Broken Reality : Ready? Set? Blog!

Hello, fellow thrifters! Hello, my darling vintage lovers and passion-for-fashioners. And hello my beautiful, plus-sized cutie pies. I am Laura Rios. This is a blog. And this is what its all about.

I've been meaning to catch up to the times and write a blog. I love fashion, art, and literature and have been collecting Teen Vogue magazines since I was in middle school (Major Accomplishment, BTW!).

I've been thrifting for just as long.

When I was younger, I used to go to Goodwill and the Salvation Army and similar stores because I had to. It wasn't chic; it was SURVIVAL. We couldn't afford to shop at the mall and buy the brand name labels.

But, over time, I began realizing that I had an entire treasure cove of fashion, all to myself! And, by god, it had a name! Vintage clothing!

Vintage clothing had so many things the mall didn't, like cooler dresses and weirder shoes. They also had more options for a plus size girl.

I've been plus-size my whole life. Ever since 9th grade, I've been the same size 14, so finding the trendiest clothes in my size was always an issue. I couldn't shop in the Juniors section very often and going to the Women's section made me feel old and fat. But vintage clothing changed all that! I found out that the average woman wears size 12-16 and that the chances of finding great pieces at that size wasn't as hard as I had anticipated it to be. I could finally feel fabulous and fashionable and not at all fat. I love my body and the beautiful clothes I am able to wear. I hope to be an inspiration for other plus size, fashion forward young women; and for fashion forward young women in general.

I will be posting cute, cheap, and fashionable outfits modeled by myself (Size 14) and my younger sister, Jessica. (Size 4) The selection of vintage clothing in the hot and humid, South Florida, is not as extensive and theyre arent pieces quite as old as some of the stuff you find up North, or in the Mid West or West. The vintage pieces range from about the 1950's to the early 90s.

I will be showcasing some of the best vintage shopping spots this far south, such as the famed Flamingo Plaza and Swap Shop Flea Market. (Tomorrow, hopefully!)

I also sell some of my gorgeous thrift store finds on Etsy, so be sure to check out my store-- Animalia Vintage.

Here are a few samples on my beautiful sister: