spicing it up

Last night I ordered this dress. I was instantly head over heels when I saw it in Anthropologie's summer catalog that I got this week. After telling myself that I hadn't bought clothes in soo long and that I don't have many summer dresses, I was able to convince myself that it was okay to splurge. ;)

Besides the fact that this dress is so swishy and pretty and one of my favorite colors, I also love it because it fits my criteria for clothing splurges these days. I now like to collect clothes that can be worn for work as well as play. Especially if I'm going to spend a pretty penny on it! This dress isn't low cut and hits the model below the knee so I know it will be long enough for me to wear in a work situation. A lot of what people consider dresses can tend to be long shirts on me at best so I have to be careful. :( It's also clearly plenty of fun to take a stroll in the summertime or go out to dinner in!

I decided to make up two mood boards to give an idea of how I would wear the dress for each occasion. I styled one for work and one for vacation since I'm going to Miami at the end of May. I tried to use some things I already own but there's also some super cute things I wouldn't mind adding to my collection thrown in there just for fun.

The first look.. for work.

Spiced Dress with coral layering necklace, olive cardigan, slouchy brown handbag, brown oxford heels, or brown oxford flats.

I love the coral necklace with the olive and mustard colors. I already have an olive cardigan from H&M. Mine is shorter and would probably hit the dress right at the waist but this was the closest cardigan I could fine to the one I have. I also have this slouchy brown bag from Urban. I found a link to it but I don't think they sell it anymore because I bought it two Christmases ago. For the shoes, I picked out two pairs of oxfords, both of which I already have. There's heels for when I'm feeling a little extra spice and flats for when I'm not in the mood to be any taller. So basically I have the whole outfit minus the necklace. I bet it's something I could make though.. ;)

The second look.. for play.

Spiced Dress with the pet octopus necklace, 70's sunglasses, tooled handbag, linen skimmers, or crocheted oxfords.

I think my octopus necklace from Mod Cloth would be awesome with this dress. Especially at the beach! I got this for Christmas from Charlie. :) Sadly this is the only part of the outfit I currently own but I may get the the sunglasses since mine are busted from being crushed in my bag :( and also the crocheted flats because I don't have many summery shoes. Apparently I've been buying more clothes for the fall and winter months instead of the sunny and warm months. I don't really care for sandals so I think these nice airy flats would be a good trade off. I also love the linen flats with the bow for a slightly more dressed up look. And this tooled bag is gorgeous. Again it has that coral and olive in it and the detail is stunning. Apparently I like this color palette because once I saw this bag I knew it would be perfect with this outfit.

It's fun to try to make a piece you love work for totally opposite situations. It saves money and expands your options for when you're staring at your closet wondering what to wear. I think I need to revisit some pieces I already have and see what I can do with them!

Hope your week is going well!