Slim Rectangle/ Straight Up & Down Figure by Aileen Lane featuring messenger bags

• This body shape is also referred to as lean column or I body shape.
• As  a slim rectangle you have many different options in clothes though those that make you look more shapely and add curves will work best.
• Fabrics with surface such as lace, tweed, sequins, chain mail etc. work well on your figure as you can afford a little extra volume.
• Use horizontal stripes to add curve to your frame.
• Light layers such as t-shirt, waistcoat and layered necklaces work well as they create interest and draw attention away from your straight up & down figure.
• As a slim rectangle you will typically be able to work a belt on your waist and you can even contrast the belt colour to your top if you have a long waist.
• Like the fuller rectangle use accessories and design details on clothes to bring the eye out at the bust line and above and the hip and below – see the horizontal detail on skirt.
• You have the one body type that tends to look fabulous in skinny jeans so work that trend!
• Bags that end at your hip or below are create as they add some curve – See the patterned clutch and long shoulder strapped bag above.
• Coloured/ Detailed shoes are create to create interest on your straight up & down frame.

Celebrity Slim Rectangles: Cameron Diaz, Kate Middleton, Nicole Kidman, Sheryl Crowe

I had the good fortune to go along to a talk by Dr. Esselstyn hosted by the Vegetarian Society of Singapore on Sunday and I am so glad I made the effort. Dr. Esselstyn is one of the worlds leading cardiologists with 30+ years in the forefront of one of the biggest killers in the western world – Heart Disease. His increasingly common message is that we have to move to a whole foods, plant based diet (no meat, no dairy, no fish, no eggs) to reverse the devastating diseases that are killing us by the millions each year. I was surprised to hear that he advised no oil whatsoever in our diet including nuts. This was definitely new to me having heard the message for many years that cold pressed non-refined vegetable, nut and seed oils are required in a healthy diet. He went on to show evidence of how he literally saw the walking dead return to full health and even run marathons again. His vivacious wife Ann later showed us some foods that work with the diet and how to stir-fry and prepare food without oil.
For more on Dr.Esselstyn’s diet check out you tube where you will get lots of video’s of Dr. Esselstyn speaking about his recommendations. I have included a video of Bill Clinton speaking about his experience of following a plant based diet below:

Bill Clinton On A Plant Based Diet

You can also check out Dr.Esselstyns book which has over 150 excellent vegan, no oil recipes.

We have finally booked the flights and are heading away sans our 2 year old on a couples retreat in Bali in May and I am so excited that I am planning what I will bring already. As there will be lots of meditation, light yoga and some class sessions, I have decided to leave my bright colours at home and instead opt for quiet pastels which actually suit me better anyway as I have summer coloring. This capsule can actually generate up to 8 unique outfits if you use the swimsuit as a top also. I have included a cardi as the classroom can often be cold and its a great coverup for the balmy evenings.

Capsule for a 5 day tropical retreat by Aileen Lane featuring straw bags

1. In general horizontal stripes will make you look bigger – The thicker the horizontal stripe the wider you will appear. Diagonal stripes are usually more slimming.
2. Round patterns tend to make you look rounder and curvier whereas geometric patterns tend to do the opposite.
3. Busy florals can add volume  whereas more geometric floral prints tend to appear more modern and slimming.
4. Shiny fabric will make you look bigger so use shine on positive body attributes.
5. Fabrics with surface such as tweed or gabardine add volume. Use fabrics that have a flat surface to look your most trim.

Do you hate grocery shopping as much as I do? Well if the answer is yes, then you are probably looking for some ways of making it more efficient. Here’s a great time saving tip I found on a website called raising small souls .

http://www.raisingsmallsouls.com/time-saving-tips-for-parents/

Prepare a master grocery list that corresponds to the aisles of your local shop. (You can hire a student or get one of your kids to do this for you. ) Once you have created a master list of everything you are lightly to use then make photocopies and stick one on your fridge each week. Tick items that you need as you go. Be sure to keep a soft copy of the master on your computer so you can add/ delete items in the future.

Reward:  No more last-minute errands for things you forgot, and no need to sit and write out a shopping list each week!

Do you have any time-saving tips that you’d like to share? I’d love to hear them if you do.

I am currently in the midst of a colour consultant training session and my student and model have kindly allowed me to post some pictures so you can see what its all about.

In the first picture, you can see Lynne draping Lorna to determine her most flattering colours. As part of the colour consultant training, a student must successfully code 5 models to achieve certification.

In the pictures below, you will see that Lorna looks best in the Autumn orange red and the bright fire engine red of Spring takes over and washes Lorna out. Take some time to see which colour makes Lorn’s skin look more smooth and younger and which colour drains Lorna  and makes her look tired.

Lorna In Autumn Colours (Colour blends seamlessly with Lorna’s colouring and her eyes look bright and her skin clear)

Lorna In Spring Colours (See more of the colour & less of Lorna)

For more on colour consultant training, check out my website at www.nutri-style.com

I was asked recently for another post on complimentary colours for a person with winter colouring and an hourglass figure with a classic/ slight dramatic style personality – See some outfits I put together below and some comments on why they work.

1. Put colour where you want people to look. Outfit 1 above draws attention to a bootylicious butt. Outfit 2 will draw attention to your tiny waist.

2. Use bright colours in a non jerky way. e.g. Match your tee shirt and bangles, not your tee shirt and shoes.  If you use colour in a jerky way then the eye won’t know where to look – Do I look at the shoes or the tee shirt? A good example of what to do is outfit 4.

3. Use as many neutrals as you want in an outfit but try not to go beyond 2 or3 larger splashes of colour. There are several different neutrals (grey, black, brown) being used in outfit 4 but only two main splashes of colour.

Do you struggle to lose weight even though you do vigorous exercise several times a week? Many of my clients complain that they just can’t lose the extra weight no matter how much they exercise and I patiently explain that its probably because they are eating more calories than they are burning. Its simple really e.g. 1 slice of carrot cake can be as much as 900 calories, it would take three medium intensity gym sessions to burn this amount of additional calories. Luckily for us, there are numerous ways to keep track of our calorie consumption from simply writing down what you eat to using sophisticated software. Being in the weight loss industry, I have pretty much tried them all from weight watchers online to calorie count plus to the local health promotion board dietary assessment software. More recently I have come accross an amazing iphone app called Tap & Track and I am very, very impressed. It is simple to use and gives me all the information I need even when I don’t have an internet connection. At $3.99, I think this is a great way to keep track of those calories, along with nutritional information such as fibre, sugar and sodium.

MAJOR ADVANTAGES:
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■ Over 400,000 food items
■ Over 2000 food brands
■ Over 700 restaurants
■ Over 180 different exercises
■ Daily info on calories, fat, saturated fat, protein, carbs, sugars, sodium & fiber
■ Track calories and Food Score
■ 40:30:30 ‘Pie charts’ of reports
■ Displaying your daily calorie needs / limits
■ Full screen graphs
■ Exercise tracking
■ BMI calculator
■ Weight tracking
■ FREE sync with backup/restore

DIFFERENCE FROM OTHER APPS
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✓ The only calorie counter that works offline!
✓ Large and accurate database, verified by nutrition experts
✓ Allows you to build your own recipes and custom foods
✓ Does not crash, very fast, highly stabile app
✓ Works offline, doesn’t use internet connection to get foods
✓ Full screen graphs
✓ Frequent updates
✓ You can export nutrition data as CSV that can be opened with a Spreadsheet
✓ Great customer support

FEATURES:
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■ Track food calories
■ Track Burned calories
■ Track Daily Weight
■ Set your Diet Plan
■ Set your Goal Weight
■ Set your Fat budget
■ Set your Carbs budget
■ View daily BMI
■ View nutrition data: calories, protein, carbohydrate, fat (and saturated fat), fiber, sodium, sugar.
■ View or edit calorie and exercise logs
■ Export Log as CSV that can be opened with a Spreadsheet
■ Passcode lock

Are you a size UK 16 or above and living here in Singapore? If so, then I know one of your biggest complaints will be finding modern and flattering clothes that fit. Aside from Marks and Spencers there aren’t a lot of other options though I have found Double Spring Enterprise at Holland Road Shopping Centre. I went along today to check it out and while it doesn’t look very impressive or modern, once I did a bit of furging, I did find some fashionable and flattering items – Sizing is excellent with UK 12- 28 (Yes, thats up to a UK 28) catered for in all styles. I have taken a few quick pictures to give you an idea. There is a lot of linen available which I strongly recommend you avoid if you are plus sized; instead opt for chiffon style fabrics or medium to heavy weight fabrics with drape. They have a good selection of jeans (elasticated waist) and lots of tops (plain & patterned) that you can pair with little cardi’s like the one shown below.

I would love to hear your thoughts on plus size shopping and any finds you know about in Singapore so please do leave a comment.