Triple V-Neck (or, how to dress down formal attire)

If I had to pick my favorite fashion flaw, it's that I can't resist buying formal and semi-formal dresses, despite the dearth of events at which to wear them. As I write this, I have 4 dresses in my closet that have never been worn, and probably never will be worn until I have accumulated 4 other dresses to take their place. I say this is my favorite flaw because I just really love those dresses! Even if I never put them on, they will always be like art for my closet.

That said, usually I prefer to wear my clothing at least 2 or three times, and then – if it's proved to be impractical to keep – sell it on eBay.

This peacock blue satin party dress is an interesting case. After one wear and one year, I concluded I would never wear it again, because the fit is not very flattering on me. But before selling it, I noticed it had some odd water spots all over it, and I was obliged to dry-clean it since I didn't think the tiny pleats would hold up too well in the washing machine. After that, I knew I'd have to recoup my dry-cleaning expenses by getting at least a few more wears out of the old rag (since I'm pretty sure it won't sell for more than 5 bucks).

I definitely wasn't going to waste one of my precious going-out opportunities on an already-worn dress I just called a "rag," so the question quickly arose...how to wear a low-cut, strappy, satin dress to the office? The answer—lots of layers!

I turned to my trusty collection of jackets first—opting for a grey checked blazer because I thought it might be nice to pair the solid-colored dress with a more textured top. This particular blazer, however, is even more low-cut than the dress, doing nothing to cover up my chest. So on to another layer! I chose a V-neck lace-edged camisole and wore it underneath the dress, which ended up creating this nifty chevron-patterned neckline which I totally love! That tiny reprise of the blue makes the whole outfit look more complete and intentional.

Because I had so many stripes of blue and black going on at the neckline, it seemed natural to add one more in the form of this outlandish blue rose necklace.

After trying on several pairs of shoes, I settled on my soft suede slouchy black boots, because they look a little lighter in color than most of my black shoes, and I felt they went nicely with the blazer.