Wednesday, April 10, 2013

Layers and Lengths


Hi Ladies!
It's Spring… with Jack Frost hanging on in some areas.
It’s the time of the year where it might be chilly in the morning, hot in the afternoon and raining when you think it is supposed to be sunny… well at least that’s how it feels in Michigan.
So how do you dress without feeling like you’re taking your whole closet with you?
Layers!
This weekend I attended a baby shower.  It was chilly outside (almost cold enough for my winter coat).
I wore a shawl over a sleeveless dress.  I also wore bare legs and strappy open toe sandals.
It was a perfect amount of pieces to my outfit!  Once we got moving (and talking) the room got warm and the shawl was left at my chair.  The sandals helped cool me down too. 
If it had been raining I had a towel in my car to wipe my feet and if I was cold I could always go get my coat from the car to cover my legs.
(Skirt) Length!
I love to run around and be helpful.  I love to move.  Skirts and I have had a long Love/Hate relationship… until I found the perfect length for me.
My favorite skirts end just above the knee or just below the knee (Chanel length or your knee diamonds).
They give me the opportunity to sit nicely without worrying that every pleat is in it’s place.  I can move, pick up items from the ground AND I can dress them up with a heel or dress them down with a flat. 
I have a few dresses that are at this length and it is so freeing to know that I don’t have to worry about “behaving”.  Instead I can help carry gifts, sit in a chair with my hands full, or even capture escaping kiddos.
On a regular day-to-day basis I have a few cotton skirts that hit just below my knee and I honestly live in them once the weather is warmer.  I can sit, stand, kneel, run errands and they even look cute with my grey and lime green sneakers!
If this length isn’t your favorite… maxi-length skirts are a great find too.  Maxi-Length skirts (and dresses) are ankle length skirts that allow you to feel cooler (heat-wise) while still being covered.
Maxi-Length Skirts have a warning attached to them!  Choose prints that are in your color pallet.  Prints help women maximize assets and minimize trouble areas (at the same time!).  When wearing this look make sure the cut of the fabric shows that you have a waist (even if it is the seams on the garment… you should look like you have a waist).   Long skirts should be paired with a tank top, fitted jacket or another closer fit top.
 Use Polyvore to find some cute long skirt options here.

Alright ladies!  Question time for you!
·         Do you dare bare your upper arms?
·         What is your favorite skirt or dress length?

4 comments:

~Brenda said...

Yes, I bare my upper arms and my fav skirt length is just above the knee. I have a cute summer skirt I like to wear with sandals when I run errands.

Laura said...

Since discovering Shari and learning about my "O" shape, I have learned what to wear and what not to wear. I used to like long skirts, but I read somewhere that a long skirt on an already "mature" body just makes me look really big all over. I have since learned that I look better in a knee length skirt (or shorts) so that both cuts down on the amount of fabric I wear (reducing my bulky size) while also showing off my nice legs.

As for the upper arms, I have a funny story here. When I was 18 (and reasonably slender although still an "O") I was waiting with some friends from youth group at a restaurant. I was reading something, so I had my arms up holding the thing I was reading. One of the guys asked if I worked out because my biceps were so big! Well, I wasn't working out, and I wasn't particularly flattered to hear I had big biceps - after all, teen girls want to be slender and toned, not big and bulked! Now I realize my big arms probably go with the rest of my big upper body. So, although I will bare my upper arms when it is just to hot to do anything else, I am realizing that I look better with a sleeve at least half-way down my upper arm. 3/4 sleeve is best, but that's too much for summer. You can also get those nice fluttery sleeves that allow for a nice draft when it is hot, but they rest lightly on the arms to hide what you want to hide.

Anonymous said...

I agree with you, Laura, about the sleeves. Bare arms at home and bare arms when out are two very different things. I prefer some sort of sleeve (like you, my favorite is half-way down my upper arm, or better yet elbow length (whoever came up with the current elbow length trend should be commended)). Bare arms are for slender and/or well-toned arms. The older we get, a little bit comes off that ideal in both categories! My tank tops and sleeveless tops are a standard around the house in the summer. When I'm out, some sort of sleeve is in order. I have never embraced the bare leg look. As with the arms, I think bare legs are better on the very young with toned legs that are as yet without sun damage spots and with a nice glow. Just my opinion, but I cringe when I see bare winter-white legs extending from beneath a skirt. Maybe I'm thinking of at church and in the office, where it just looks unpolished somehow, current trends notwithstanding. For a casual outing, okay. And with shorts, what can you do? You sure aren't going to wear hose! Karen

Anonymous said...

I really, really dislike my white coloring. How I wish I could go bare legged. Can anyone recommend a self tanner that will not turn me orange. I will be eternally grateful. Blessings,