Embroidery's Best

I love Mexican wedding dresses and all embroidered cotton things and the best news is that I've found one of my old favorites is back!  So without further ado, a few cotton embroidery dresses to lighten up your summer:

Embroidery Elbow Sleeve Keyhole Blouse $18

SHEIN Lace Up Back Embroidery Smock Dress $16

Flower Embroidered Fold Pleat Back Crinkle Top $16

SHEIN Embroidered Yoke Buttoned Keyhole Frill Sleeve Smock Top $14

A Slice of Summer

I'm so glad to be able to bring this skirt out and wear it again.  That's really what I'm looking for in clothes--a healthy long term relationship. 

Shop the Look:
Similar Watermelon Skirt at ChicWish $29.90
Era Thing You Got T Strap Heel
Black Blouse

La Vie En Rosebuds

Spring is over, but I do I love that time of year, when the whole world wakes up and everything is blossoming.  It seems like it didn't last long, but I tried to be out in all that beauty as much as I could while it was here.

Shop the Look:

Knitted Dove La Vie En Rosebuds Dress from ThredUp.  Use my link to sign up and save $10 off your first order.

The Zest is History Heels in Burgundy and YeMak Charter School Cardigan in Rose from ModCloth

Hollywood Glam

    I love the old Hollywood Glam style.  It's gilded age of platinum blondes and long flowing gowns

made of silk  or satin.  But, as much as I love the style, it's one that doesn't really feature much in my wardrobe.  I haven't the right shape for long clingy dresses.  Of course once you make a rule, something will come along to be the exception.  Et Voila!  Today's dress becomes the exception to my rule.  

    One of the companies I work with sent me this gown and I was instantly reminded of Jean Harlow and Greta Garbo.  And, this smoky purple color is one of my favorites.  But, I did have to make some adjustments to the gown before wearing it.  I sewed two closures at each arm so that the sleeves weren't open all the way down and another closure at the neckline for the same purpose.  While I can honestly say that I'm not sure if this is meant to be a night gown, dressing gown or an evening gown, I can say that I love it either way.

Dashing Darling is Back!

I've had so many instagram users ask me where I got this succulent dress and at long last, it's back in stock!  The Dashing Darling A-Line Dress in Succulents from ModCloth in S, M, L, XL, 1X, 2X, 3X, 4X

When to Say When

    In keeping with my last lengthy "musings" post called Keep Trying, I thought I'd bring some balance to it with this post about knowing when to quit.  I think W.C. Fields said it best when he said "If at first you don't succeed, try, try again. Then quit. There's no point in being a damn fool about it."    It's important to keep trying, but it's also perfectly healthy to say enough is enough.

    I don't often take outfit photos at the end of the day...or early in the morning.  I'm tired and it shows.  Even if I redo my make-up.  I feel a bit like these years of grief have gotten to me...or maybe I'm just starting to show my age.  It's caused more than a little insecurity and the other day, I'm a little ashamed to admit, I made an impulse buy on some very expensive and supposedly miraculous skin care products.  They haven't arrived yet, but I'm already feeling the buyer's remorse.  I've been using the same skin care line from Mary Kay since I was 23 years old and it's never steered me wrong.  It's pricey, but I always bargain shopped it and saved some off the retail, plus it seemed like it was working so, I figured it was worth it.  Now the lines are deeper and the under eye puffiness isn't just from a long sleepless night and doesn't go away as the day progresses.  I used to be so secure with myself, inside and out.  Now, not so much.  Life sucker punched me, then kicked me a few times while I was down and I'm still feeling the after effects in so many areas of my life that I never dreamed would be shaken this way.

    I picked up a copy of French Women Don't Get Facelifts by Mireille Guiliano from my library this week to help me mentally fight against some of what I'm feeling.  I've been to France multiple times and I used to live in a french culture, so I already have a healthy relationship with and a deep appreciation for food and family.  But, as I'm reading the pages of this book, I'm afraid that it may not be of much help.  French culture is not American culture and the views on women, sex, and attractiveness are perhaps some of the more marked differences between us.  While I can certainly work on regaining my positive attitude toward aging, I will have the rest of my culture to contend with and quite frankly, the rest of my culture seems to views a woman as worthy and attractive only from ages 18-34. That's it.  We see it in Hollywood all the time.  Once an actress hits 35, she disappears until she's old enough to come back and play someone's mother or grandmother.  And by then she's often had her face plumped and pulled into something that barely resembles the woman we knew before.   Celebrities aren't the only ones giving in to the cosmetic surgery craze.  I know a handful of women who are toting plastic parts and they all acquired them around the same age--40.  In our hormone-sodden, hook-up based, sex-obsessed land of plenty, what's a middle-aged, wanting-to-age-gracefully-and-naturally-kind-of girl to do?

    Well, I can't change the culture, not single-handedly anyway.  But, here's what I can do: relax and enjoy as much as possible.  Mireille's advice in a nutshell is what I loved and miss most about French culture, the love of life.  I need to make time for my children, my friends, my family.  I need to sit down and enjoy good, rich meals over good, rich conversation at least once a week.  I need to focus on staying fit and healthy for my own benefit while simultaneously bowing out of the fashion/beauty race.  I've contemplated whether or not that means closing down my blog.   A friend of mine advised against it.  "Maybe you need to keep doing this because you're older.  There aren't that many women your age who are out there saying, 'hey, this is our style, and this is our time.'"  Maybe she's right.

    On the other hand, I remember when I was in school and Clueless came out.  Of course all the girls loved it and the school was full of those plaid skirts, knee socks and cute tee combos that Cher and Dee rocked so hard.  But then a couple of our teachers started wearing it too....Now, compared to all the other teachers at school at the time, these women were the prettiest.  No questions there.  And in spite of having had multiple children, they both had great little figures.  They were just too old to wear that look, that short.  Even if I hadn't reached that conclusion on my own, (and I mean the instant I saw them wearing those outfits, I thought, Ooooohhh, nooooo) I heard other teachers and quite a few moms clucking about the inappropriateness of it all.  It is perhaps the golden rule of fashion that just because you can wear something doesn't mean you should.  It's possible that all those gossipy women were just jealous.  Possible, but it's more probable that those dear little teachers in question, who were in fact the age that I am now, could have and should have spent a little more time taking that teenage look and turning it into some more befitting a 35-42 year old confident professional woman.  I think it could have been done back then and I know it can be done now, and if you don't believe it, then maybe I should be using my blog to show you how.

    Sometimes, when I'm really bottoming out in depression and grief, I think it would be nice to buzz all my hair off, let it grow out naturally in all its salt and pepper glory, put on my old farm clothes, work hard all day, spend my evenings with a good meal, a nice glass of muscato, and some lovely conversation with loved ones and never have another photo taken again.   I could just sit back and let the world be the world without me.   Deep down, I know that's not the right frame of mind in which to make big decisions, so I try to refrain.  All this is supposed to be just for fun anyway, so I'm trying not to take it so seriously.  I don't plan on running a fashion blog when I'm 60.  Actually, I didn't think I'd be running one for more than a year or two.  Now it's going strong and I don't know what happens next. 

    Maybe my days at this are numbered and maybe I'm the only one numbering them because I've believed all the things my culture has told me for so long even though I know they're not true.  So, while I don't know if it's time to quit fashion and photos just yet, I'm beginning to wonder if it is time start transitioning out of some of my more youthful prints and skirt lengths and into a more mature style. I'm almost 40 after all.  And, yeah, the day may come eventually when I need to hang up my blog and leave all this fashion stuff to the youngsters, and I hope that when it does I'll handle it gracefully and know when to say when. 

Pier Pressure

This Dear Stella Pier Pressure swimmer print was just too cute!  I had to make a sundress out of it.  For this dress I combined the sundress top from Cynthia Rowley pattern 1873 with the skirt from Simplicity pattern 1369.  I also sued a lovely white eyelet as the lining for the skirt and bodice.  Without all the pleats in the Cr pattern this dress took even less time that usual.  I chose a red zipper and thread to help accent the piece.

Shopping Info:

Dear Stella Pier Pressure Swimmers Fabric

Cynthia Rowley Pattern 1873

Simplicity Pattern 1369

Hey, Hamilton

By my count, Unique Vintage has carried five variations of this dress.  I own it in pink and of course green and I just purchased the newest edition in baby blue.  Perfect for this ever warming weather, this dress is so light and airy, I'm determined to bring it out of my closet more often this summer.

Shop the Look:
Hamilton Swing dress from Unique-vintage.com

Bonjour, Cherie

Just a quick post today.  I know most people complain about the weather in the mid-west, but I love the way that it will be below freezing for a week and then, voila!  It's beautiful today outside and we can all ditch our coats for the day and recharge on Vitamin D.  So, that's what I'm doing.  I'm out for a walk in these lovely woods, soaking up some sun and a little nature too.  I love a sweater with some sort of quirky print, and this entire outfit came from ThredUp for about $15.  Who says you can't look glam anywhere, even in the middle of no where. ;)

Shop the Look:
All items are Forever 21 purchased from ThredUp.  Use my link to sign up and save $10 off your first order.

How Things Grow

It's been a while since our little black cat surprised us by bringing four kittens to our house one day.  The kittens have grown like weeds in the last few weeks and are now starting to venture outside without their mama.  Of course this has caused Midnight to give more than a few stern purrts in order to corral her kittens to her again.  But they've had a taste of freedom now and they like it more and more each day.  On this particular day, we caught them just after a hearty lunch.  With their little bellies full, we were able to scoop them up for a little snuggling during their milk induced comas.

Orange You Glad I Didn't Say Banana

It's pretty obvious that I like yellow dresses.  If you didn't know that about me, you either just got here (in which case you are excused) or you really haven't been paying attention (which is also Ok, I guess).  The fact remains that I love yellow dresses and this one was such a stand out piece in that bright shade of yellow-orange crayon that I used almost exclusively as a child for sunshine, flowers, and the occasional smiley face.  I love the length too.  I generally think I'm too short to wear anything below the knee, but this sweet little dress is perfect just the way it is.

Shop the Look:

HaoDuoYi Women's Basic Spaghetti Strap Sundress A Line Maxi Dress

My Stroll Mate flats from ModCloth