It’s been a really, really long time since I shopped for an event. And by that, I don’t mean it’s been a really long time since I shopped (she laughs riotously internally). I mean, I can’t remember the last time I bought a dress because I had a wedding to attend. Or a fancy date night on the weekend. An important work meeting. And trust me, I have a lot of all of those things on the horizon. But, I realize I’ve fallen into the pattern of buying things when they speak to me. And inevitably, the event always follows….
I know like my shopping strategy is different from most women – those who burst into the fray when they have an upcoming soiree they have to dress themselves for. But I think I’m always on the lookout for the next perfect dress. My eye is always on the horizon, scanning for the next vintage island to sail to. No goal in mind except a wardrobe full of inspiration. And though my shopping strategy may seem a bit more random, the benefit to buying things as they speak to you, is when an event rears her head, you can reach into that wardrobe of yours, confident you already have just the thing.
Much like a sea farer bobbing amongst the waves, staring off across the salty seas and wondering where the daily current will take them today…
When I first saw this fish-speckled dress from new-favorite vintage wonderland Timeless Vixen, I almost lost the ability to speak. By now my obsession with Marjorie Montgomery pieces knows no bounds (case in point here & here), so enamored am I with her 3D details and shocking contrasting linings. And I felt that all too familiar tug at my heart – not the one that saw an important dinner or an under-the-sea dance I needed to attend – but the one that I have long since learned to listen to. The one that just knows this is already my dress. The one that saw me twirling in her green skirts, with no one to impress but myself. With me, when I picture myself wearing something, the details are always fuzzy around the edges. I don’t see a time or a place, I just see how I will feel wearing it.
So, gut check complete, I contacted the lovely Lauren and happily took her home. And when I unfurled her from her tissue paper packaging and slipped her over my head, just like that, details started to come into focus. The perfect mermaid heels that would pick up the glimmer of those pink fish appliqué. The fish necklace my mom bought me years ago (cause who doesn’t love a good theme?) A dinner with the girls. A night out with my Mister. A stroll along the riverwalk, the crisp breeze rippling my skirt. Or simply a day like today, standing in front of a roomful of students, my eye forever on the marine science I love so much.
Although I know it isn’t for everyone, I don’t see myself changing my shopping strategy any time soon. Like any good sea farer, I sometimes have to throw it out to the universe. Let the stars speak to me. Knowing they will inevitably get me safely home.
Do you search for the dress, or do you let the dress find you?
xoxo
Outfit Details:
Dress: Timeless Vixen (similar here, here & here)
Necklace: Gift (similar)
Belt: Pinup Girl Clothing (similar)
Handbag: Anthropologie, sold out (similar)
Shoes: gift, Betsey Johnson
Lip Color: Schiap
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