Wedding Season

Summer and September are some of the busiest months for weddings. And if you’re anything like me, you’ve hit a point where you have multiple weddings every summer. In fact,  I’ve been doing that quite frequently for about the past 10 years.  (Am I admitting my age?  Maybe).  It gets quite expensive if you end up purchasing new outfits with every wedding invite, let alone the wedding gift.

I have stopped shopping anywhere else other than thrift stores for what I wear to weddings.  It’s inexpensive and fun to have different outfits that look stunning and only cost a fraction of what you might find elsewhere.

Recently I went to Goodwill and looked for dresses that I thought would be great for a wedding.  I was looking for a fun dress for me, but I found more than I could even write about.  There was a great selection of fancy, frilly and fantastic dresses to choose from.

I embellished on the Classic black dress. To me, the classic black becomes that dress you rely on over and over. It becomes that old friend you feel happy comfortable and pretty in. You can wear to a wedding, or to work, a night out, or really anywhere.

This classic black with a satin bow is perfect in its subtle beauty.  It is such a classic look and length, and just conservative enough to be worn at almost any event.

The same goes with this stretch/nylon dress, double layered with a sheer black mesh over a more fitted inner wrap, it’s elegant and hugs the body just right. Made by London Time.

Or maybe this little black number, made by Ruby Rox.  Tiny white polka dots and a pretty little white silk flower right at the waistline give you something a little more flirtatious.

For more fun, a jungle printed strapless cotton fitted dress is perfect for a summer wedding, made by GapStretch.

Fuchsia is such an outstanding color to wear, especially with a tan or dark skin.  It really pop and gets you noticed in a crowd. Blush brand.

Softer pinks are also a trendy color, and this dress made by Forever 21 has a brown under layer and lace embellishments, and a frilly embroidery on the bottom of the dress gives it fun and youthful look.

My favorite dress is the J.P. & Mattie antique white linen dress with what looks like watercolor flowers painted on it. The straps you can tie, so they are charming and adjustable.

All the dresses are on sale for $7.00, which is a great find even compared to other stores that have dresses for $20 on sale.

Trend Alert: The Tress

As you know, I attended and blogged about the Goodwill/Macy’s event last week. During that event one of the hosts, personal shopper and motivational speaker Carolyn Strauss, gave some great tips that I took home and immediately put to use.

One of the best tips she talked about was to make sure any new items match at least three different pieces already in your closet, or that they’re able to put together at least three different looks.  (My theory is, if you can do both, you are so ahead of the game). I hadn’t heard about this tip prior to hearing it from Carolyn, and I must say I am eternally grateful!

She also talked about a current trend that I know we’ll be hearing more about:  the tress.  The tress is kind of a t-shirt/shirt/dress.  It’s stretchy and you can scrunch it up to be a shirt, or stretch it out to be a dress.  This idea is so fantastic for travel and if you want to have a handy yet trendy cute style this summer and fall.

I had been on the fence with a particular tress I purchased at Goodwill.  After the event, I had no doubt that this item was going to be inducted to my wardrobe for weekly use.

I decided what different ways I could utilize the tress and found four different looks that I love!  I’m sure I could have found even more, but I was satisfied with the complete different looks I came up with and I am now taking this with me on my next business trip!

My first outfit is the tress in full on dress style.  Comfy, complimentary and unique, the tress accentuates shoulders and has a geometric green, tan and white polka dot with a black background.  Very versatile and looks great with a cute pair of heels.

The second outfit was heels, white summer pants and the tress scrunched up into a shirt style.

Finally, this tress is perfect for fall when worn in dress style with black tights, knee-high boots and a black knit jersey.  Nice and warm!

Another fall look is the tress with nylons (or tights), black heels and a long fitted blazer.  Great business outfit.

I could see this tress going with shorts, a skirt, and even accessorized for a night out on the town.  What a great addition!  I’m glad I made my decision AFTER the I heard Carolyn speak! Now I have so many outfits in one!

Unique brand dresses

I was looking around at a local thrift store for a good summer dress for one of my upcoming trips. What caught my eye was these brands that were obscure to me, I’d never heard of them and couldn’t even find anything about them on the web!

Espresso Dress: $7.00 – can’t even find the brand online.  I don’t think it comes from around here…had the original tag for $24.00, think it might have been at a consignment shop and priced at $24.00.  It is called a dog-walking dress, and to me, this is something Sarah Jessica Parker would wear and walk a tiny diamond-collared dog around in New York City.

No Name reversible dress, size small, $10. I LOVE reversible dresses!  What a great thing for travel.  I very much loved the colors of the dress and the reverse was less decorative and more turquoise.  I would have loved to purchase this dress for one of my trips, but it unfortunately didn’t fit me right.  Strapless dresses can be a hit or miss and not everyone looks great in them.  This was a miss for me…

Jessica McClintock cocktail dress in iridescent pink with black sash and lace: $13.00. Would be between $70 and $100 new.

Jessica McClintock strapless dress, Gunny sack style pink and brown polka dots with a pink sash. Only $13 for me, would be between $70 and $100 new.

Hand-made strapless dress in a romantic print: $20.00.  I was kind of surprised at the set price since it was hand made.  But it is so fancy, it had a strand of silver sequins on the front of it (hard to see in the picture).  A lot of TLC went into this dress, I’m also surprised it was given as a donation!

Lily Dress in a rather paisley and romantic print on sale for $12.99, normally goes for over $50 new.  This breathes easy and almost feels like a slip.

I was shopping at the Boulder Goodwill, so it seems they have plenty of dresses along with some unique brands that aren’t just found anywhere.