am definitely more beautiful among the three photos. At Sears’ my photo was overexposed and at Kohl’s dark circles appear on my face. Let’s see those problems with more details?

Marshalls – The fitting room was clean, without queues, good lighting – the light comes behind the mirror. It did not evidence cellulite! Inside of the cabin, they put a comfortable with the bench! The dressing room had an adequate size, with a good amount of hooks to put clothes, and three of them to separate the clothes. Marshalls had an outfitter to count the number of clothing that I have and to control customer entrance.

Sears – The dressing room was too old, it needed to be renovated … but it was clean! It had only a hook on the wall, which was bad for those who have many clothes. There was also a chair and a little shelf where I put my phone and my sunglasses. Lighting was on the ceiling and was the same in entire store! There was not a person to assist me in the fitting room, but it was organized! However, it was difficult to find the changing room, it was hidden and without signaling, I had to ask a clerk it was.

Kohl’s – It had several dressing room in the store and they were so cute! In front of the cabins had a hall with TV and bench to my companion wait. Inside of the fitting room It had a 3D mirror, that I could see the front and the sides of my body, – very cool. The bad point was the lighting (as always), which was the same throughout the store! The lighting created a big shadow on me. The changing room also had hooks for us to separate my clothes easily, like at Marshalls. Kohl’s didn’t have a person controlling the dressing room, by the way, I really like their system, because I could do everything by myself.

Continuing my research, the Century 21’s fitting room was tight, my clothes (both the ones that I would test and my own clothes) were bumping me. TJ Max had an acceptable changing room and Burlington had a huge dressing room, but totally without light!

Century 21 – At Century 21 I found one of the most inappropriate fitting rooms that I visited for my study. The cabin was small, narrow and uncomfortable! I am 5’11ft, so I was hitting myself in everything that I had inside. The lights were behind the mirror, it had a simple small stool and little space to hang the clothes. Changing my outfit was a challenge, so I did not try all my clothes; I gave up, too much work. I used the handle as clothes rack; the cabin did not have enough rack! I know the square feet in New York is super expensive, but the stores have to think on costumer comfort. The fitting room needed to be restored. At the entrance of the changing room a girl was checking my clothes.

TJ Max – The Changing room was great. TJ Max took care of place. It had a reasonable size and hangers are in good number. The lighting is next to the mirror! A woman checked my clothing, but she was friendly, the most friendly in all research, for example, she always makes a good comments about what I am buying or me. I am an old costumer from that store, so I know well the salesperson policy. The store also had a clean bathroom for customers, it’s a rarity in NY!

Burlington – A mess at the entrance of the dressing room! They had a woman to count the clothes, but she did not look at my face! Fitting room was archaic, full of clothing from the other customers. The cabin was big, equipped with a large bench. The worse defect in the cabin was that it did not have light! The light came from the passage.

Look how I gained weight and how I looked tired at Old Navy;s fitting room. My picture at JCPenny was extremely bright and at Express I’m a zombie, panda bear… I swear I’m not so ugly personally.:(

Old Navy – The changing room supposed to have a girl to check clothes, but she was not on her place when I arrived. It was chaos. People were trying to open the doors clothes were thrown everywhere. The cabins were apparently busy, because they were locked! When a customer came out from a dressing room, I got into. The place was very messy with clothes thrown on all over the place and trash on the floor. The lighting was on the ceiling and it was the same in every store, so it showed dark circles around my eyes and belly! The finish of the walls and doors was ridiculous, like wood for construction, it shouldn’t be in a clothing store!

JcPenny – Fitting room didn’t have someone to control it, as a result it was so disorganized, full of clothes spread to all over the cabin. I was afraid to lose my own clothes in that confusion. The lighting was on the ceiling. It was the same in the entire store. It had two racks, and a chair that was already occupied with other clients clothes! How could I sit to take out my shoes? Another annoying detail it the fact that the smallest jeans size was four, I looked at teen-age section and I did not find any small jeans! And some people say that fat ladies suffer bias, I don’t think so, they can at least buy pants, being tall and skinny is terrible to buy clothes.

Express – I went to the fitting room and there was no one there. All the doors were closed, so I had to wait. I waited, waited … until a seller come to open the door. The dressing room had dirt on the floor. The size was good. Modern, great number of racks and large bench! The problem was the surgical lighting. I was like a zombie in the picture, how evidenced was these dark circles around my eyes. Without doubt the worst lighting all!

TThen I went to the Pink (the younger Victoria’s Secret’s sister), the dressing room needed some repairs and furnishings. In Bebe I got a good result and Victoria’s Secret I was so red!

Pink – I hit to the dressing room and no one was there. The doors were closed! I went twice to the dressing room, and in both times I waited about 5 minutes until someone comes over and open the door for me. The fitting room had some racks broken; I sat on the floor to put the shoes! Lighting was in a chandelier in the middle of the dressing room, but the idea was better than strong light coming from the ceiling, as I saw in most stores. It really needs an urgent maintenance!

Bebe – The seller was behind me and take my clothes to the fitting room! That bothers me a little; because I did not feel comfortable, I just wanted leave the store sooner as possible. I did not have a chance to check all the collection, and when the sales representative started to assist me, I just wanted to run over of the annoying situation. The fitting room was large, but with curtain, which let me a little worry. I am afraid that someone can open the curtain while naked, or even worse, when I am fighting to fit in a skinny pair of jeans. The lighting was beside the mirror, so I was illuminated equally, which gave me a more delicate appearance.

Victoria’s Secret – The store was packed everyone loves VS. Many people was in the dressing room at the same time, but a girl quickly solved the problem!It was a charming dressing room, with half-light! The smooth clarity gave me a sweeter look. It showed some lines on my stomach, not emphasizing the my fat. The mirror had two light spots on both sides, but one was burnt, so the picture was somewhat dark. The vendor accompanied me until my dressing room.

Continuing my survey visiting New York’s fitting rooms, I went to Macy’s, it was so old. In Aerie (or American Eagle) the yellow light behind the mirror gave me a slight appearance, my cheeks were up roses and I had waist. And in Aépostale I met into the most beautiful wall of this journey, great to do ‘selfies’.

Macy’s – The dressing room was hidden and with a difficulty access, because it had a rack full of clothes at the entrance. All right, the square meter in NY is expensive, but do not overdo it. Besides, it needs reform, very old, like an office in 80’s. The lighting was on the ceiling, the same as the rest of the store. A woman helped to find a vacant cabin. The floor was dirty. It didn’t have pants for tall and thin women, the smaller size was 4!

American Eagle – Aerie – The fitting room’s queue was huge, but walking fast! The place was so cool, I felt in a bang-bang movie. The lighting was yellow and is behind the mirror, resulting in a harmonious picture. There was a button to call the seller if I wanted assistance to change the size of my clothing, for example. By the way, the seller asks my name and put it on the door, along with the number of pieces that i had! It was the first time I saw a kind of bikini Brazilian here in America!

Aéropostale – Very few fitting rooms for the size of the store. Consequently, I had to wait on a long line! The worse thing about this dressing room was that, a curtain, which took off my privacy, closed it. While I was changing my clothes, a sales clerk opened it suddenly. The cabin had a very cool decoration, a reasonable number of racks but the lighting was on the ceiling.

Forever 21 was another store where they have a strong light on the ceiling; it gave me belly and showed dark circles around my eyes. H & M had light in the mirror and an indirect light on the ceiling. Where did I look better?

Forever 21 – It had a long queue to use the dressing room. I could not try the bikini that I chose, it was prohibited! Really, do I have to buy it blindly? The fitting room was very small and uncomfortable. There was not a chair inside. I did not try the pants that I was carrying, because I would have to sit on the floor to take out my sneakers and as I am tall, would hit the other cabin with his legs. 🙂 The light was too powerful and on the ceiling, the worse combination because showed all defects. There was a woman barring people, checking clothing and pointing out the available cabin.



H&M – Another store with a long line to use the fitting room. The girl who checked the clothes was hysterical, fighting with all costumers on queue. The cabin was tiny; I think it was the smallest in my research. It was so small that I had difficult to take a full body photo. It had a curtain, and the fitting room was unisex. 😮 Inside of the cabin, it had a small bench, and tow mirrors, so I could see the front and the back of my outfit. The light came from the mirror and had a light spot on the ceiling.

In conclusion, fitting rooms with lights next to the mirror in yellow shades created better images, because it didn’t over expose the costumer, showing the defects or creating new imperfections. Dressing rooms with strong white lights on ceiling make the client fatter, create eye shadow (dark circles) show pimples, cellulite, stretch marks and it is a nightmare for any woman.

The doors of the changing room must to be heavy enough to give a sense of privacy. Cabins with curtains or doors that does not close well, make the person to change the clothes very quickly, because they are afraid that someone can open the door at the wrong time, as happened to me at Aéropostale. Therefore, I suggest that brands should invest more in this sector because it is very important to purchase.

My First Corset and the Beginning of My Tight Lacing Journey

Few months ago a friend from elementary school, Leticia posted one selfie with an incredible waist. I asked her, what was that? She replied, tight lacing. Have you heard about that?I had some “corset” knowledge, especially in the fashion industry, but I didn’t know much about waist training. Tight lacing (also called corset training) is the practice of wearing a tightly-laced corset to reduce the waist line. It is done to achieve cosmetic modifications to the figure and posture or to experience the sensation of bodily restriction. So, I went to EBay and I bought the closest corset that I thought it was appropriated for the reduction of my waist. Of course, I was wrong, and I just realized that after buy 3 corsets, I started on X-l-large and dropped to large and medium. When I posted my  brand new medium corset my friend Jambavati explained that my cheap corset was not appropriate for this body modification. She invited me for a Facebook Group called Tight Lacing and Fitness it was great.

At the same photo but on Instagram, I received a random visitor @vampedcountessbasha and she said that my old corset was wrong as well! I was kind frustrate. Actually, she explained it better, and she was right, my older corset almost didn’t give me any reduction or curve. And she recommended American brands such as @orchardcorset and @mysticcitycorsets. She also mentioned that those brands were good for beginners.

I thought because I didn’t have enough natural curve, since I am skinny now :P, so I don’t have much fat on my belly and my hips weren’t big, that’s why I didn’t have hourglass shape, even with my older corset. As we know, we see more results when we are fatter while we are using corset.

After these discussion, I stopped wearing my orders corsets, and read several articles about real tight lacing. Few days ago I went to Orchard Corset Center in Manhattan (see the result bellow), I thought they are the same brand as Orchard Corset, but they are not, however I think they sell the same models, because my corset model was number 411 seemly very similar as Orchard Corset CS-411, but later I realized that I the corset the bought has different whatnots and laundry tags.With my corset from Orchard Corset Center on the second photo. The first photo I don’t have the corset, so you can see the small reduction.

I also bought a corset in Brazil from Mon Chéri Corseterie. In Brazil they make the corset based on our measures. It takes a month to be ready, plus the shipping days. So, while I was waiting, I felt in love for one corset from the Orchard Corset, number CS-201. It is shorter and gives more pressure on my waist. I’m in love for my new babe (corset) and I’m eager to wear it outside. Actually, I’m thinking about a corset editorial, who knows?

My corsets: With pants from EBay, with leopard outfit from Orchard Corset Center in Manhattan and the meshed corset is from Orchard Corset.

I’m in love with my mesh waspie corset! Tight lacing is make with a steel boned corset to help us to achieve a feminine curve body! I’m from Britney Spears generation, it means super low rise pants! It has destroyed our body! It’s not smashing my organs, or causing harm to my body. Corset has been using for generations by women, especially at Victorian time! It is like any other kind of body modification such as piercings, tattoos, botox, hair dying or body building! It however, won’t kill fat, tone muscles or work over night! I don’t want to have an extreme waist, I just want to have a waist! Because I’m skinny and I’m rectangular! It doesn’t shrinking my abdominal muscles, I have to train hard every single day my abs and low back! And yes, I’m very excited!

Of course when I speak with some people, who don’t have any information about tight lacing, they just think I am trying to have an unhealthy extremely small waist. They just think about these big reduction. In the body modification field, for me, moderation is the way! I don’t like so many tattoos, piercings, huge body builders, exaggerated Botox… To illustrate that, I found some celebrities on the internet who have worn the corset. Most of them are Brazilian because this trend is much more popular there than here in America. Brazilians are obsessed with beauty and curvilinear body. You probably have seen thousands of advertisement about Brazilian booty on the subway.
Sabrina Sato is a TV host and a carnival muse, she is Brazilian, has Japanese roots and she is considered one of the best shapes in Brazil! She has been caught a number of times wearing corset. The corset bellows to her, in both 3 photos she wears the same piece.
Paula Fernandes is a country singer from Brazil. Despite the fact that she has been criticized about her wardrobe for concerts, there is a consensus that her body is gorgeous. Here we can see at least 2 different kinds of underbust corsets.
Gisele Bundchen is super skinny Brazilian model. We can find hundreds of her fashion photography where she is wearing corsets. However, I’d rather putting some clothes from her personal closet. I think she likes to wear corset because she is rectangular, so it can give her at least a small fold.
Dita Von Teese is worldwide known for her fetishist attitude. She has been photographed with some kinds of corsets.

And when these girls take of the corset, they become very natural. As I have said before, when they are skinny, the result is less evident and perhaps more beautiful.
The collage bellow you can see the different kinds of results depend on the style of the corset. The first lady ‘cinta’, had worn an elastic belt to reduce measures, but she still with tubed shape.

***


Orchard Corsets

Waspie Corset – CS-201
This is a steel boned waist trainer corset that combines breathable comfort with super cinching! The 201 is a 6-panel corset (12 total) with 16 spiral and flat steel bones. Waist tape reinforcement for additional strength. This corset is so comfortable you may forget you have it on-except everyone will notice your fabulous cinched waist!

Steel Boned Underbust – CS-305
This corset has an elegant silhouette and features a straight top and bottom edge that is complimentary for most body types and experience levels. This steel boned waist trainer is best for athletic (less naturally curvy) builds and for those seeking a less dramatic curve.
Steel Boned Underbust – CS-345
This corset works for a variety of shapes and figures. This corset has 16 flat and spiral steel bones for powerful cinching and support encased in premium cotton inside and out. It gives you plenty of curve but does not require the ample hip needed. The long back helps both provide optimal support and relieve back bulge at the bra line. The contoured bustline creates a beautiful and feminine silhouette but hugs the underbust and gives push up effect. This corset is suitable for most body types from slim build to natural hourglass.
Steel Boned Underbust – CS-411
The CS-411 is designed to dramatically shape the waist and to instantly give an enhanced hourglass shape. It doesn’t require as much natural curve in the hips.
Steel Boned Underbust – CS-426
This corset gives extreme curves to flatter and shape you into an instant hourglass figure! It’s indicate for the ones who have wide hips. Not my case.

My advertising is, before start this train, please read about that. Some people with some health issue cannot wear. Find a renamed corset maker, because if you like act like me with passion and impatience you will spend more money, won’t see the expected result and maybe damage your health.

 

The Perfect Body by Victoria’s Secret

It’s hard to be a woman nowadays. We have so many digital manipulations that create a kind of unrealistic body, where even the photographed people do not look like the picture. The first time I worked in a fashion show (or even for a fashion editorial ) when the model arrived , I was shocked. Messy hair, bad skin , dark circles around her eyes … I thought, I’m better than her. After the makeup girl was incredible beautiful , after the digital edition she was a goddess. Do not forget, this is true for me and for you too. I will use as an example one model who worked for Hugo Boss last season here in New York , Vera van Erp . I separated Vera’s photos in three conditions; (1) Very produced (and possibly digitally manipulated) for Elle magazine, (2) catwalk photos, she have had her makeup and hair done, but the pictures have not been edited and (3) finally pictures of the model on the street , probably more ” natural “.

1. Magazine 

2. Runway

3. Street

 Is she look the same person?  I am not saying that Vera is ugly, she is pretty beautiful. I saw her in person and she is hot. However, she is a skinny girl , beautiful , tall, young, like the most of successful models. She worked not only in the New York Fashion Week. She traveled to London , Milan and Paris. When we see how a model really is, like the latest photos on the street, we realized that she is a normal woman, and we can breathe relieved !
All this introduction just to comment on two details that were shaking the fashion world last month. Actually, it bellows more to the graphic designers worlds than anything else. The Victoria’s Secret released an unfinished picture. See below if you can find three mistakes .

Well, if you notice that, she has only one cheek, the other side (the left ) is flat butt. Another detail in this region is the thickness of her leg. A thigh ( the left side) has a curved more than the right side , leaving a little thicker thigh. On the right arm elbow scratching was understated, compares with the left arm!

I made a overlap in the right leg, you can see a small shadow that bellows to the left leg. What shocks me is a designer for this sizebrand like VS , which spends millions and millions on advertising, drop a photo ” not finished “. Don’t they have auditor? Because everyone knows that they change the pictures like crazy. 😉

But that’s not all about the last weeks! Demi Lovato appeared in an essay for a magazine NUA . So far so good , but she said ( and publication too) the photos did not have Photoshop retouching , besides, Demi did not use makeup. Oh, really?

About not using makeup , a good professional photographer can hide almost all skin imperfections, dark circles, cellulite with lighting. I had been photographed in this situation and I was impressed! So, it was nothing so fantastic in beauty question… but someone shared the supposed original photos of Demi Lovato:


What is true ? To help you decide , I put a picture of Demi Lovato in a concert and yhr famous nude photo ” without manipulation . “

Nothing against being chubby, have round or straight ass. However, with the amount of corrections that you can make today, there is a standard of beauty bordering on perfection which belongs neither the person photographed . Send it to your boyfriend (or husband) to the next time he dare to compare you with that cover . 😉

 

Casting for a Boyish Photo Shoot

I just got the Fashion Stylist Certificate at FIT, here in New York. I would love to enjoy the warmth and make some pictures for my portfolio, if you wanted work in collaboration, please contact me.

This editorial bellow is about boyish or tomboy style. It might be elegant and with tailoring clothes. I am thinking about really use men wardrobe to make it more interesting. The season is fall 2016. We are going to shoot it in 125th Street commuter train station, in Harlem, built in 1897, still with its original dark wood.

I have made a search on the internet to explain better what I am looking for in this photo-shoot. I am open for new ideas. 🙂

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For more information deborawolf@gmail.com :*

Bra Development and Design at Fit

I just finished SXL 200 Bra Development and Design with Camille Block. She is a famous lingerie designer living here in New York. The course has six class, and in each class she had invited a different guest to make the class richer and more interesting. This course is a great opportunity for networking, because we have known a lot of great professionals.

In the last day of class, we had to give her a final project, very simple, just to be graded. Camille is a very well educated person with a soft voice and red lipsticks. For me this course was exceptional for one particularly side. I had not known how to buy bras in New York. In Brazil it was very easy to me. I used to buy 42 or medium sized. There we do not have cup sizes. When I said it at class everyone looked at me like if I was a little devil. A professional bra development said that if there is no pad it is possible doing bra without cup number, but we have pads. However I realized the pads in Brazil are a little different.


I have noticed that the pads in Brazil are flatter and here in New York they look like a cup. I had taken some photos of my bras, both of them fit me perfectly. Of course, with American style I am more powerful and beautiful.

Here we bou bras looking two measurements, first is the under boobs size. It can be 32,34, 36… this is your real size in inches. In addiction, they check your boobs size, each inch difference between your under boobs and your boobs you have a cup size, they called it with letter like A, B, C, D… I am a normal girl (not fat, not skinny) with small boobs, my size is 34A. If you had problem to figure your size out, you might go to Victoria’s Secret, there the seller person has a metric take and will do the job to you. On the other hand, I would prefer buying Calvin Klein bras. Do you have any preference? I am new here, I love to know your favorite bra!