Dressing For Comfort
Happy Sunday ladies. We are in the midst of a rainy weekend here and things are looking pretty dreary outside. We took that opportunity to move some furniture around, hang a few pictures and not much of anything else. It’s funny how fast the days go when it feels like I’m not doing anything. I hope to just lay on the couch and dive back into my book today.
I was out of mannequin pictures on Thursday and feeling a bit cooped up so I took a short drive. Not to worry, I was never near anyone. I got into my car in the garage, drove to a local shopping center and parked in front of several clothing stores. Since there was no one anywhere, I could park directly in front, zoom my phone in to capture the window displays.
Then I drove home, into my garage, came into the house and washed my hands. It was an eerie feeling to see how desolate things are. Frankly, I was happy to get home.
Yesterday’s mannequin was the first one I snapped. It had mixed reviews yesterday. Some loved them, some not so much. One lady mentioned that the dress on the right would help her narrow shoulders look wider, and it would. But if you like to wear a cardigan to cover your upper arms, this dress isn’t for you.
The dress on the left has cap type sleeves which tend to make upper arms look wider. If you clicked through the link to the dress, you would see it has a thigh-high slit which would make it tough to wear.
Neither dress works for me because the colors are too warm and my shoulders are too broad for these styles.
On the subject of dresses, most stores have a large crop these days. Other than maxi dresses, I stopped wearing dresses during the day, many years ago. I decided they were harder to wear than pants but the truth is, they are the ultimate one and done garments. You don’t have to worry about coordinating your top with your bottom. Most bypass the ever disappearing waistline and they really are more comfortable than most jeans.
Many women don’t wear dresses because they struggle with unsightly veins on their legs, sagging knees, or lumps and bumps they would rather hide. I hear you! My kneecaps are nowhere near where they started out:)
Self-tanner (favorite here), can cover that pasty color most of us have and it also helps camouflage some veins. Longer dresses will cover most of your legs. I’m a big fan of maxi dresses for every body shape. So is it the shoes? Dresses look as good with sandals and flats as pants so we shouldn’t let that stop us.
For me, it feels like my movements are more restricted by a dress than pants but to be honest, unless I am trying to stand on my head, a dress will work in virtually every occasion a pair of pants will. They will also be much cooler in hot weather and never bind around my waist.
There are so many to choose from this spring I’ll be looking for more dresses that I love as much as this one. My tastes and style are certainly being changed by this forced time at home. I wouldn’t even put it past me to try a pattern or two;)
Thanks for reading ladies and have a great Sunday.
I have always loved dresses and skirts. The type of dresses/skirts I wear has changed over the years. I had one denim skirt when I retired in Oct 2011 and now I have 7! I have quite a few casual a-line dresses that I wear when it’s warm. In the fall and winter, I wear leggings or jeans–no more pantyhose! I have a lot of sleeveless tops/dresses but as I get older (I’m 75) my arms are beginning to look less toned so I’ll be keeping an eye out for tops/dresses that are cool but have a little more coverage. Thanks for the continued inspiration!
Happy Sunday!
I have one dress I wore quite a bit last winter. It’s made out or the softest knit. In fact, it’s called the PJ Dress. I could wear it with leggings or tights and dress it up or down depending on the jewelry or scarf I wore.
Since I’m tall, most dresses are too short for me, but I find I can get away with wearing capri leggings under them and feel covered and not too warm. JJill has some lightweight ones that give plenty of coverage, but are still cool.
Your post today made me think of a funny post someone said they saw on FB. The text was, “Shop Now for Easter Dresses!” Then showed pictures of nightgowns. 😆
That is funny:)
What a great article! It’s really made me think: I very rarely wear dresses & am not sure why. When I was a kid I was a tomboy & hated them because everyone kept harping at me to be a “young lady” which I never had any interest in. But I should have outgrown that by now. When I was in uni no one ever wore dresses, it was all jeans all the time. After I graduated (I’m an engineer), most of my jobs over the next 4 decades were outdoors on construction sites or in remote camps somewhere or power generating plants where I had to go up & down ladders & along open metal walkways, certainly no where one would wear a dress even if you could find one to pass the safety gear regulations & that looked good with construction boots & a hard-hat 🙂 And of course I married a guy who loves motorcycles & we spend a lot of time on a Harley, which doesn’t lend itself to wearing dresses either. My excuse is that I’m “too active” for dresses, but as you point out, that’s nonsense! I remember years ago we were on a hiking trip in the mountains & we met another couple out in the middle of nowhere. The first time I saw them the woman was wearing a lovely cotton sundress even though she was carrying a backpack nearly as big as she was & wore heavy socks & boots. We spent a week crossing paths & I never saw her in jeans or even shorts in all that time, just these simple, pretty dresses. She really rocked the look — it still impresses me 30 years later. I might be too old to change my spots entirely, but I might buy a dress this summer just to shake things up a bit.
That’s a cool story. It just proves you can wear them almost everywhere.
Jennifer, I have to stop by the office a few times a week, and while it is nice to get out, I agree that I feel better when I’m back home. Thanks for showing us some current shop windows. It’s hard for me to think about clothes these days but I do love dresses for comfort and versatility. The only requirement is they must have pockets! If they do I will wear them every day!
I love pockets in everything so I totally understand.