A lot has changed since I was invited to my first wedding as the Unfashionista. Since then, I've been to so many weddings, (I no longer get anxiety before them and) I've practically developed my own nuptial uniform, usually consisting of a cutesy empire-waist party dress (usually pink) that was probably designed for teenagers at Homecoming. Here are some examples from 2015 and 2016 respectively.
I also have more of the same
from 2017, 2016 summer, 2016 spring, and even a picture of a dress I wore to crash a reception in 2013.
The routine is getting so old (and old-fashioned!) that this summer,
when we were invited to a whopping 3 weddings in 3 months, I expressly prohibited my usual "Paris Hilton circa 2004" aesthetic. Even
though 3 of the dresses I bought in my Swap.com shopping spree
do sport that look (2 are still pink!), I'm reserving them for later
(possibly for never) and focusing on dressing for the current decade.
The
first two weddings of the summer have come and gone. For the first, I
am ashamed to admit that I wore yet another aughties throwback. I had my
reasons, but ultimately they weren't good enough, and the outfit, much
like the rest of the evening, was something I'd as soon forget. For the
second wedding, I wore an unassuming blue maxi dress that was neither
particularly stylish nor unstylish. If I had to describe it in a word,
it would be "forgettable." For the third wedding, my last chance, I had
to do better! I had to wear a dress I'd be proud to post in my blog!
The
nice thing about this wedding was it was going to be held on a beach,
and there was no dress code, so I was confident that I could wear
anything relatively tasteful and it would be fine. With all the options
at my fingertips, I decided it was time to wear, for the first time
ever, a slip dress! I've been wanting to jump on the slip dress trend
since 2016, but it has proved quite a slippery (pun intended!)
proposition. Slip dresses, for all their apparent simplicity, are
outrageously expensive, and it wasn't until this spring that I was able
to acquire one (actually 2) at a reasonable price.
This
particular slip dress was the second-most expensive of my dress-buying
spree, at $7.50. I loved it online, but was a little less infatuated in
person, as it had an unflattering hemline. I don't know if it has a
name—I guess it's the opposite of a high-low hem, as it gets low in the
front and high at the sides. So a low-high hem? Whatever you call it, that hemline never looks good.
But
aside from the fugly front, the dress was loads of fun! So many colors!
It wasn't too hard to alter the cut to do justice to the print. In one
of my famous reversible alterations, I hemmed the front to have a
straight edge, and tacked the fabric inside at a few strategic points so
it wouldn't dangle down. I left the back as it was, so now the dress
has a more traditional high-low hem.
While
the fit is much looser than I usually feel pretty in, it feels free and
breezy, two adjectives that are right at home on a beach. Not to
mention, it has an open back, which gives it that little something extra.
Much
as I feel un-flattered in flats, I have to say that these black sandals
were actually some of the best-looking shoes I could have worn with
this dress. Since the fabric had so many colors, the black shoes
provided some balance—not to mention their lack of a high heel helped me balance! In another display of admirable restraint, I also wore simple gold jewelry and a solid gold clutch.
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