Rompers and Roses

 

Social distancing has certainly put a damper on dressing up. A birthday grocery run is about the biggest occasion I've had to show my face in public since the pandemic began.

That is, until last Friday, when I took the opportunity to meet a friend for an afternoon of wining and dining in the great outdoor venues of downtown Silver Spring. And that meant I had to have an outfit that would compensate – in one blowout of a day – for all the months I've been putzing around in a frumpy parade of house clothes.

Now I am admittedly a pretty aspirational shopper, tending to buy clothes first and look for an occasion to wear them later, but I've shown remarkable restraint during the pandemic and haven't purchased a single impractical item...which meant that when my day to shine finally arrived, I had nothing new to wear!

Nothing new except shoes, which I always have in steady supply. I stockpiled a fair amount of dressy sandals last fall, never imagining that my feet wouldn't see anything fancier all summer than a pair of Tevas. Although I had a much more colorful selection to choose from, I had to go with the fairly uninteresting pair of white low-heeled sandals.

Simple shoes were a necessity because my choice of clothing was gaudy as can be—a romper covered in multicolor roses! I'd tricked this particular garment out with removable straps two years ago, wore it once, and then let it rest for a season. It was now ripe for one last hurrah before being sold.

Of course, in this day and age, it's no hurrah until there's a coordinating face mask to go with it, so I very quickly customized a plain cream mask with a glued-on embroidery flower—actually the same flower that once graced my now-retired velvet slip dress.

After my afternoon of romping, I removed the flower from the mask. Maybe in another 2 months, a new social occasion will present itself, and both the mask and the appliqué will be ready for decoration!