I really need some help. I'm totally out of the loop when it comes to buying nice clothes because I put on a lot of weight over the last few years and haven't felt like looking in the mirror for a long time. I'm 41 and I feel like I look horrendous in 99% of stuff I try on these days.
Pre-peri I was a 10/12 all my adult life with an excellent figure and a wardrobe full of cheeky 60s shift dresses and other vintage. I can barely get a thigh into them these days. I'm now a size 16 - I still have an hourglass figure but my boobs (and my arse) are MASSIVE for my 5'1 frame. I feel matronly and dumpy at the moment and my most decent clothes are merely inoffensive.
Anyway, I'm arranging a big party to celebrate my partner's retirement in September - it'll be a raucous affair in Soho with 150 guests, including lots of media and entertainment people. I haven't seen some of these people for years and the thought of them looking at me with pity and thinking I've let myself go is making me feel queasy.
So, where should I be looking for something to wear? I want to look as cool as I did five or ten years ago without going full-on mutton. Trouble is the clothes I love just don't suit me these days. I can no longer pull off little 60s shift dresses or hot pants and it's near impossible to get decent vintage in my current size. Where else should I be looking? What labels/shops?
In terms of individual pieces, V-necks are sadly almost essential due to my massive tits, ideally short-sleeved but not sleeveless, and nothing maxi-length because they drown my short/fat frame. Budget is pretty flexible without going insane. Help!