I Embarrassed My Poppy Print Dress.
I had a vision for this outfit. I was riding high after my first "In the Lab" excursion and all of the compliments I received for those embroidered boots, and thought, 'LET'S GO BIGGER!'
My vision was inspired by this look that I pinned on Pinterest:
The fact that my outfit inspiration comes from this three-year-old post from Garance Doré reminds me that I'm not hip.
I love a good mix of contrasts, and so I thought, let's do this! I have a full length dress, and some sneakers. I bet I'll feel just as chic as example outfit lady, even though I can't wear white without looking recently deceased and always worry that sneakers emphasize my big clown feet. BUT IT'LL BE GREAT.
It wasn't great. It wasn't terrible....... but it wasn't great.
Here's the breakdown:
THE EVENT: Date night! Christian and I went to dinner and a play. I take him to a lot of plays.
THE BROKEN RULE: Wear boots with dresses.
THE OUTFIT: I don't own any glamorous white dresses, so I opted for a black ankle-length poppy print dress that I LOVE. I always feel a little like a fortune teller in some sort of glamorous artist caravan when I wear it, and when I saw it thrown over into Christian's side of the closet (whoops...) I knew it was the key to my outfit vision. I wore it with my velvet black hi-top Supergas. But also it was raining and I had one of those work days that leaves you frazzled and late and sprinting around the house looking for socks, so I brought last week's black blazer and a green scarf and, well, ugh. It just didn't work.
Here's the photographic evidence of it not working:
THE EXPERIENCE: I felt really conflicted while wearing this outfit. My feet said "Sunday at the dog park" and my dress said "fancy fortune teller" and my jacket said "let's do some banking" and I felt it. I felt best when I wasn't wearing the jacket and the scarf (but it's always so cold in theatres...) and when I could hide my feet under the table at dinner. So.... not exactly roaring endorsement this time around.
THE CONCLUSION: I need to redeem myself in the eyes of my poppy print dress. It's sassy, and flattering, and has fun pin-tucked shoulders and ties up the front. It deserves better than my old, beat up hi-tops, banker-wear blazer and a pashmina. To add insult to injury... those Adidas that glamorous inspiration outfit lady is wearing? I own those. I have those shoes. I did spill Sriracha on them, but at least the Sriracha would have matched the dress!
Did this ensemble ruin date night? No. Did I feel like I was embodying my best self? Was I feeling powerful and fabulous? Definitely not. Did anyone sneer or roll their eyes at my outfit, or publicly shame me in anyway? Nope. Do I still feel like I can successfully break my dresses-and-boots-only rule? Heck, yes. Onwards and upwards, friends, onwards and upwards.
