All Dress April - Week 1 and 2

I said I was going to post weekly #AllDressApril updates for those not on Instagram, and here it is, the end of week 2 and I have already failed. So this update is going to be a large post, but at least it has lots of pretty pictures! We'll jump right in!

Day 1:

Dress: ModCloth Give It Your Best Guest Dress in Kitchen
Cardigan: ModCloth Charter School Cardigan in Magenta
Shoes: ThredUp (Miz Mooz)

Decided to kick it off with a dress I'd been dying to wear (although that's the case with most of these) in this adorable novelty print from my new favorite designer Emily and Fin. Also, take note you'll be seeing this hairstyle a lot. It's easier to hide the fact I rock the same hair most days when I'm not taking pictures of myself daily.

Day 2:

Skirt: eShakti Belted Cotton Print Skirt
Top: LOFT Linen Tee
Shoes: ModCloth Weaving in and Out Wedge in Cognac
Scarf: Walmart

I'm really trying to focus on wearing things I've never worn before. I bought this eShakti skirt while I was still pregnant and never got around to wearing it. That is entirely too long to wait to wear a skirt this cute!

Day 3:

Dress: ModCloth Ride Here, Ride Now Dress in Blue
Cardigan: ModCloth Dream of the Crop Cardigan in Honey
Tights: Target
Boots: Soda Brand

Some fun, subtle print mixing and playing around with color.

Day 4:

Dress: Purchased on PoshMark
Cardigan: ModCloth Charter School Cardigan in Red
Shoes: Keds Champion in Bubble Dot

Casual enough for a trip to the park, but the red lip keeps it from looking too juvenile.

Day 5:

Dress: ModCloth Garden Tour Dress
Cardigan: ModCloth Charter School Cardigan in Sage
Shoes: ThredUp (Qupid), Similar to ModCloth Dynamic Debut Heel

This was my Easter dress. Florals are a practically a necessity, but I love that this one isn't in a typical color scheme.

Day 6:

Top: Ross (Pink Rose)
Skirt: ModCloth Musee Matisse Skirt in Cocoa
Scarf: Walmart
Shoes: B.O.C.

This wasn't my favorite look. This skirt was much harder to style than originally anticipated. The outfit is a bit too one color for me, which is why I added the mustard scarf. At least the skirt was breezy since it was hot outside.

Day 7:

Dress: eShakti Pineapple Print A-line Shirtdress
Cardigan: ModCloth Charter School Cardigan in Magenta
Shoes: ModCloth The Best of Times Heel in Black

Pineapples with hearts? Yes, please. The easy nursing access was a definite plus.

Day 8:

Dress: ModCloth Sunny Days Dress (Still available on Folter's website)
Cardigan: ModCloth Charter School Cardigan in Red
Shoes: ShoeDazzle Sailor

This is my favorite outfit so far because ANIMALS WEARING SUNGLASSES! Deal with it. Folter/Retrolicious is another one of my current favorite brands. They have some of THE BEST prints! My Easter dress was also by Folter.

Day 9:

Dress: eShakti Arbor Melange Knit Dress
Cardigan: ModCloth Birdlandia Cardigan in Blue
Shoes: Bamboo

This was the first dress that I'd worn previously, but I hadn't worn it in over a year and a half. It's actually the dress that I announced my pregnancy with. It's a shame to let this comfortable dress sit in a closet. The shoes were a bit impractical but I couldn't resist how well they matched the cardigan.

Day 10:

Dress: ModCloth Artisan Iced Tea Dress in Blueberry
Cardigan: ModCloth Charter School Cardigan in Jade
Boots: JustFab Zion

I had heard tales of how magical this dress was, and I'm here to tell you that the legends are true. It is one of the most comfortable dresses I've ever worn. The only downside is it's super short. The lace overlay isn't super short, but the lining is, so leggings are a must.

Day 11:

Dress: eShakti Colorblock Stripe Poplin Dress
Cardigan: ModCloth Charter School Cardigan in Sage
Shoes: ShoeDazzle

I wore this to my sister's JROTC drill competition so camo was perfect for the occasion! I worked the rest of the outfit around the shoes.

Day 12:

Dress: Effie's Heart Marion Dress in Versaillas
Shoes: ModCloth The Best of Times Heel in Black

Another super comfortable dress. Anything from Effie's Heart is like wearing publicly acceptable pajamas. The headband is actually the original sash that came with the dress. I just decided it would be better suited tied around my head.

Day 13:

Dress: ModCloth Sprinkled Splendor Dress
Cardigan: ModCloth Charter School Cardigan in Rust
Shoes: ModCloth Party All The Timeless Heel in Mustard

Yet another super comfy dress. Are you seeing a pattern?

Day 14:

Dress: ModCloth Day After Day in Bluebird
Cardigan: ModCloth Charter School Cardigan in Orchid
Shoes: ModCloth Cottage Wedding Wedge

Another Emily and Fin number in my favorite dress cut, the Day After Day style. I have two other dresses in this style. I bought this from someone in an Emily and Fin BST group and the minute I received it, I put it on and kept it on. As far as the shoes go, I was planning on swapping them because they weren't 100% my style but I tried them on and decided that I really liked them. I'm glad I kept them around!

Well that was quite the undertaking to compile 2 weeks worth of outfits. I think I'll save myself a lot of energy if I just proactively do the weekly wrap ups. So *hopefully* there will be another one next Tuesday. Fingers crossed! If you'd like to follow along on Instagram, my handle is shopwithbeth!

Happy Shopping!

Sunday Style - Literary Luncheon Dress

Dress: ModCloth Literary Luncheon Dress in Honey
Leggings: Old Navy Women's Jersey Leggings
Boots: Soda Brand

Have I mentioned lately how much I love the color mustard? And I'm definitely not letting it go just because spring is here. It may have been a little warm for this outfit today, but I wanted to wear it before it got really hot, and it ended up being perfect for a trip to the park this afternoon. I could roll around on a blanket with the baby and not flash the world, and I still had full range of motion because this dress is like wearing thick stretchy pajamas. If you're on the fence about buying it (I was for quite some time) jump right off that fence and do it!

I don't have much to say about the outfit since it's super simple, except don't be afraid to pair black and brown together. A lighter shade of brown looks great paired with black and it brings some warm tones into the outfit (along with the mustard of course).

Other than that, I'm just counting down till All Dress April starts on Wednesday. The closer it gets, the more anxious I get. I keep thinking "what did I get myself into?" Oh well. I'm committed. If you still haven't followed me on IG and want to follow along with the fun for All Dress April, my username is shopwithbeth!

Happy Shopping!

Introducing All Dress April

As I mentioned last week in my swapping post, I have almost completely flipped my dresses and skirts collection in the last couple on months through swapping. Because of that I have a ton (like an embarrassing amount) of dresses and skirts that have never been worn. At my current rate of dress wearing (only on Sundays) it'll take more than a year to wear all of my dresses, and that's if I don't buy/swap for any more!

As a solution, I've decided to host my own Instagram style challenge for April. I know in the past I've really enjoyed doing IG style challenges so I guess it was only a matter of time before I hosted my own. It's probably the simplest style challenge you could ever participate in. I'm calling it all dress April and the challenge is to wear a dress (or skirt) every day in April. 

It's going to be a pretty big change for me since there are many days I don't get out of my yoga pants, but that's why it's a challenge. I'm going to have to get used to being ok with going to everyday places in a dress, but I think it's going to be fun. I also have the added hurdle that I'm still nursing, so I'll be focusing on outfits that give me easy access to that. No one wants to spend time nursing with a dress over their head.  

If you want to participate, it's simple. Just post your dress on IG (it doesn't have to be a fancy picture. Most of my pics will likely be mirror selfies) and use the hashtag #AllDressApril. You don't have to wear a different dress every day. I know not everyone has a closet full of them. If you want to tag me so I can help cheer you on, you can but it's not necessary. I'm not going to judge you if you can only participate sporadically, or even if it's just on the weekends. I want to see your pretty dresses! I'll be doing a weekly recap Tuesdays here on the blog if you're not an IG user. 

I was so happy when I proposed All Dress April in my swap group there seemed to be quite a few other ladies who were excited to join in so I certainly won't be alone! I'm super excited for April to start!

If you don't already follow me on instagram, my username is shopwithbeth. 

Happy Dress Wearing! 

What I Wore To Church - Hello Spring!

Dress: eShakti Floral Print Mixed Media Dress
Cardigan: ModCloth Charter School Cardigan in Sage
Shoes: ThredUp (Miz Mooz)

Well hello, Spring! It's so nice to see you again. Of course I had to celebrate by wearing florals. I mean I really wear florals year round, but it's always nice to wear the bright colors in season.

I got this fabulous dress from eShakti's overstock section for an absolute steal. I can't believe someone would return it, but their loss is my gain. It's so gosh darn pretty! And wouldn't you know it's twirly too. I have a sad confession to make. Every time I wear something with a twirly skirt, I spend about 10 minutes of my picture taking time trying to get a cute picture of my twirling in the skirt. Have you ever seen me post one in the almost 2 years of blogging? Maybe once. That's because they always turn out embarrassingly terrible. Well today, I decided that even though they were bad, I was going to show you them anyway because I think it's important for people to know. I'm not as photogenic as it appears and I'd make a terrible model. So here they are.

OK. OK. So they aren't the worst things ever. But they certainly aren't what you'd see in a magazine or those adorable girls that post their twirl pictures in the modcloth style gallery. Oh well.

eShakti is doing 30% off site wide right now so as always it's worth a look.

Happy Shopping!

What I Wore to Church - Turn of the Sensory Dress

Dress: ModCloth Turn of the Sensory Dress in Teal
Cardigan: ModCloth Charter School Cardigan in Black

Shoes: ModCloth The Best of Times Heel in Black

Guise! Guise! Look at this dress! I about died when I saw it in a Modcloth BST (buy/sell/trade) group and just knew I had to have it. Good golly is it flattering. And oh so cute! 

Alright, now that I've gotten my excitement out. Hello! It's been too long! I apologize for the blogging drought. Between the Disney trip which I still need to blog and then getting sick for a few weeks, I just haven't had the energy to get dressed, let alone take pictures of those things. But I'm back now. 

So first off, Happy International Women's Day! And also, Happy Mustache March. I figured there was no better way for me to celebrate International Women's Day, than to take a print of something that is typically very masculine (mustaches) and wear it in a very feminine way! OK. I may be stretching that a bit, but really this dress just makes me really really giddy and I'm a big advocate of wearing what makes you happy. 

To make sure the dress took center stage (because how could it not?) I went minimal on the accessories. I don't typically do all black accessories but I thought this dress called for it. Then I added a small pop of color with the red lip to finish it off. I really like how the look turned out (if you couldn't tell). 

Thank you again for being patient with my absence, and hopefully I've got some fun stuff coming up. I've practically flipped my whole wardrobe through swapping, and I have a bunch of dresses that are begging to be worn. I may have to do All Dress April or something so I can wear them all! Either way, thanks for sticking around!

Happy Shopping!

What I Wore to Church - Antique Print Dress

Dress: Effie's Heart Elysses Dress in Antiquing (Similar to this MC dress on sale in 3X and 4X)

Tights: ModCloth Layer It On Tights in Light Grey

Shoes: ShoeDazzle Vannah (similar)

I have a confession to make. I have a bit of an obsession with novelty prints. I am a 30 year old woman who would wear them everyday if she could. I almost cried this week when I got a dinosaur dress in from ModCloth and it was too big. I've acquired quite of bit of them recently through swapping and through sales using the money I've gotten from my PoshMark sales. Today was only my second week in my new congregation at church and while I had the urge to wear something novelty, I didn't want to automatically be labeled as the weird lady wearing the Tigers Wearing Sunglasses print dress (the dress exists and it WILL be worn eventually). 

This antique print dress was my concession. Still a novelty print, yet subtle enough that I'm not Ms. Frizzle from the Magic School Bus. I got this adorable Effie's Heart dress on sale for $25 a couple weeks ago. It's a super comfy stretchy material (as most of their dresses are) and the cut is really flattering. It hugs in the right places and flares in the places I'd rather it not hug. Plus the bow at the neckline made it surprisingly nursing-friendly. 

I went easy on the accessories because I wanted the dress to speak for itself. With the bow neckline, a necklace was even too much. The simple belt and tights added some interest and definition without overpowering the outfit. 

Over the past year or two, my style has transitioned a bit away from the higher platform pumps to lower retro-ish heels. I bought these oxford heels on super sale from ShoeDazzle right in the middle of that transition. At the time, they felt a little too vintagey for me, but now that I've come further in the transition, they were just perfect. When I unpacked them yesterday, I remembered how much I loved them and I was glad I took the leap to buy them. Honestly, I'm not fully sold on how they look with this outfit (they would look better with burgundy or green tights, but the grey was all I had), but I just love them so much that I have no regrets. 

That's quite the long explanation of how this outfit came together but occasionally I think it's good to talk about my style and how it came to be instead of just telling you where I bought all my clothes. Hopefully you get something out of reading it! Either way, I'll continue writing it. 

Happy Shopping!

Everyday Style - Layering a Dress

Dress: eShakti (similar, similar)

Cardigan: ModCloth Charter School Cardigan in Rust

Leggings: Old Navy Jersey Leggings

Booties: ThredUp (Aldo, similar, similar)

What's this? A dress in the middle of the week? You can thank Audrey at Putting Me Together for that. I'm doing another style challenge! Fortunately, this one is only a weekly challenge so it's completely doable, yet it gets me out of my yoga pants at least one day a week. The prompt for this week was simply "Wear a Dress". Easy peasy.

I have a ton of dresses and I've always wanted to be one of those girls that wears dresses all the time, but as a stay at home mom (it still feels weird to say that), it just always felt too, well, dressy. For this outfit I took one of my more casual dresses and accessorized the crap out of it. I actually tried a scarf, but after looking at the pictures, it was a bit too overboard with the layers. I also thought about doing knee length boots, but decided to do something a little out of my comfort zone and do scrunched socks with booties. I thought it brought a more casual feel to the outfit which is made it more appropriate for the middle of the week. Who knew? Dresses can be comfy and warm! Well, I guess I already knew that, but it's always nice to be reminded.

If you're interested in joining the style challenge, click the icon below and check out the details!

What I Wore To Church - Penguins!

Dress: ModCloth Coach Tour Dress in Penguins
Cardigan: ModCloth Charter School Cardigan in Honey
Tights: Target Opaque Tights
Boots: JustFab Sayana

Merry Christmas (a few days late)! As I mentioned in my last post, I've been in a bit of a blogging drought. With the relocation, I've been buried in boxes so blogging hasn't been my priority, but things will get sorted out soon.

Let's talk Christmas traditions. In my family, there's a very odd and unwanted tradition. Someone always gets sick. This year we ALL got sick. It made it that much harder to get to church, but we still somehow managed. I was so happy, because I bought this adorable dress for my sisters and my mom too! Most people don't like to match with others past 5 years old. I LOVE matching. Taking pictures of all of us just wasn't in the cards but trust me, we looked adorable. The fun thing about this dress is that it is surprisingly versatile and we all styled it completely different. I'm thinking I may try to turn matching dresses into a tradition.

Hopefully your Christmas was less...infectious than ours. Regardless, I hope you have a happy new year!

What I Wore To Church - Shawl Collar Dress

 

Dress: eShakti Shawl Collar Trapunto Trim Dress
Cardigan: ModCloth Charter School Cardigan in Navy
Shoes: B.O.C. (similar)

First off, please excuse the crazy hair. It was super blustery out there today, and I couldn't get it to sit still. Second, I feel like I should be honest. I wasn't crazy about this outfit. I didn't try it on last night (my biggest mistake) then my alarm didn't go off this morning so I was rushed to pull it together. I tried on 3 different cardigans before settling on this one. I thought it was a pretty lazy combination so I wasn't totally thrilled with it. Also, I'm pretty sure I tried on every pair of shoes I have at my mom's house and couldn't find one I loved, so I settled on these, because yes, leopard is a neutral. To top it off my hair and makeup wasn't cooperating so I ended up walking out of the house in a sour mood. Not generally a good way to start church.

After looking at the pictures it wasn't as bad as I originally thought, but it's still not my favorite. I'll have to try to style this dress again in the future to redeem myself.

If all goes better this week, my post on Tuesday should be about how to customize a dress with eShakti, since this dress is custom measurements. It's the first time in a while that I've done custom measurements, and I tend to get a lot of questions about the best way to measure. Now that it's fresh in my mind, I'll write it up for the future.

Until then, I hope you have a happy Sunday!