BODY CONFIDENCE WEEK: What is your body type?

Okay, so step one of loving your body is to know it. Be honest with yourself. Do you have large hips? A large bum? Big boobs? Is your waist small or wide?
Remember, bodies aren't black and white. You can be athletic due to the fact that you have a wide waist, but you might do much exercise. You could also be athletic by having small boobs and small bum, but you could still have a tiny waist, like Audrey Hepburn. Eva Longoria is athletic from the front, and pear-shaped at the back, meaning she has a wide waist and quite narrow hips but a large bum. Tyra Banks has large breasts and a large bum, but little waist definition. So in reality, choosing your body shape could just be a judgement call.
Ready to find out your body type? Here goes..

Hourglass - aka Coke bottle, Cello or 'X' Shape.

Kim Kardashian is well known for her hourglass  figure

Typically known to be the 'perfect' figure, this is characterized by hips almost as wide as shoulders, a small waist, large breasts and a large bum. Although this is supposed to be the ideal figure, there are few models with hourglass shapes, and in clothing, an hourglass shape may seem too wide. Hourglass' often see themselves, or can be seen as 'fat', purely because you have curves you have to carry a little bit of extra weight. If this is your body type, count yourself lucky. Many women want this figure and many men are attracted to it. Retro icons with the body type are Sophia Loren and Marilyn Monroe, and modern celebrities with this body include Kim Kardashian, Scarlett Johansson, Kelly Brook, Holly Willoughby, Jessica Biel, Christina Hendricks, Rose McGowan, Dita Von Teese and Sophia Vergara

Top Heavy - aka Inverted Triangle, Strawberry or 'V' Shape

Pamela Anderson is famed for being top heavy

Being top heavy often means having large breasts, but a small bum and narrow hips. You may or may not have a small waist, if you have a large bust your waist is likely to appear smaller than it is. Although you may long for Beyonce hips or a J-Lo bum, many men are attracted to this kind of figure, and people who dislike a large behind area will see this as the perfect figure as opposed to an hourglass.

This is sometimes synonymous with an 'apple' shape. There is different beliefs about this. Some people believe being an apple shape is just having large breasts and some people believe that an apple has a large stomach and but skinny arms and legs. Either way, if you are an 'apple' shape, you would most likely come under the category of top-heavy.
Elizabeth Taylor was top heavy, as are Pamela Anderson, Kayla Collins, Rhian Sugden, Katie Price, Katy Perry, Miley Cyrus, Demi Lovato and Youtube sensation Laci Green.

Pear - aka Bottom Heavy, Triangle, Bell, Spoon or 'A' Shape

Nicki Minaj has a pear shaped body.

A pear shape is when you have smaller breasts but large hips and bum. Whether or not having a large bum is a good thing determines whether or not this is a good body shape to have, but it is the most common body shape for women and since wide hips are a secondary sexual characteristic developed for childbirth, this type of body is very feminine. This body shape, because of the wide hips, generally tend to be the most similar to an hourglass shape than any other body shape (which is why Nicki Minaj - pictured to the right - is often noted for having an hourglass figure when she's actually a pear shape. Celebrities with this kind of body include Nicki Minaj, Jennifer Lopez, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Beyonce Knowles, Eva Longoria, Rihanna and Kate Winslet.

Athletic - aka Boyish, Ruler, Banana, Waif, Rectangle, 'I' shape.

Megan Fox has an athletic body

An athletic figure is when the person is very slender, with a small bum, small breasts and often with little to no waist definition. The 'athletic' figure is the most open kind of figure, because some very slender people also have very tiny waists, and some people with 'athletic' figures have little or no muscle tone. It is also open due to disagreement on what is 'big boobs' and what is a 'big bum'. Although many people with athletic figures may feel quite unfeminine due to lack of curves, many of the worlds sexiest celebrities have this kind of body and there are many women long to have this kind of figure. Retro style icons with this body shape are Audrey Hepburn and Twiggy, whilst modern celebrities with this body shape are Megan Fox, Cameron Diaz, Jessica Ennis, Keira Knightley, Emma Watson, Nicole Scherzinger, Kate Middleton, Selena Gomez, Jennifer Aniston and many supermodels such as Kate Moss, Miranda Kerr, Rosie Huntington-Whitely and Gisele Bundchen. 

BODY CONFIDENCE WEEK - Tackling Cellulite

Hello bloggers!

Okay, so I'm guessing the people reading this blog are most likely girls, and I know that being confident in your body can be really difficult, so I'm dedicating my first week back to blogging to Body Confidence! I believe everyone deserves be happy in their body and everyones beautiful in their own way!

Cellulite

So I know that cellulite is a really big issue for some people. Some have it on their tummies, some have it on their calves, but most have it on their bum and their thighs. Honestly, if I ask any boy what they think off cellulite, they always answer "What's that?" or "I don't care, as long as the ass is a nice shape." Shallow, but not as shallow as you'd think. 

Despite this, cellulite does get a lot of people down, and so here's how to face it head on!

Note: Cellulite will not go away in a few days, or even a few weeks. The fight against cellulite is a long process and it will take month, maybe even a year or two, before you can get rid of it it. In fact, you may never shift it fully, you can just greatly reduce the appearance of it, but if you do this, it's unlikely anyone will notice it. So here's how to face your cellulite head on! 

Note #2: If you plan to reduce your cellulite you will need to lose some weight, so if you're proud of your kardashian booty, you may need to say your goodbyes. If you want to be skinny, be prepared to lose your curves in the process.

-Cut out cigarettes, alcohol, fizzy drinks and smoking.

-Do a combination of cardio and muscle workouts (i'm not exercise expert, so here are some tips:http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-1347777/How-rid-cellulite-Thin-thighs-30-days-exercise-tips.html)

-Okay, i'm going to tell you right now; cellulite creams do not work. but if you're that desperate, give them a shot, this one got great reviews: http://www.boots.com/en/Soap-Glory-Sit-Tight-8482-Intense-XS-Body-Firming-Serum-125ml_1254359/

-When your in the shower, scrub the affected area with a loofah.

- When you get out of the shower, massage the affected area with moisturiser.

-Any foods that you know are bad for you - cut them out. If they make you fat, they will cause cellulite (except good fats, like avocados).

-Reduce your salt intake.

-Drink plenty of water - aim for 8 cups a day.

-If you can afford it, you can always get surgery/cosmetic procedures to completely get rid of your cellulite. It's very pricey, and you will probably end up with your cellulite coming back anyway, but it's your own choice. Kim Kardashian is a fan of Velashape (http://www.lmaclinic.co.uk/velashape.asp )

-If you want to hide your cellulite (assuming its on your thighs/bum), wear black tights with your shorts, and instead of shorts, you could wear mixi skirts/dresses (short at the front, long at the back), maxi skirts, skinny jeans or pencil skirts (pencil skirts will also show off a J-Lo bum nicely)

Honestly, in my opinion, getting rid of cellulite is more trouble than it's worth, and to prove it, I created a slideshow (with no music) of the world's most beautiful women, most of whom are very skinny and/or have bagged gorgeous boyfriends/husbands. Lucky them.
Type any celebrities name into google images and put the word 'cellulite' next to their name, and I guarantee, in most cases, at least one image of their dimply bits will pop up. Cut yourself some slack. If 9 in 10 women have cellulite, it's the ones that don't who are weird.

BLAST FROM THE PAST: Bridget Hennessy (continued)

Here are a few more buys for your low-budget Bridget Hennessy look:

BLAST FROM THE PAST: Bridget Hennessy

Before there was TBBT, Kaley Cuoco was 'The Hot One' as Bridget Hennessy in the sitcom

'8 Simple Rules'. This ran from 2002 - 2005. The next year, Kaley joined the cast of 'Charmed' for its final reason as Billie, the 'Hot' young witch. That finished in 2006, and the following year she played Penny, 'the Hot one' from 'The Big Bang Theory.' Typecast much?

 Anyway, '8 Simple Rules' was one of my all-time favourite TV programmes. I used to watch it when it was new, I watched the re-runs when it was finished, and I despaired when they stopped showing it on UK TV, and now I watch it online from time to time.
My favourite was always Bridget. She was thick as mince, but always good comedy value and she was absolutely gorgeous. Her clothes were so girly and feminine, and she used to wear at least one article of pink clothing/accessories all the time, she loved wearing scarves, and, looking back, although there were several fashion faux pas, there's no denying that her style is the personification of fashion in the early noughties - bright colours, cropped tops and leather trousers (any fans of the show will always remember Bridget dancing in front of the camera singing 'I look hot in my hot new pants.' Classic.
Here's a collage of some classic 'Bridget' looks:

And here's what I like to think Bridget would be wearing today, I must say, I do love pink lace tube top and the leather trousers, and leathers are really fashionable this season, but I didn't buy them. I already have the Jeffrey Campbell shoes though - they're so gorgeous, my sister bought them for my birthday. I have found some lower budget pink shoes for other poor people like me, where are £20 shoes from www.chockersshoes.co.uk. I adore the Alexander Mcqueen scarf too - its girly but edgy. I can't afford it though. Wah

LUST HAVE! Cheryl Cole's Shoe Range!

Okay, so these shoes are my latest lust must have! And I say must have because, for once in my life, I actually own one of my lust have, which are the shoes above called 'Jazzies', from Cheryl Cole's shoe range on stylistpick.com.

When I bought these there was no problems with sending, it was packaged neatly (they spend all day in the box if I'm not wearing them), it wasn't ridiculously expensive and, i'm not gonna lie, but I wasn't expecting much for the quality/appearance of the shoe, but the quality was gorgeous the stones were shining, and what I love most about is is that it looks like a cavewomens shoe, what with the animal print, the snakeskin, the bits of materials and the black stones, it looks like 'Mans first Wedge.' But it's gorgeous, the pictures really don't do it justice and I get so many compliments everytime I wear them.

(Above) ^^ 'Toffee Crumbles' - £50.00

*UPDATE* It's worth noting that since I originally planned this post two months ago, stylistpick have gotten rid of a lot of my favourite shoes, most of which were very reasonably priced, so now 'Jazzies', priced at £50, are the cheapest shoes! The price is always out of £50.00, £79.90 and £119.85, just thought that's worth noting!

So here are a few of my favourite picks (bear in mind that most of the shoes, such as 'Toasted Marshmallows' and 'Flying Saucers' look much nicer when actually on the feet)! To buy, go to http://www.stylistpick.com/cheryl-cole! 

CARTOON TUESDAY: Disney's 'Sleeping Beauty'

Hello guys, happy cartoon tuesday friday! Seeing as I haven't blogged for about 7 weeks, I think it's only fair I post a cartoon tuesday as soon as I get back, so here goes!

Sleeping Beauty. Princess Aurora. Briar Rose.
She's often considered the most beautiful disney princess, and her body proportions were based on Audrey Hepburn (don't get much more classy and sophisticated than that), and she really is. When you see her on the bed sleeping - her make up looks amazing. And when someone's animated and you can still tell the makeup's amazing, you know it really.
So yeah, she's pretty, she's nice, she's a bit of an airhead, and like most girls, she has a wardrobe dilemma as to whether to where pink or blue. Classic.
But that doesn't mean her clothes are particularly fashion forward. I tried to find ways of making her clothes fashionable now - the point off the shoulders, the star shape around the hips, the tiara...i even considered getting dresses with roses on them. How desperate.
And then I remembered her 'peasant' outfit from earlier in the film, and several more things came up - she had a head scarf, she was wearing grey (i know that sounds weird, but that colour is popping up everywhere), and for whatever reason, i really love that little cross saxon-esque detail on her bodice.
I actually love watching period-films or fantasy films like Lord of the Rings where they have this kind of Criss-Cross on dresses, I think it's just an edgy twist on a regal dress. But I totally get why people don't do that anymore. It's outdated and would probably look weird in contemporary outfits. Although back in July Diane Kruger (at the Cannes Film Festival 2012) and Jessica Alba (on the cover of Elle) both rocked the Saxon/Hooker look, in what is admittedly one of the most slutty but interesting looks of the year and I loved it. But maybe it's just because I love the Criss-Cross.

But seeing as this dress would not suit everyone, we should probably move on to more wearable ways to quirk up an outfit. And also because this dress is Versus by Versace Fall 2012 and therefore is around £500. That's a good reason too.

Anyway, in 2011, women decided to take a particular interest in another disney character: Peter Pan. Yes, 2011 brought along with it, the return of the Peter Pan collar. Quirky? Maybe. Cute? Definitely. Childish: 100%. You're only young once. You are not allowed to dress up as a toddler unless you are a clown. It is not permitted.

Anyway, the Peter Pan collars that irritate me that much are the babyish, rounded Peter Pan collars. I'm all about old-school fashion, but you really have to adapt and evolve to make an old trend modern, and Aurora's peasant outfit demonstrates just how to do that: the pointy collar.

So I fell in love with this type of collar a while back, when I saw Kathering Jenkins wearing this kind of collar and I loved it. Since then, I've experimented with these types of collars. I've browsed around shops, looked online, made my own with shirts (vintage, satin, old school shirts, anything goes), ribbon, studs, elastic, material, a sewing kid, tie dying etc.., and it turns out that making you own collar, or buying one you love is a really fun way to quirk up any outfit! I adore collar necklaces; they give the collars the glam factor that they sometimes need. So below are some of my favourite, low-budget finds from the web. It includes the likes of ASOS and River Island, but Topshop do the best ones for me!

HOLA AMIGOS!

Hey, bloggers, sorry for my absence, I was spending time going back to my roots in la bella Espagna! I was there until the end of September, and then I had to get my internet sorted out for my new flat!
Spain is so gorgeous, every single time I go I'm still amazed by the beauty of the country. I will definitely be doing a Spanish themed post sometime soon, so stay tuned.

So, to apologies for the million years I was gone, so I've decided to post two features I planned (I planned these right before I left, so they are two months behind, so sorry if there is a lack of fashion forward-ness!)

Oh and btw OMG MOMENT! Professional glamour puss (well, she's not much of an actress is she?) Megan Fox has announced the birth of her baby boy, Noah. Congratulations Megan!

Lots of love,

Bella xoxo