I only told you, you got it all maxed out

Just to go back to maxis for a second (and then I promise I’ll move on..) here is an example of one of those wonderful winter ones! I meant to blog about this dress back in November when I first bought it, but I sort of got side tracked, and then with Spring fashions sneaking up on us, I thought it was by now irrelevant. But wearing it again today confirmed that dresses like this ARE NEVER IRRELEVANT. It is by American Retro, and before you start thinking I’m Miss Money Bags, I seized it for the pretty little price of £50 (reduced from around £200) at the brand’s sample sale. Bargs. I might just get it its own wardrobe, because it doesn’t deserve to be stuffed in there with all those Topshop or H&M dresses, it’s like the fashion equivalent of making Olivia Palermo stay in a Travelodge.

Now this is a winter maxi is ever I saw one. Just look at that slightly haunting and ethereal owl print, it just emanates the chilling feel of a crisp and black winter’s eve. Oooh lovely. What’s more, it gets a tick in the good for pear shapes column. It’s very loose fitting, and yes, my wide bottom half isn’t completely invisible, but at least it’s not clinging to every ounce of flesh, (see earlier maxi posts for full maxi dress rant).

So i’ve gushed about it for 2 paragraphs, and now I’m going to tell you that I don’t think you can buy anywhere anymore. Sorry about that. Oh well, you’ll just have to enjoy the photos of it instead.

Maxis for Pears

The end of Christmas and New Year needn’t be depressing when you remember that all the clothes you’ve lusted after over the last year are halved in price come January! Ahhh the January sales, the only sales where you can be sure that genuinely popular items have been genuinely reduced in price. Because the number of times I’ve been attracted by the word ‘sale’ at any other time of the year, only to find that mysteriously, I’ve never seen any of these ugly sale items before, yet they’ve been generously reduced from £60 to a fiver! Only a fiver!… Well then… maybe I should just…. I mean, perhaps a purple tie dye long sleeved synthetic top is just what I need….

NO.

Continuing with the maxi obsession, I have been scouring the sales for the best of reduced maxi marvels. However the problem I always come up against with winter maxi hunting is trying to look good in the dreaded tight, show-all-the-lumps-and-bumps, synthetic fabric that so many WMs are made of. For pear-shaped ladies like myself, this kind of hip and bottom hugging fabric is an absolute disaster. So us big bottomed girls might have to steer clear of basic (cheaper) maxis,  but all this means is that we can easily justify a little indulgence in chiffon/velvet/linen numbers with beautiful embellishments, like a dramatic flared skirt or cascading layers.

So, here are some of the best maxi sale items I’ve found, best for pear-shapes (think: fall from hips, not cling to hips).

ASOS

Left to right…

1) Side Puddle Maxi Skirt £31 (was £70)

2) Waterfall Chiffon Skirt £30 (was £60)

3) Black velvet skirt £16 (£32)

 

TOPSHOP

1) Kate Moss Lurex Winter Maxi £20 (was 60)

2) Kate Moss Ruche Waist Maxi £30 (was £80)

3) Knitted Kimono Maxi Cardigan £10 (was £46)

 

URBAN OUTFITTERS

1) Sparkle and Fade Maxi Skirt £22 (£48)

2) Reformed Alyson Leopard Maxi £20 (was £65)

3) O&O Sheer Paisley Maxi Dress £20 (was £48)

 

RIVER ISLAND

1) Gold pleated maxi skirt £20 (was £44.99)

2) Chelsea Girl Print maxi dress £25 (was £50)

3) Black Mesh Maxi Skirt £7 (was £29.99)