The biggest thank you in the world goes out to my talented and very brave photographer Kimberley Williamson. For the past two photos, she's braved standing in traffic & rain all in the name of plus size style. To be honest, these photos have a slim chance of happening without her and to her I will be eternally grateful.

Red leather feather & rhinestone earrings: I can't remember :(

Dress: Handmade (by me!)

Belt: Lane Bryant

Tights: Roamans

Boots: Silhouettes

(Photography by Kimberley Williamson)

Allow me to preface this post by saying I have nothing but big, big hearts for Jordana. She's an amazing gal with amazing style and deserves nothing but the best!  She's been selected as one of the 8 finalists in the running for Bluefly & Stylelist's America's Most Stylish Blogger. The video above is breakdown for the first week's challenge, judged by the one & only Kelly Cutrone.  Her scariness wasn't the nicest to my dear Jordana, so she needs your support! Pretty pretty please vote for Jordana of Clutch 22 in the voting widget below!

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This morning began with the pouring rain - hard and cold. Around lunchtime, the droplets slowed to drizzles and the grey sky got a bit brighter. Kim & I left the rooftop and fire escap for the streets of Soho.

Dress: Igigi

Necklace: H&M

Bag: Avon

Flats: Payless

(Photography by Kimberley Williamson)

This morning I managed to wake up an hour late and almost make it out the door in time if I hadn't locked Lola Belle (my dog) and myself out of our apartment. It took an hour for the landlord to come let me in, so needless to say this outfit isn't as thoughtful as it could be. What I do love are the small pops of color from my crazy earrings, my flats & my MAC Hollywood Nights lipstick.

Sweater:  Silhouettes

Crochet detail tank: Lane Bryant

Earrings: Forever 21

Dress Pants: Lane Bryant

Fuchsia flats: Silhouettes

(Photography by Kimberley Williamson)

Mario Badescu Special Cucumber Lotion

$15.00 by Mario Badescu at Nordstrom

Every Fashion Week, my skin hits the repeat button. Repeat pimples, repeat blackheads, repeat freakouts. Right before Fashion Week started, I received a large delivery of Mario Badescu products to try. I'm always skeptical of skincare, but I decided to give it a fair shake.  After all, I believed nothing was going to be worse for my skin than a week of constant stress & poor diet.

I cannot believe how far I was from wrong.  I've never been a toner kind of girl. When I worked for Lancome, they "stressed" the importance of a toner to reset the ph balance of your skin, but the cynic in me thought they just wanted to sell another item. Typically, toners are full of alcohol and harsh ingredients that end up exacerbating the bumps and redness I already had. Mario Badescu's Special Cucumber Lotion to heal current blemishes and prevent new ones through the dynamic duo of sulphur and cucumber.

What I love most (aside from the fact that it works) is that I can continue using this product after my sample runs out. Why? Because it's an affordable $15 for 8 oz. Beauty may be a luxury, but in this case it's a luxury you can afford.

This outfit felt unusually fussy, however I had a client event so the fussiness couldn't be avoided.

Shrug: Lane Bryant

Ruffely top: Lane Bryant

Necklace:  Ann Taylor

Non-Right Fit pants: Lane Bryant

Mary Jane pumps: Payless

(Photography by Kimberley Williamson)

As some of you may or may not know, I recently went through a traumatic breakup.  In fact, calling just the breakup traumatic would be an understatement, as the entire three year relationship was a tumultuous experiment in disaster. Somehow, after all the times I felt trapped, depressed, unintelligent and a slew of other descriptive words, I managed to make it out alive. On the other side, I emerged moderately bruised but with a renewed passion to rediscover all the bits and pieces that make me.........me.

Similarly, my dear friend Kristin Booker is writing the most enlightening series called The Breakover diaries on her site, Fashion.Style.Beauty. Her heartfelt stories, crystal-clear insights and humorous take helps to heal some of the parts of me I considered lost forever. If you aren't a regular (and subscribing) reader of Fashion.Style.Beauty, you should be.

Since the breakup, "me time" has taken on a whole new meaning - I have more energy to spend on me without all the emotional turmoil and drama that I was previously surrounded by. I have the freedom to pursue more passions (photography, writing, and my career) as well as extended one-on-one cuddle time with my precious Lola Belle (fan her on Facebook!).

I have discovered a lot about myself over the past few weeks.  Some things I am proud of and want to shout from the rooftops, while others clearly need a bit of tlc, but all the while they are exclusively mine.  I look forward to discovering more parts of myself while truly discovering what NYC has to offer the REAL single girl.