Skirt of the week

I saw a woman the other weekend and thought I think I made a skirt out of that fabric - it's really cool. Then I realised it was one of the Minnie + Ree skirts!  I guess I am just starting to realise how many wonderful fabrics I have used over the last couple of years of skirt-making.  And I don't want to forget them!!

So here is a reminder of the most famous Minnie + Ree skirt - featured in the DomPost too!!  The Famous Frida skirt:

The famous Frida snap wrap cotton skirt!

Like all good things Frida will come to an end one day unless the manufacturer prints again.  No sign of that yet but I have my fingers crossed!  Frida is still available online but the Size Average is down to the last few.  Get in now if you really need one!

Kraftbomb in Auckland this Sunday

This Sunday 24 February Minnie + Ree will have a stall at Kraftbomb in Grey Lynn, Auckland.  We are so excited about being there as we have been looking for an Auckland market for ages and this one seems so cool.

  
To celebrate we have been busy - here is a pic from the cutting room, yep that's new Mexican Cowgirl skirts!!!  

And yes we will be road-tripping in the sunshine on Saturday so won't be at Underground Designer Market in Wellington but the wonderful Stephanie Cahorel (next door stall) will have a rack of Minnie + Ree skirts!! 

So will we see you there?

Keeping it in NZ

Angeline Quick writes a brilliant blog called Home Made - keeping it in New Zealand.  It is about clothing labels that manufacture in NZ and the stores that sell mainly (or only) NZ-made clothing.  She writes the blog to help people find NZ-made clothing.

She has posts from Chalky digits, Thrive, Emma, Kilt, Lela Jacobs and heaps of other fantastic New Zealand designers.  And now sitting with these wonderful people is Minnie + Ree.  Check it out here!

  

Photo for Keeping it in NZ blog

Yes - that's why we were playing fashion model in the market last Saturday.  Don't you just hate having your photo taken??!!

How to choose the right size bra and swimwear

I am still getting excited about clothing sizes.  Size is just a number and there is no consistency between countries, manufacturers, ready-made vs sewing patterns etc etc.  No wonder women get confused. 

I went shopping with my skinny minnie friend a while ago.  She was wearing NZ size 8 jeans but was struggling to find some new ones that she liked.  She was only looking at size 8s because she thought they were the only ones that would fit her and she wouldn't go up a size as she thought that would mean she was getting fat - yeah right!  So I raided the racks in a couple of shops and she tried on many pairs from a size 6 to a 10.  She ended up buying two pairs - a size 7 and a size 10.

Many women still don't wear the right sized bra.  If you google bra sizes you get all kinds of weird stuff including an old calculation that included added 5 inches (about 12 cm) to your actual measurement.  The easiest way is to measure around your chest under your breasts.  This is your band size and is the size bra you buy.  The A,B,C ... K is the cup size and you work that out next.  The best way is to go to a good store and get professionally fitted or try on every bra you can find in your band size until it's fits really well - your cup size may be different/bigger than you are currently wearing if your current bra is not totally comfortable and flattering.  Those cup sizes don't mean much either - did you know that a 75/30E is roughly the same cup as a 80/32 D and a 85/34 C and a 90/36B ... ??

So if you read the last post about Sonsie swimwear then it's easy to find your size.  The 'cups' are multi-sized and will fit most D-Gs.  Just measure around your chest and:

SMALL

78-85 cm

31 - 33 1/2 inches

AVERAGE

88  -  100 cm

33 1/2 – 39 1/2 inches

LARGE

100 - 115 cm

40 - 46 inches

So do you know your measurements and do you wear a great fitting bra?

Summer is back!

After two days of torrential rain summer is back.  And let's face facts summer doesn't really start in NZ until February.  Sad for all those people who have just gone back to work and school but very nice if you are lucky enough to mainly work from home.  And I do!  Near the sea too!  

So how about a swim?  And if you want to swim you need a swimsuit.  And that's where Sonsie Swimwear comes in ...

Sonsie is swimwear for women with bigger boobs.  I started Sonsie several years ago.  IMHO many stylists who write about choosing swimwear for women with a larger bust obviously don’t have one. Year after year we hear the same type of advice – get a swimsuit as high and with as much coverage as possible, wear plain dark colours, get an underwire style etc!  

Here at Sonsie Swimwear we disagree with most of this advice! Because that high cut black swimsuit is just going to make you look like you’ve got a giant tyre on your chest. We have bigger boobs and we know from our own experience and our research that the best swimwear for women with large breasts is a patterned, colourful, halter style with a flattering V.  And we usually don’t want underwired bra styles, we want to be more comfortable on the beach or at the pool. 

Our bigger boobed women also tell us that sometime in their lives they have all had looks or comments about their breasts that weren’t nice. They want to be able to go to the beach with their friends and families wearing a flattering fashionable normal looking swimsuit and feeling okay about their bodies. They don’t like shopping when they are made to feel abnormal because the ‘normal’ clothes don’t fit them.

So if you are one of the 50% of women whose bra cup size is D or above then Sonsie is for you!  Have a look!   Need help deciding what size to get - just ask me!  Women come in all shapes and sizes - size is just a number not a judgement.  Look at these two:

Stilt walkers dressed to match Sonsie Swimwear

Come on in - the water is warm and you know it won't last long!! Do you need a new swimsuit?