What I Wore To Church - Once Upon a Maritime Skirt 2 Ways

Outfit 1 (Top)                                                                

Skirt: ModCloth Once Upon a Maritime Skirt
Cardigan: ModCloth Charter School Cardigan in Navy
Shirt: Zulily
Shoes: ShoeDazzle Marva

Outfit 2 (Bottom)

Skirt: ModCloth Once Upon a Maritime Skirt
Cardigan: ModCloth Charter School Cardigan in Navy
Shirt: LOFT Linen Shirred Tee in Coral
Shoes: Zulily

I'm going to give you a small peek at the process of me picking out my outfits. The only thing I knew for sure when I woke up this morning was that I wanted to wear this skirt. I got it from ModCloth's last sale for an absolute steal, but hadn't had the chance to wear it yet, despite the fact that it was adorable. If you're not aware of it by now, I have a slight obsession with the nautical trend.

The first idea that I had was that I was going to play with mixing prints. I tried it with the striped shirt which wasn't bad, but I thought it was a bit overly busy. So I threw on the cardigan to tone it down. It looked ok, but I thought the outfit needed some color. I added the necklace and shoes and felt content with it. I went downstairs and took a few pictures. After looking at the pictures, I decided the red accents had become the stars of the outfit and that's not what I was going for. Also, I was having trouble getting the stripes to stay straight, so I went back for round 2.

I decided to ditch the idea of mixing patterns and use the shirt as the color pop for the outfit. Then I adjusted the accessories accordingly. I thought that in this outfit the skirt was featured better, and it was definitely more "safe". This is the outfit I ended up wearing to church, because it was safe, and because I didn't have enough time to change again.

So you tell me. Which one do you prefer? Should I have gone with the more fun, mixed print outfit, or the safe, more traditional styling?



P.S. Yay for new short hair! I cut off 12in and plan to donate it to Pantene's Beautiful Lengths program.

What I Wore to Church - Having Fun With the Nautical Trend

Skirt: eShakti Colorblock Stripe Poplin Skirt
Shirt: Old Navy Maternity Rib Knit Tank
Cardigan: Target (old)
Shoes: ShoeDazzle Sailor (old)
Jewelry: Monica's Fantabulous Fashions

I am a huge fan of the nautical trend and wanted to have some fun with it this week. Who doesn't want to feel like a sailor from time to time? Yes, I'm aware sailors don't actually dress like this, but I love it all the same.

The skirt is from...I'll give you one guess. Yes, it's definitely from eShakti. I love the stripe detailing at the bottom and the pleating. It's quite the full skirt which makes it fun for twirling, as well as giving lots of room for the belly. There's smocking on the back (oh, how I love smocking these days) so there's plenty of breathing room, and it was easy to zip. Definitely loving that I can wear it now, and should be able to continue wearing it post baby, but maybe on my natural waist instead of high-waisted.

I had to incorporate polka dots some how. Partly because they fit in with the nautical theme, but also because I love them. This tank top was a great find from the maternity section at old navy.

The red accessories were a must to tie the trend together. As I've mentioned before skinny belts are a pregnant woman's friend. They help better distinguish between the end of the belly and the bust-line. The jewelry was another great find from my friend Mon's online boutique. I told her I was looking for red statement jewelry. She gave me quite a few options, and this was the set I decided on. She's like having your own affordable personal accessories stylist. I love her to death. You can find my previous post about her business here.

Hope nobody passed out at the sight of me in flats. It's a rare occasion, but in this case, they just matched my outfit better than anything I had in heels. They were from ShoeDazzle a couple years ago, but I think a pair of red flats is a must for most people, and lucky for you, they are fairly easy to find, like these ones from Target.

I really had a lot of fun putting this outfit together. Once I get an idea in my head for a direction I want to go, I will not stop until I put the perfect outfit together. I couldn't wait to try this one out, and I think it turned out successful. I'm not a fan of the "standard" maternity fashions, but it's kind of been fun to come up with my own.

eShakti is doing another Buy 2 Get 1 Free sale, but if you only want one item, it rings up at 25% off. Definitely worth a look see.

If you're interested in checking out ShoeDazzle, use my referral link. They are a shoe club similar to JustFab so make sure to read the terms and conditions.

Happy Shopping!

What I Wore to Church - Anchor Print Dress and Mustard Mary Janes

Dress: eShakti Retro Anchor Print Shirtdress
Shoes: ShoeDazzle Malese

What can I say about this dress? I absolutely love it! It's super soft corduroy (Yes, corduroy!). It has an adorable anchor print that is right in line with the current nautical trend. It's warm, which is perfect since it's been cooling down around here finally. It fits like a dream, and like most eShakti dresses it has POCKETS!   This is seriously the most perfect dress I've ever worn. I fell in love when I found it on the website, and knew I had to have it.  It was a bit pricey, but between various coupons/giftcards and taking advantage of the buy 2 get 20% off deal they had over Columbus day, I got it down to a reasonable price. That's why I always encourage people to sign up for eShakti despite what appears to be higher price-ranges. There are ALWAYS opportunities for coupons. Each time you receive an item, there is a delivery survey to fill out. Once you fill it out, BAM: $10 coupon. Occasionally they send out surveys to fill out and occasionally they give coupons with those. Sometimes they give coupons just because. Not to mention the awesome sales they frequently have, as well as the overstock section. There is always an opportunity to get these adorable dresses for way less than full price.

Now onto the shoes. These were another pair from the heyday of ShoeDazzle. Back when this was considered pretty tall for them instead of the 2-3 inch platforms they have now. I so wish they would figure out that there is still a market for shoes like this. I absolutely adore these shoes and am so glad I snagged them when I could. I thought the mustard paired perfectly with the yellow anchors in the print, and brought a nice fall feel to the outfit. And who doesn't love mary janes? I'm such a sucker for them. I'll share a heel wearing tip with those of you that don't wear heels because you think you won't be able to walk in them. Start with a mary jane. The strap (or in this case, straps) hold your foot in so all you have to worry about is balance. Without the strap, you may also have to worry about keeping your foot in the shoe, especially if the shoe doesn't fit quite right, and the result can look like a baby giraffe learning to walk. Not an attractive look.

The referral program for eShakti is still going strong so if you'd like to try them out, use code ELIZABETH92SP for $30 off. If you're in love with the corduroy anchor print, but maybe not the design of the dress, check out the Peter Pan Collar Anchor Print Dress or the Colorblock Collar Anchor Print Dress. Both are equally adorable.

If you would like to sign up for ShoeDazzle, just to peek around in hopes they might get better (or who knows, maybe you'll find something you actually like), use this link. If you sign up for their new VIP Elite program which is the same subscription model as JustFab (and the same as it was previously with ShoeDazzle), you get 50% off your first pair. Just make sure you read the terms and conditions prior.

Happy Shopping!