Wild Card Wednesday: White on White

I mentioned on Monday's post that I am opting for brighter colors as a way to transition to spring, but I don't think anything makes me feel like spring as much as wearing white.

Jacket:  Rebel Wilson for Torrid (Available here)

White is a perennial spring favorite, but it's also a big trend this year.  As a result, retailers are offering some really great white pieces, providing more options in a variety of fabrics and cuts.

Since it's still quite chilly, a white moto jacket is a superb transitional piece.  The color shouts spring while the faux leather adds needed warmth.

Dress:  ASOS (Available here)

The jacket is from Rebel Wilson's latest collection for Torrid.  It's not a true white - it's difficult to tell in the photos because of the lighting, but the jacket (and dress) are more of an off-white.

For those of you interested in the Rebel Wilson collection, I can give a little insight about the two white moto jackets that are part of it.  The spring collection included a version that was described as white and as 21 3/4 inches (the style I'm wearing here) and a longer version that has a lace overlay and was labeled as bright white and as 24 1/2 inches. 

Wedge sandals:  Sugar/Kohl's

Because I was wanting a true white jacket (in part, to wear with the midi featured here), I ordered both jackets to see which one I would like better.  I found the lace version a little bulky.  The lace didn't really lay flush against the faux leather underneath, and I thought it did absolutely nothing to flatter my figure.  While the lace one was labeled as bright white, the color of the jackets actually appeared very similar in person.  In the ended, I opted for the shorter version, and I'm really excited about it.  I think it will be a versatile piece to have in my wardrobe! 

Sunglasses:  Tory Burch
Rings: Earthbound Trading Co. & Local jewelry show purchase

Paying attention to measurements provided by websites has helped me to better accommodate my figure with less stress - I knew from the length that the shorter version would likely work better for my petite frame and also work better with fuller skirts and other pieces that I wanted to wear with it. 

I was right about the length, but the jacket still required an alteration - the sleeves needed to be shortened.   I had the sleeves taken in mid-sleeve so that I wouldn't lose the zipper detail at the cuff. 

In addition to the jacket alteration, I had the dress taken up at the shoulders to conceal my bra and to move the slightly drop waistline up where it belonged.

This easy shift dress will be great come summer when I just need to throw something on but don't want to be bothered with a lot of clothes.

Bracelets:  Express, LOFT

Clutch:  Target

Will you be wearing a lot of white this spring??

As I Like It

I hope you have enjoyed the seven dress looks I've featured over the last week and a half.  If you've missed any, links are at the end of this post.  I had planned an 8th look for the series, but the dress required alterations before I could wear it.

Instead, I decided to do a round-up of some of my previous favorite dress looks, along with some before and after photos on pieces I've had tailored.

First, here are some of my favorites (Links to all original posts are in captions):

White Dresses with Black
I just love white dresses, especially in my favorite monochromatic combo!  White dresses are perfect for spring and summer, but depending on the fabric, they work well all year long!

Left (from top to bottom):  Here and Here
Center: Here
Right (from top to bottom:  Here and Here

Maxi &Midi Length Dresses
I'm such a firm believer that petites can wear whatever styles we want!!  Maxis and midis don't necessarily make us look shorter, and even if they do, who cares?  Celebrate your fun-size self!! :-D
Check out this post I wrote for The Curvy Fashionista for more fashion rules we curvy petites should unabashedly break!!

Left to Right:  Here and Here

Left to Right:  Here and Here

Lots of Color
People always seem surprised when I say that I greatly prefer to wear neutrals because I actually do wear quite a bit of color.  Green is one of my favorite colors to wear, and I'm often attracted to shades of emerald, jade, and forest in prints and solids.

Left to right:  Here,  Here, and Here

Left to Right:  Here and Here

Quirky Prints
I tend to buy mostly solids, but when I buy prints, I usually seek out fun, quirky, and sometimes unusual prints like these zebra and spectacle prints.  The prints are memorable and graphic but still easy to wear.

Left to Right:  Here and Here

The Little Black Dress
I couldn't have a dress round-up without including the little black dress!  The LBD is a classic because it is so easy to accessorize and change up for many different types of occasions.  I love my LBDs - I go with mini lengths for weekends and evenings, and stick to more conservative silhouettes for work.

Left to Right:  Here, Here, Here, and Here

As I've discussed many times on the blog, I rarely get the right fit off the rack.  Several of the dresses featured in today's post are from eShakti, where I was able to get a custom fit.  When custom fit options are not available, tailoring usually comes into play.

From Planning for Spring

From Neutral Zone

From Modern Fit-and-Flare

From Slip Into Black

From It's Only Rock-N-Roll...

From Twelth Night

This last one's a bit shorter now as shown in the last photo.  If you're not in love with the first round of alterations, don't be afraid to give tailoring another try.  It's always better to err on the side of having something altered too long/large and then whittling down from there!

Hope you've been inspired to rock those spring dresses!!  Whatever you wear, don't forget to make it your own!

For the previous posts from Dress Week 4, see here, here, here, here, here, here, and here.

It's Only Rock-N-Roll...

For casual weekend and evening looks, I love outfits that have a little bit of a rock-n-roll vibe. 

Dress:  H&M (Available here)

This outfit, with its mix of metallic accents, fringe, easy shift, and moto style jacket, definitely has a rocker feel.  I love that this look would work for an evening out at a bar, club, or concert but could also work for daytime due to the overall casual feel.

Jacket:  eShakti (Sold out on-line)

Booties:  Target

While I'm completely loving this look now, it did require some alterations.  The jacket is from eShakti and was custom fit.  The jacket is a wool blend, high quality, and warm!!  I went with the above hip length, and the fit was great except for the sleeves.

Purse:  The Limited

Cuff:  The Limited

I tend to find sleeves one of the more difficult parts of fit.  I have bigger upper arms, but they narrow down quickly, which means that sleeves are often too wide for me.  I decided to take this jacket to the tailor and get the sleeves narrowed down a bit.  The difference is subtle, but it creates an overall slimmer silhouette that I prefer.  

Slimmer Sleeves on the Jacket

The H&M dress, which was designed to have an easy shape, was definitely made for a taller woman, and the overall fit was quite off.  But, I loved the dress, and I knew that the alterations would actually be fairly simple.  

I promise I wasn't trying to look high in the before pictures. LOL

Dress shortened

Arm Holes Sewn Up

I had the sleeves/underarms taken up to cover my bra and to create a slimmer fit in the chest and upper torso.  I also had the dressed hemmed up, which created a more flattering shape and length for my body type.  I may even take it back to the tailor to go a bit shorter.

Necklace:  Shoxie.com

Ear cuff:  Torrid

The difference that tailoring has made to this dress is striking, and now I'm just trying to think of more excuses to wear it.  I'm also longing for warmer days where I can rock this dress with bare legs like I am here. 

Did I say I hate winter?  LOL

Are you a fan of shift dresses?  Would you wear so much metallic for day?

Neutral Zone

Hope your week is off to a great start!

Dress:  Ann Taylor Petites (Available here)

I apologize for being a bit M.I.A.  I've been working a lot, catching up on some family time, and I'm working on some new posts!  I hope to have a lot more fall fashion up on the blog soon.

Today, I'm featuring a neutral color block dress with faux leather insets.


Boots:  Target (Available here)

Bangle:  Ann Taylor (Available here)
Rings:  Torrid

Necklace:  Ann Taylor (Available here)

Even though this dress is a petite, I still initially encountered some issues with fit.  The straps were cut too long, and the overall dress was also too long. 

Because the shoulder straps were too long, you could clearly see my bra under my arms and the waist band was sitting down too low.

I first had the straps shortened, but I initially opted against shortening the dress until I was able to see how much length was lost by shortening the shoulders.

Once the shoulders were shortened, I had the dress shortened as well.  

In the end, these two easy fixes gave me a much more flattering fit.

Since most everything requires alterations, I try to minimize cost.  Usually, I choose sleeveless dresses like this one as they are easier (hence, cheaper) to alter in the shoulder area than dresses with sleeves.

Blazer:  The Limited (Similar here)

Since the weather is cooler now, I added a classic black blazer for warmth. 

Ankle booties and a faux croc satchel maintain the fall feel.

Satchel:  Express

Do any of you have a problem with petite clothing still being proportioned too long?  What are your wardrobe fixes?

For this blazer in other looks, see here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and here.

Evening Jumpsuit

I know I'm a little late hopping on the jumpsuit bandwagon.  It's not that I haven't liked them - I have loved them for YEARS, well before they became uber-trendy.

Romper:  Torrid (Available here)

Necklace and Bracelets:  Express

Problem?  At 4'9" and with curves, I was never able to find one that would work for my body - even with alterations.

Recently, I stumbled across this knit jumpsuit from Torrid.  I wasn't sure it would work or that I would like it in the knit fabric, but I find their size 0 to be a rather good fit without too many alterations, so I decided to give it a try.

Clutch:  The Limited

The jumpsuit certainly wasn't a perfect fit, but I was so excited to see that it was workable!

The pants were too long, and the shoulders were too wide.  I still need to get the jumpsuit hemmed, but I was able to create a fix to the ruched shoulders of the jumpsuit by hand-ruching some additional gathers, creating a more narrow shoulder.

White, black, and neon pink accents lend a cool summery vibe to the jumpsuit, but I'm eagerly thinking of ways to style this piece for fall.

My experience in trying to find a jumpsuit was a lesson/reminder of the realism required in deciding whether a piece will work or not.  Being so petite and curvy, I'm used to having to have everything altered. 

Some pieces can be re-worked without a ton of effort and expense (like this jumpsuit), while some pieces are just not meant to be.

Over the last holiday season, I bought a different black jumpsuit and had it altered, and altered, and altered.  The end result?  A jumpsuit that fit incredibly poorly in the crotch area and that made me feel larger than I am.  In trying to take photos with it...I actually split the crotch!  This jumpsuit, as cute as I may have thought it was at first purchase, was just not meant to be.  I plan on eventually having that jumpsuit altered into a dress so that it won't be a total loss, but for now...it sits in my room as a reminder to pick my clothing purchases more carefully!

Are you a fan of jumpsuits?

Dress Week 2: Modern Fit-and-Flare

Dress Week 2 starts today with this fun printed fit-and-flare dress.  I am looking forward to wearing this dress with sandals in the summer, but I winterized it here with a faux leather jacket and warm tights and boots.

Dress:  The Limited (Sold out on-line; may be available in stores)

Jacket:  Target (Available here)
Purse:  Target

It can be hard to wear jackets with fit-and-flare dresses.  I usually feel like I lose my shape in such styles when I add a jacket.  This peplum jacket is great because it follows the contours of my shape and the dress.

As is usually the case with my clothes, both this dress and jacket required alterations.  I've featured this jacket here on the blog already a few times (here and here).  Outside of the sleeves being too long, the overall fit was not too bad before, but I opted to have the jacket taken in under the arms and to have the sleeves slimmed a bit for a more streamlined fit.  The jacket has stretchy side panels, which make the effects of the alterations a little hard to see; however, I did notice a difference in overall fit.

I lost some of the blue fabric at the bottom of the dress; however, I actually think the block of blue is now more proportionate for my petite frame.  The blue felt a little overwhelming before, but now I quite like it.

While the dress has an oversized lace print, it looks like a modern tribal print to me, so I added a white howlite necklace and my citrine/zebra bag to keep that feeling.

Necklace:  eBay (Similar here)

Tights:  The Limited (old)

I've really been into exploring more prints lately.  I am so fickle with prints that I'm often overly cautious about purchasing printed pieces because I'm afraid I will grow tired of them too quickly.  While they don't have the staying power of solids, prints certainly make a wardrobe more interesting and fun.

Boots: Payless (old)

Do you prefer to wear solids or prints?  Are you a fan of fit-and-flare styles?