TBMD

We went to a wedding over the weekend at the historic Belvedere Hotel in Baltimore. The architecture style of the venue plus the formal dress code immediately made me think romantic, tulle, embellished dresses -- like BHLDN.

I've never really had a good excuse to wear tulle... until now. I was thinking a Thread & Needle blue/gray tulle maxi skirt with a J.Crew bow top. I loved the swishy-ness of the maxi skirt, but never truly found a top I loved -- one that was dressy enough and went with the skirt. I think subconsciously I knew I would be "settling" so I never completely stopped the search.

Lo and behold, the perfect dress appeared when I was casually browsing Bloomingdale's sale section one day. There was only one problem -- because the color I wanted (navy) was on sale, size selection was limited *cue crying emoji* Reviews were mixed regarding the fit, so I kept debating whether I should give the larger sizes a try (definitely runs small through the ribs). I ended up sleeping on it. When I woke the next morning and refreshed the page, smaller sizes magically appeared -- yay for overnight re-stocks!

I loved this dress even more in person when I tried it on. The color (navy is the new black), the heavy fabric which created the beautiful voluminous high-low skirt that swished as I walked. The only negative was the strapless top -- never been a fan only because I don't have much to hold it up. In all honesty though, a non-strapless top would've made the dress look busier, and I probably would've passed. The simple strapless top balanced out the full skirt.

When I showed DH the dress, he immediately said, "You look... loud." What? But I'm not wearing a bold color! I definitely don't want to stand out and upstage the bride. So he clarified with, "You take up a lot of space." I chalked this up to another example of how guys view things differently -- all my girlfriends gave their thumbs up approval. I know I look good, so he'll just have to deal with me invading his personal space, hahaha. I recounted this story multiple times throughout the night of the wedding because I got so many compliments (pockets were a huge hit!) from other girls.

It's funny how I was so sure of the vision of my initial outfit, only to end up wearing a dress that is a complete 180 -- structured, plain, heavy fabric. I accessorized with a statement necklace to add interest up top, but chose simple nude heels to keep the attention on the full skirt.

I love the color white. I already own a white skirt, two pairs of white shorts, white skinny jeans, a white dress, and multiple white tees -- all of which I wear on a regular basis. I can now add another to my ever-growing white collection: a pair of wide leg trousers.

I saw the Chelsea28 pleated wide leg pants on Taylor and Julia awhile back. I was immediately smitten with the flowy look. It gave off such a sophisticated vibe a la Lauren Bacall. Being the casual dresser that I am, I didn't know if I could pull it. I also had doubts about my ability to keep the pants clean -- a long hem nearly touching the dirty ground?!

I couldn't stop thinking about the pants, so what the heck, I had to see it in person myself. Not surprisingly, I loved it. The pants are fitted through the waist, then straight down the legs, which makes it so comfortable to wear. I'm used to wearing skinny jeans, so it's always an adjustment to wear items that aren't restrictive at all. For reference, I'm wearing sz 00.

The pants were very long on my 5'4" frame (~35" inseam on the pants, iirc?) Nordstrom offers free alterations on select services for full-priced items, which happens to include hemming pants. I had bought the pants online, so I just walked in to any of the women's departments at my local store. A sales associate will call someone from the alterations department to come up while you change. He/she'll then just pin the pants to the correct length (make sure you bring the exact shoes you'll be wearing). I was handed a slip with a pickup date a week later. It's seriously so convenient and hassle-free.

I definitely saw wrinkles appearing throughout the day, mainly around the thigh area. Sigh. Unavoidable I guess, so I've come to terms with that. My worries about keeping the pants clean? Perhaps I was overreacting because they were just as clean at the end of the day as they were at the start.

P.S. - Thank you Jean for introducing me to the H&M top and Suddenlee for tracking down my size for me!

Unfortunately the pale yellow tank in today's outfit looks washed out, with the color blending right in with the white stripes on the dress. The yellow looked more vivid in real life, but just doesn't photograph well. Yellow and navy is one of my favorite color pairings, but only when the contrast is more apparent, a la with a bolder, brighter yellow.

These linen pants are still getting a lot of love. At the frequent rate I'm wearing white bottoms (along with white skirts and white shorts), the hunt for white skinny jeans has slowed somewhat. Thanks for all the suggestions I've received. I've yet to give them all a try but have passed on some that just didn't work.

See Tam in a much more put-together look of a navy/green striped top with white pants.

Today's outfit is inspired by the Duchess of Cambridge wearing a Matthew Williamson gray dress with turquoise stones on the neckline. The color combination is fantastic, one that I haven't attempted until now, but will be doing so more in the future!

Have a great weekend, everyone!

I lied about this dress in my fitting room post. A few strategic pulls here and some folds there, and I'm able to secure the maxi to fall about an inch off the ground. No need to shell out money for alterations after all. Yay! That made my day.

This is the first long dress I own where I have to watch my steps. Apparently the narrower bottom doesn't accommodate my unbeknownst-to-me large strides. Now I know why I arrive at appointments early.

Have a great Thursday, everyone!