Closet clean out q#2 - empire waists

Tanya

OK, I am pretty sure that empire waists are dated, so I got rid of most of them; but I have a couple of items that I really like that I am on the fence about.

1. Color-blocked BCBG blouse in #5 in this thread. The colors are quite on trend, but does the shape ruin it?:
http://youlookfab.com/welookfa.....ern-mixing

2. Emerald BR knit top from # 1 here. The shape looks quite dated, correct? It has that wide empire band that ties in the back:
http://youlookfab.com/welookfa.....pring-week

3. BCBG knit dress in #2. Same band that ties in the back as top in 2. Or does the fact that it is a dress make it more tolerable?
http://youlookfab.com/welookfa.....es-sandals

Many thanks!

13 years ago

General

9 replies

Latest reply was from Tanya

Aziraphale

Veteran

I'm not very good at determining whether or not things are dated -- I'll let others decide -- but you seem very concerned about it. My question: do these tops make you feel fabulous? Do you wear them? That's how I decide if I want to keep something or not.

As far as empire waist tops go, I see women wearing them still. I don't think they scream "sophisticated" or anything, but they can look quite cute. Honestly, for myself, at age 40? I probably wouldn't wear one, as I feel, on me, that it looks *too* cute.

13 years ago

Sveta

(website)

Veteran

Honestly I am not into empire waists now and never really liked them on me much. I vote to ditch #2 with ties on the back. However #1 does not look too 'empire-waisty' to me, just fitted. It may still work if you like it.
As for the dress it depends how many summer dresses do you have. It looks lie a nice cool dress for a hot day so if you don't have many of those you may keep it.
Anyway I find that if I have to think a lot about an item of clothing and have some hesitation about it it tends to sit in my closet anyway and rarely gets worn...

13 years ago

Julie

Veteran

Hello, Tanya;

Not sure if I ever replied to one of your posts before. Firstly, I'd like to say that I'm sure all of us here have your back in these troubled times. Just remember, that when you're going through hell, keep going. Don't stop!!

Hopefully, your closet purge is being somewhat therapeutic. Before you toss your empire waist dresses, I'd like to ask if you ever wear a dress with jeans. An empire waist dress gives a good silhouette with this combination, and the hang of the dress is not usually affected by the jeans underneath. I would shorten your knee length dresses to somewhere about mid thigh, or where ever your fingertips hit your legs, but no shorter. Please try this before consigning them to the bin. I have altered many many dresses for this look

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13 years ago

Janet

(website)

Veteran

Tanya, we seem to be having purging urges on some similar items! I just pulled half a dozen dresses out of my closet that were going unworn, and most of them were empire waist. I relied on that silhouette a few years ago, but it no longer feels like where I want my style to be. It doesn't feel fresh anymore. (And I don't even tend to like the term "fresh" when applied to fashion.) It sounds like you're feeling the same way. I say it's time to move on.

In my case, I suspect those half dozen dresses may be replaced by only one or two. I needed to thin it all out anyway.

13 years ago

Tanya

Veteran

Thank you all very much for your replies! You are all right, it just doesn't look fresh! Now I have plenty of clothes, so I do need to keep anything just to have something in a certain category. But I do really like the colors on the first top and feel said to give it up. On the other hands, I have troubles styling it in an outfit.

Julie, that is very sweet of you, thank you for the kind words! I have indeed decided to re-focus on clothes as a bit of therapy. Now, I actually do wear dresses over jeans, quite often, but I have enough already for that purpose, so I do not think I would invest eef\ort into fixing this one( your photo and outfit look lovely btw, great proportions).

Janet, quite a coincidence! You know what they say about all the great minds thinking alike Yep, looks like time to move on.

13 years ago

modgrl

(website)

Veteran

These things are pretty and they fit you but they are all kind of dated. I vote pass on them... though the dress could probably be freshened up with a cropped denim jacket if you wanted to hold on to it for a bit longer.

13 years ago

Diana

Veteran

Hmm, I think the tops do look a bit dated, although you could save them to wear under buttoned jackets or pullover sweaters if you like them as layering pieces. I don't think I'd wear them on their own any more.

I do like the dress. I think you are right and an empire style dress is a more classic style than the tops, and we'll always see women wearing them.

13 years ago

biscuitsmom

Veteran

I do like the dress a lot...is there any way you could have it hemmed to remove the tie? That would update it a lot...I think the dress is a keeper, I'd let the others find new homes

13 years ago

Tanya

Veteran

Thank you all very much for your replies! I have decided to donate both tops. As for the dress, I am thinking of maybe demoting it to housewear, as it is quite comfy. Or maybe I will donate it too. Still thinking about that one.

13 years ago

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