I Went on a Date with 17 Men at Once

Also known as "speed dating." But we'll get to that later. For now, let's look at the week that was...

Monday:

I was lazy here, and the outfit suffered. It needed a belt, for one thing, and possibly better accessorizing. I liked the fun floral addition on the shoes, though.

Tuesday:

A maxi skirt on a TUESDAY?! Yeah, now that every Friday is a jeans day, there will be no more "Maxi Dress Fridays." I considered making a different day a regular "Maxi" day, but decided it was time to simply allow the maxi dresses and skirts back into normal rotation. On this day, I paired my black maxi skirt with a new cream blouse with black trim from Target. (Find it here.) A little pop of color with the red flats helps vary the look.

Wednesday:

Bringing back the same floral flats from Monday, this time with white skinnies and a maternity blouse from Target. Simple, classy, cool.

Thursday:

... I forgot to take pics on Thursday. I wore my burgundy skinnies, a cream-colored 3/4-sleeve sweater, my tan boots, and gold necklaces. It worked fine.

Friday:

Epic fail on my part. Remember when I talked about the right way to wear a t-shirt and jeans? Yeah, I didn't do it right here. I should have rolled my sleeves, I should have tucked in the shirt, and I should have worn different shoes, because the jeans are too long with the flips. Awkward.

Well, just goes to remind everyone that I'm not perfect. In case anyone forgot.

So about that whole "dating 17 men" thing. A friend invited me to a speed dating event that his church was putting on as a fundraiser for a mission trip. I was like, "Um, sure," mostly because it just feels like speed dating is the kind of thing that every single adult female should try once. Like a "bucket list" kind of thing.

What did I wear? This:

(Yes, my sweater has a hole. So sue me.)

I knew this event was probably going to be almost entirely (it turned out to be entirely) populated by Asians, who, more often than not, tend to run on the shorter side (which is neither good nor bad, it's just a true). Now, for some ladies, this might lead to the decision to wear flats, so as not to seem too intimidatingly tall. For me, I see no reason to beat around the bush, so I just put it out there with 3.5" wedges: "Here I am. I am tall. If you can't handle that, look elsewhere." Out of the 45ish people present (34 participants, plus 10ish helpers), only one person was taller than I was. There were also only two white people--me, and the friend who came with me. Well, nothing like standing out from the crowd, right?

At least I can now say I've gone speed dating, right?

Some Pics and a Poll

Let's look at some non-work clothes, okay? (Like you have a choice.)

March 2:

This is actually an outfit I wore to Mrs. Toth's baby shower, but I could have worn it to work I guess. I liked the light colors for a spring party, especially the green for a "new life" kind of feel.

May 11:

And this I wore to the now-Mrs. Joslyn's bridal shower. When I arrived, I discovered that Mrs. Toth and I somewhat matched:

When we're both wearing navy polka dots, you KNOW it's totally fashionable. (Disclaimer: Actually, we're not that fashionable. And we're really weird. And nerdy.)

May 27:

 

This I wore to the review session with my English 11 Honors students on Memorial Day. Technically, not a work outfit, because it was just an optional review day, but it probably could have worked. The top is one of my Target Maternity purchases. I hope no pregnant women get mad at me for shopping in their section...

May 31:

This is what I wore to the staff meeting we had the day after finals ended. That day is always a bit more casual than other work days, but I still like making sure I look nice. The collared shirt, cuffed pants, bright necklace, and closed flats are all pieces that contribute to a professional look, but with a sleeveless top and denim it's a bit more casual.

Also, DANG. That mirror was STREAKY.

June 4:

I assume I was going in to finish up some school work on this day, but it wasn't actually a "work" day, so again, I'm pretty casual.

Okay, that's enough for now - let's take some polls:

Do you want me to finish last year's work clothes or move on to this year's without finishing last year's?
A) Finish last year's!
B) Just move on.
C) Who cares?

Do you want me to write about the remaining casual outfits I wore during the summer?
A) Yes, I want to see more casual outfits!
B) Nah, just get to this year's work clothes.
C) Who cares?

Do you want me to do any more retrospectives (i.e. looking at outfits from 2008-2012)?
A) Yes, retrospectives are fun!
B) No, you've come too far to look back.
C) Who cares?

[Note: If you answered (C) to any of the above, why are you reading this?]

Forgettable

No lie, I sat down to write this post, and could not, for the life of me, remember what I wore today. (I had changed into sweats and a t-shirt after getting home, so I wasn't wearing it anymore, otherwise, obviously, I would have just looked down.) I thought, and thought, and thought... and eventually I had to look at the pics I took to remember. That's a bad sign for my current mental health, right?

At any rate, here it is, and while it was apparently forgettable to my addlepated brain, I rather like the outfit overall. This is a favorite dress of mine, which means it should surprise no one that it is from Target's maternity section. Above the black flower belt I added, you can see that the dress has a fitted band around the ribcage already, but I like to add a bit of color variation with some other kind of belt when I wear this dress.

I matched my earrings to the flower on the belt, but kept my bracelet, tights, and boots in black. I also added a black cardigan for the chilly morning weather:

On an unrelated note, what can I do to inspire you all to comment a little more often? I feel, sometimes, like I'm shouting into a huge echoing abyss where my own words fly back at me with little other feedback. I want to know what you all think! Do you have opinions on my choices? Do you have questions I'm not addressing with my commentary? Do you have any fun stories to tell from your day today? If the answer to all of those is no, then maybe consider just saying hi. :)


Get the look for yourself:
Dress - Target; similar here or (in a different color) here.
Belt - Target; similar here.
Cardigan - Target; similar here.
Boots - Payless; similar here.

Bow Belt

*** Hi! If you read this post, can you please let me know somehow? Comment on this post, let me know on Facebook, shoot me an email or text, etc. I'm trying to get a sense of how many people read this blog and what the demographics are. Thanks much! ***


Even though this was the fourth week of school, today was only the second Maxi Dress Friday of the year so far:

This plain and simple black dress may seem a little boring, but I really wanted to spotlight my brand new sage green belt:

I suspect it will shock no one to discover that this dress is another spectacular purchase from Target's maternity section. Because I am a bit on the taller side, maxi dresses are often hard to find in a long enough length for me. Maternity dresses are cut to run longer to allow for a baby bump in the front, which makes them just the right length for taller folks who do NOT have a baby bump. (I'm pretty sure if I did have one, the dress would suddenly become too short again.) This dress - like the one I wore Wednesday - is also made of a knit jersey material, which means it's like wearing a giant comfy t-shirt to school, and who wouldn't love to do that?

While I did want to shine a spotlight on my belt, I felt the outfit would still be too plain without any additional accessorizing, so I added a fun chain necklace and a chunky silver bracelet. I honestly wish I had had some better shoes to wear, but I went with some flips that are pretty much the same shade of green as the belt.

So do you like the belt? The dress (plain though it is)? Let me know!


Get the look for yourself:
Dress - Target; similar here and here.
Belt - Therapy Boutique; couldn't find any that same color, but some other fun colored bow belts can be found here, here, and here.
Shoes - Payless; similar (actually, BETTER, because I adore Seychelles) here.
Necklace - Target; similar here.
Bracelet - Target; similar here.

Floral Dress, Green Pants, and TIPS!

Don't worry - the floral dress and green pants were NOT being worn together. I know you were all wracked with concern about that, so I hope I've eased your worries.

Wednesday I wore this floral dress from Target (wait for it) maternity section:

It's made of a light jersey material that is pretty much indescribably comfortable. There are many times I thank God that I'm a girl instead of a boy, and wearing jersey dresses is one of those times because oh my goodness it's like wearing t-shirt sheets to work.

In spite of the "maternity" fact of this dress, it is actually cut to be extremely flattering on most female body types. Although I chose to wear a wide black belt with this dress, the way it is actually designed is to be tied with a bow at the narrowest part of the waist, which accentuates that nice narrow middle. EVEN IF you feel that your waist isn't particularly narrow by nature, a dress that cinches in like this one will make you look narrow. Which brings me to TIP #1:

Look for pieces/items that accentuate the narrowest part of your waist to flatter your figure the most.

The v-neck cut of the dress is also flattering. Ladies, do you know why we're supposed to wear v-necks? V-necks elongate the look of your neck, which slims your neck and face. Wearing turtlenecks (basically the complete antithesis of v-necks) erases your neck completely and makes the face look chunkier - almost like it's pushing any excess skin up into your face. Pretty unappealing, which brings us to TIP #2:

Look for v-neck shirts, blouses, and dresses to elongate the neck line and slim the face.

On me, this dress hits at the perfect spot, right at/above the knee. If this exact same dress (same size and everything) were worn by someone 5'5" or so, however, it would hit at a terrible spot - at the middle or top of the calf. This is NOT a great place to hit the leg, as it "stumpifies" the entire frame. (Note: "stumpify" and all forms of it copyright Miss Doyle. It is not technically an English word, but it works. I am a Language-Arts Professional, so I'm allowed to make up words.) And on that note, let's look at the green pants I wore today:

I hear you all shouting at your screens. "But Miss Doyle! You just said that clothes should NOT hit the calf! Now you're contradicting yourself!" Yes, yes I am. And here's why I can do that: Because I am tall, and I have very long legs. One of the things I get to do is wear these kinds of cropped pants without being "stumpified," because proportionally speaking, I have a lot more to work with than someone with shorter legs.

For those of you shorter gals out there, you've got to be looking for pieces that hit slightly above the knee, but definitely no lower than the knee... OR pieces that run all the way to your feet/shoes. Ankle pants, mid-calf skirts, etc. are all bad options for you. If this makes you sad, just wait, because in future posts I will talk about stuff you get to wear that we tall folk do not. (*sniffle* for us; hooray! for you)

So, TIP #3:

Find pieces that hit you at the right places for your body type, whatever that is.

I love this top because of the velvet pleats that add a little spice to an otherwise plain black button-down top. Because of that, I didn't feel a need to add any necklace to the top. The cropped pants are a very recent New York and Company purchase from their new fall line, and if you look at the picture on the NY&C site and zoom in, you can see the small black weave pattern against the bright emerald green. I added the black heels to continue the long line of my leg in spite of the cropped pant, and I think it worked great.

By the end of the day I had rolled my sleeves, which I think still worked great with the overall look, but I was definitely wishing I'd worn a belt. First, I think it would have made the waistline a little more visually interesting, but mostly, the pants got looser through the day and by lunch I was already constantly yanking them back up to where they were supposed to ride. (No low riding here, thankyouverymuch.)

So, let's review our tips from today...

1. Look for pieces/items that accentuate the narrowest part of your waist to flatter your figure the most.
2. Look for v-neck shirts, blouses, and dresses to elongate the neck line and slim the face.
3. Find pieces that hit you at the right places for your body type, whatever that is.

Hope something in here was interesting and/or helpful to you today! If so, let me know in the comments!


Get the look for yourself:
Dress - Target, available here.
Belt - Target; similar here.
Shoes - Payless; similar here.
Necklace - Target, available here.
Shirt - Express; similar here.
Pants - New York and Company, available here.
Shoes - Cathy Jean; similar here. 

Wide-Leg Win

I *really* love these pants. They remind me of sailor pants from the 1940's or something, and that reminds me of Gene Kelly and Fred Astaire and Frank Sinatra, and that makes me happy. Now, wide-leg pants can be dangerous, but white wide-leg pants can be especially dangerous, as there is a very real possibility of making yourself look larger than you are, especially around the hips and thighs. That's why it has to be paired with something fitted and flattering on the top.

Ironically enough, the top I chose with this outfit happens to be a maternity shirt. I AM NOT PREGNANT - I just want that to be clear from the start. I do, however, enjoy looking through the maternity section every time I go to Target, because there are some awesome pieces in there that can be worn by pregnant and non-pregnant alike. This particular shirt really only works for the non-pregnant among us if it's tucked, but since tucking is very "in" right now, it doesn't concern me. Plus, I love the crossover detail at the top.

These pants aren't quite long enough to wear heels, but they drag on the ground if I wear completely flat shoes. So I opted for a 1/2" heel on these wine-colored loafers, which was pretty close to perfect height. I didn't want to wear a necklace because it would detract from the shirt's detail at the neck, so I kept things simple with just a moonstone ring and a leather wrap bracelet with a fun flower detail.

So, what's your verdict on this one?

Get the look for yourself:
Shirt - Target, available here.
Pants - The Limited; similar here.
Shoes -Ross; similar here.
Belt - Target (with a dress); similar here.
Bracelet - gift; similar here.
Ring - The Limited, available here.