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Dressing

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Outfits Ensembles Trends Advice

Found a box of dresses but don’t know if it’s me anymore.

Sally

Veteran

What do you do if something looks nice, is a good brand but doesnt really sit with your style anymore. Do you keep just in case but I find big wardrobes overwhelming. When someone asked about clothes we regretted giving away I mentioned a couple of dresses. Well apparently I did not give them away and I found them today in a box. They fit me but I don’t know if it’s me anymore…definitely not skirts with swag potential. Also this has exasperated the problem of whittling down my wardrobe. They are good brands…if You only need one LBD, won’t two confuse you? I want a small wardrobe.
1. Calvin Klein dress- I might have to keep for sentimental reasons as this is one of the dresses I mentioned and I had it altered to fit.
2 -3David Lawrence silk dress -another one I regretted but it’s tearing under the arm…worth getting fixed?
4. Khaki shirt dress…don’t know brand
5-6Brought this from a boutique. Brand is random. I’ve never really worn maybe because it’s fitting and not really me?
7. David Lawrence- this is nearly new and amazing colour. Not sure if I would wear or what shoes to wear with it.
8. Max - haven’t really worn as well
9. Veronica Maine pants and Max top… seems good for work I suppose.

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Dressing

26 replies

Latest reply was from Angie

slim cat

Veteran

The dress in #7 is stands out for me - love the color and fit on you. Sneakers and denim jacket - to dress it down, or booties/boots and leather jacket to add some toughness to it. Deserve a full outfit lab to my eye.

Bijou

Veteran

Dress in #7 looks great, the others, I think you can pass on. Especially the torn dress, no need to spend money on getting it fixed if you are undecided about whether you want to wear it.

bella

(website)

Veteran

Apart from #4, which is a classic and I personally love safari dresses, none of them stand out to me. If they do not feel like you anymore, pass them on. The best part of the discovery is that you get a second chance, so you can give them away with a clear conscience and no regrets

Jenni NZ

Veteran

Have you read your old post about what and why you regretted giving away (you thought?) To refresh your memory?
Personally I am not too sure about a torn one, it would have to be a very careful repair.
4 and 5/6 could go, as you don’t seem keen ( certainly on 5/6) and even that would help with reducing size of wardrobe!

Sally

Veteran

Thank you slim cat. Yes I could see number 7 with my boots and motto jacket. I’m not really feeling the sneakers at the moment but that could change.
Thank you Bijou yes the silk dress pretty as it is can’t be repaired. Number 7 is the best quality.
Thank you Bella - yeah I think I can see the safari dress with boots so maybe I’ll see.
@ Jenni NZ good question..thank you. I think it was because the last time I wore them they looked so good. The Calvin Klein has a history behind it as I bought in San Antonio in 2009 and had it altered. I ran onto our mini bus and told my family I had found the perfect dress. The silk one my sister gave to me because she couldn’t fit it but it is torn and I guess I wouldn’t choose to buy either of them now.

Jenni NZ

Veteran

I just looked at certain old photos perhaps for Lisap’s #10-year-challenge in Off Topic- and was a bit surprised to see some of my dresses that still hang in my wardrobe-like on a Christmas Day in 2012 with a dress I still have and like. But it begins to feel a bit like wow, that’s really so long ago and my kids have gone from 21, 19 and 16 to 30,28 and 25 in that time…so do I really want to be wearing the same outfit? I totally know that I have too many dresses and some have not been worn much… but then I was mostly really happy with them when I did wear them when they were new. So is that good enough? I haven’t solved this question as yet.

Synne

Veteran

Keep the khaki dress!
The others doesn't wow me, I think you could easily find better dresses that you'd love to wear NOW. The brands tell me you could probably sell these?

Star

Veteran

I think 4 & 7 are keepers, and the pants can be useful - kind of classic.

rachylou

Veteran

Stylewise, I kinda think you’ve moved on with regard to all of them…

Sally

Veteran

Jenni yes that's the problem. I liked them, I still like them but will I still wear them with my current style. I guess you have to ask yourself if you can see yourself wearing them in the future and weigh that up against how accommodating your wardrobe space is. Mine isn't accommodating at all.
Synne - They are old so not sure if I could sell them (or whether I can even be bothered). I might give it away to some charity shop or an organisation like dress for success.
star - thank you. Yes if I keep any, those are the three I would keep. Maybe I will put them in a holding area.
rachylou - I think sadly you are right. I just don't resonate with that style of clothes anymore. I am thinking I do need one little black dress...maybe I will keep a little blue dress instead.

Anonymous

I like 4 and 5/6. I had a dress one time that I wasn’t satisfied with the styling. I used it as a beach cover-up and loved it again

Brooklyn

Veteran

Honestly, I think all the dresses could go except for the khaki dress (no 4) which looks current and will be a great casual dress to wear with sneakers. Good quality pants that fit well are always useful.

Jaime

(website)

Veteran

I like #7 and #2. The rest could go and even these if you are not excited to wear them.

chewyspaghetti

Veteran

Are they worth the real-estate in your closet you have to give up?

Mary Beth (formerly LBD)

(website)

Veteran

I think you should purge the lot, and here's why:

"I’ve never really worn maybe because it’s fitting and not really me?"

"... seems good for work I suppose" (there is zero excitement or anticipation in this statement, and maximum ambivalence).

"Not sure if I would wear"

"...haven’t really worn as well"

May I tell you a little story? I thought I had cleared all my old crap out of my parents' house ages ago. But in the past year, my mom has handed off or shipped me so much of my old forgotten crap, and I didn't even know it still existed. AND she sent me a bunch of my grandma's old crap.

So now I'm fighting attachments to stuff that I don't need, hadn't missed, didn't know was still around, and it just feels... crappy. LOL.

But I totally get why this is a struggle for you. So I think you should set yourself a personal style challenge: wear one of these dresses every day. Add a sweater and some tights if it's cold where you are. But wear the dress, even if it's just for half an hour. See where you're at with it. If you feel amazing wearing any of them, keep those. Anything that doesn't make you feel amazing should be passed on.

Stagiaire Fash

Veteran

I like ‘em, but then I would. But you already decided to get rid of them once. Were there any that made your heart skip a beat when you put them on, or that you were glad to see again?

Joy

Veteran

Only you can decide if you will wear these dresses. How often do you wear dresses and skirts? Start there , say you wear a dress once or twice a week, more if they are worn to work. Think of about how many weeks in the year they would be worn. How often would you repeat wearing any one dress? What are the cleaning instructions? You want to have enough for each season but not too many that you will not wear them all. Do you have a topper and footwear for each dress? I would tend to keep the ones you think that you regretted when you thought you had given them away. Those you did not wear before you will not reach for now. They can go. How much do you like shopping for new dresses?

I would try to part with some of the dresses. You can always pass them on later. You know your needs best.

Janet

(website)

Veteran

I’m with Mary Beth. You don’t seem excited about any of these.

Ginger

Veteran

FWIW, the silk dress can be repaired, but it would need to be a careful patch with a similar fabric. Since it is under the arm and the print is busy it would not be noticeable. I recommend this as a professional fix for the best results.

BUT I am with everyone else; you don't seem existed about these. I'm very conservative with getting rid of stuff, but I have a large holding zone. Now that you know you have these, and you've refreshed your memory of how they look and feel, a holding zone stay will clarify the issue.

Lesley

Veteran

Purge! I don't even have to look at the photos to know. You've moved on. I've saved like 2 dresses that were really really fine and unusual, for my daughters, but I won't permit myself to do that with everyday dresses. Move on!

cat2

Veteran

So, I am also with SF on Team Keep, and would figure out how to style those that fit and are in really good condition. Take them out of the context for which you purchased them, and figure out how to make them work now. I don’t invest in major repairs.

ophelia

Veteran

I think they all look great & I’d keep all but the damaged one (which is pretty but I wouldn’t spend on any tricky repair for lack of good tailors) unless I was able to retire soon (not). All the dresses seem to fit well, & a pair of black pants are so easy for work.
However, disclaimer, I don’t like shopping, love dresses but have a hard time finding them, & a bird in hand is worth 2 in the bush.

Mary Beth (formerly LBD)

(website)

Veteran

Ginger’s reply about the patch reminded me: I’ve had clothing professionally patched a couple of times: once under the arm, and once on the inner thigh of some expensive jeans. The work was beautifully done, but it always felt a little uncomfortable wearing because they were at major movement points on my body. I ultimately donated both items. I loved the jeans, but I only liked the blouse, and felt annoyed with myself for the sunk cost of the repair.

If you go the repair route, make sure you love the dress enough to qualify the expense.

Sally

Veteran

Thank you everyone. You
have all helped me a lot. I think I will
purge all except for the blue one and the khaki. The ones I regretted were the Calvin Klein
and the silk one but I think you have all helped me realise that I have moved
on and just because I like something in theory, it doesn’t mean I will wear it.

@Nikki great idea but I do have a good cover up so I couldn’t
keep them for that.

@Brooklyn – yes I am considering the khaki dress as it is a
good casual dress and I can see myself wearing it for work as it doesn’t
require formal wear.

@Jaime – 7 is the best quality one but I only need one good
dress, so I am thinking of replacing my little black dress with this.

@chewyspaghetti = no I have decided (with the help of this
forum) that I can’t keep them all if I keep any.

@Mary Beth…great questions and thank so much for the thorough
input and thoughts around this as you picked up on ideas that I hadn’t
connected…that perhaps I am not as excited about them as I thought I would be
when I had regretted giving them away.
Yesterday I had to meet friends for coffee and I instantly went and got
a midi skirt and tank out because that is how I prefer to dress now. I guess I need to accept that part of life is
moving on and that means giving up stuff that is no longer you even if it felt
like it was an investment at the time.

@stagiaire Fash – good question… the ones I am most
enthusiastic are the khaki and the electric blue. I think I will need to get rid of my little
black dress to keep the blue one and the khaki one would be for work and could
be worn casually on trip etc. The others
are too tight to allow me to move.

@joy I do wear dresses or skirts practically everyday now for work and if I am
going somewhere like cafes or meeting friends.
Other times I am super casual in shorts and jeans. To be honest I don’t really have the footwear
for those shoes unless I wear them with booties. I am not into sneakers and dresses at the
moment but would wear sneakers with the khaki dress. I have a lot of skirts and dresses either
unstructured or longer which I am preferring these days.

@ Ginger & Mary Beth – Great advice about the
repairs. Yes because it is underarm, it
wouldn’t been seen easily but then again is it worth the cost. Because it is at a major movement point in my
body, I might rip again. And thinking on
yes I love it but will I wear it as I would be concerned about ripping it and
moving freely?

Janet & Lesley – good points – thanks

Cat2 & Ophelia – you both give some good suggestions for
team keep. I played them in my head and
think I can work with khaki and electric blue

Sal

Veteran

I think that's a good call Sally. They all fit nicely and suit you but I suspect you won't wear them aside from the two you have kept.

The khaki does look like a great casual dress - maybe for work, but if not, for casual weekends and school holidays.

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

Another vote for #4! And since you're not excited about these dresses - pass them on.