Sarah, I agree with you on the gentler version of trends. Looking again at the “rules” I wrote, they might not be much help to LaPed. She certainly selects quality, takes care of her stuff, and knows herself. Will this dress be the wildcard she loves & hangs onto? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ But I truly do think trying to figure that out is like trying to catch a ball while thinking about it. (Or, for those watching the NBA finals, like trying to shoot a free throw within the time allotted while the crowd shouts out the seconds, like a stopwatch—think too hard & you can’t do it, even if you’re a past captain of an All-Stars team).

Does the “happiness factor” Angie describes kick in when you are wearing the dress? If yes, then I would keep the dress. It looks fantastic on you! Layered with a black cami and warm boots and a topper, it will have more wearability in cold weather.

If you have been low-key looking for a couple of years at this style of dress and this one ticks all the boxes (plus looks very pretty on you!), I'd say sounds like a keeper to me!

Fashintern : Many people are able to determine “ forever pieces “ without a lot of mental gymnastics . Also- forever means different things to different people . I was responding to LaPed’s own comments and questions about its style longevity .

I get Lisa’s hesitation to give a full thumbs up because the dress isn’t what I would normally consider your personal style. But, as others have noted, it does look great on you, and your feelings about being intrigued by the style certainly make it worth serious consideration. Having fun with fashion requires an open mind when it comes to trying a look which isn’t normally found in our closets. My check when I’m in that state of indecision to to ask myself two questions:

Excellent wisdom Gaylene! Sugar eye for lots of things and happiness considered without practicality considered led me to a totally bloated closet. While not as much fun now, I am happier in the end.

Sorry to post and run! I got caught up in house/car problems and haven't had a chance to reply properly. And now I'm on the road all day...

I knew people here would get the dilemma, and you've all articulated both sides of the debate so well. Thank you to everyone for the encouragement; it's good to know that this dress looks good and it's not just me. And thank you for the voices of reason as well; I have a very strong voice of reason in my head that makes me question purchases that fall outside my norm. It usually wins out over sugar eye (sugar eye items are actually pretty rare and elusive for me), but sometimes I wonder if taking more chances would help broaden my range a bit style-wise.

I'm going to sit on this decision for a few more days and, I hope, find time to workshop it with shoes/toppers. If I do, I'll post some pics! And yes, this might be a candidate for the fall Mountain Formal wedding guest outfit if I can suss out the right shoe/topper combo.

I actually thought of the mountain formal when I saw this dress! I think it could be styled for that, for sure.

I admire your analytical and thoughtful approach to wardrobe building. I am a bit more impulsive and have the bigger wardrobe — and some semi-orphans — to show for it. But I do think that sometimes these sugar eye items come around and are good additions. Not everything in our wardrobe needs to be an everyday piece. And I find that dresses can have a healthy shelf life, but generally not more than a decade unless they are special occasion only, so I have a bit of tolerance for “less than forever.” I look forward to seeing what you decide, either way. Even if this dress is not one you decide to keep, you have a clearer idea of what you want in a dress to keep an eye out for another one.

The idea of ‘30 wears’ is conservative for durability of a garment (as I learned from my counting experiment) but is commonly referenced as a goal for sustainability. Jenn identified thinking about ‘30 wears’ at the point of purchase. This was an ‘aha’ moment for me and now I consider ‘can I wear this garment 30 times?’ And more importantly ‘do I want to wear it 30 times?’

I have no advice to offer, but did want to let you know how much I admire and am inspired by your thoughtful approach to adding to your wardrobe. Sustainability is difficult to implement without sucking all the fun out of dressing - and your approach seems to straddle that line nicely!

To Runcarla’s point: it was indeed Jenn who told us about considering the #30 wears at the point of purchase, which comes from the original UK campaign spearheaded by Livia Firth. Jenn tries to wear her items 10 times a year, so as to get 30 wears in by 3 years, if I interpret her posts correctly.
I personally feel better if I can get the wears in quicker than that. With occasion-type outfits though, I never can, and so I struggle with them and have had to reign myself in with them.
I think it’s partly the psychology of it for me- like with my new fluffy cream jumper I only bought it in May and have already worn 13 times. I KNOW it was right for me.

It reminds me of my skirt I brought recently as it was out of my usual jeans /pants. I have loved going against my usual trends and have worn it once a week since I got it.

I had wanted to try that style of skirt for a while.

I think its nice to have the odd piece that doesn't fit with your usual style just to have that diversity or freedom to express other parts of your personality.

I love it on you and could seeing it being versatile across all four seasons (and also a possibility for the ski lodge formal wedding :). Do you deeply and passionately love the color and print? That would help me decide re. longevity.

Keep! You went with your intuition on this one. Do you ever find that you buy something on a whim, maybe not something you've worn before, because it's a new style aspect of yourself coming into being? It's like it's doing the shopping. It's a lovely surprise when that happens. I could also see this dress camping...and "dressier" too. It looks great on you. Enjoy it!