A couple of months ago, I bought into the maxi skirt trend. I'd avoided it for so long, convinced that a petite and curvy girl like me couldn't pull them off. Oh how wrong I was, though. Quickly, I became obsessed with the thing and wanted to wear it with everything, all the time, every day.
That's when a friend of a friend told me about June Dresses.
June Dresses is a challenge in the style of Movember/No Shave November. Accept the challenge of wearing dresses and skirts for the whole month of June, and ask people to sponsor you. Now, seeing as this is the initiative's second year in existence and they were started in Canada, the official website supports the United Way of Calgary, raising money for their All In for Girls initiative. While I live in Los Angeles and I'm one of the first people Stateside to participate, I knew it would be a bit difficult to garner local support. I started my own Crowdrise page to support an American charity, Girls for a Change, with the same values and initiatives as the youth programs in Calgary.
As a self proclaimed girly tomboy, I was intrigued - it would indeed be a challenge for me to wear only skirts and dresses for a whole thirty days. Obviously I don't own thirty different dresses or skirt outfits, but it would be fun to try anyway. Thankfully, I am lucky enough to have friends and family who are super supportive of the effort. I had a couple dresses and skirts donated, and my grandmother kindly took me shopping at one of my favorite stores to get a couple more as well. I talked with Ashley about it, and for the next couple weeks, I'm going to be documenting my outfits throughout the challenge for the blog. Welcome to week one!
My very first day, I was in Orange County visiting my grandmother. Already intimidated by too many choices, I chose a silk Hawaiian floral print dress that my friend Wendy had donated, that I quickly realized maybe wasn't made for girls with boobs like mine. But the dress was comfortable and fun, soft and had a lot of movement, so I went with it. Why not? It was a Sunday, and I knew I wasn't trying to impress anyone else.
That Monday, when I went back to work, I chose a dusty rose v-neck dress that my grandmother had bought for me at Loft that very day. Cotton and a soft color won me over, although it could certainly use pockets. I paired it with my brown Steve Madden sandals (seen in the next picture), and went to work. Easy peasy. The first two days were a snap.
Day three I was feeling a little more comfortable with the challenge, a little more optimistic that I could pull this off. I picked up my favorite black maxi skirt, paired it with a white cami and coral Pashmina scarf, and my trusty brown sandals. Tuesday was a day where my outfit had to go from day to night easily, so I kept my chambray in the car and the scarf easily switched from when I was at work, to when I met some friends for birthday drinks later on. I was comfortable and positive that this could work - sure I might have repeats, but who cares?
By days four, five, and six, my selfie game was faltering. Day four was super busy so I pulled out a maroon maxi I had gotten at H&M for $5 (!!!) and threw that on with my trusty gold Texas necklace, JCrew chambray, and Love You bracelet and gold watch combo. I needed something comfortable but wouldn't suffocate me in the warm sun of SoCal. But I didn't have time to take a mirror picture, and with no cameraman in sight, I had to make do with the awkward "I'm sitting in my car!" pose.
Day five was no better. Though I picked another one of my favorite skirts, a printed fold over midi skirt from JCrew that can double as a strapless dress (RIGHT?), and an off-white tank with my gold elephant necklace, I found myself without the time to actually take a picture of myself before heading out the door. Hence, the awkward boob shot with my tongue sticking out. It's endearing, right? (Wrong).
I couldn't lie, though, the challenge was already doing wonders for my confidence and self-esteem. Taking daily selfies was helping me put effort into my appearance - not just to show off that I can put together a good outfit, but because I felt good and wanted to look good with these pieces. Every day that I wore a new skirt or dress, I felt adorable and comfortable. Although I now know the appeal of the thigh gap, having my thighs rub together in these things when it's warm outside is not pleasant. Maybe it's time to invest in some Spanx.
Day six had another new skirt that I'd picked up with my grandmother, a sweet navy blue swing skirt with white daisy style print. Another white tank, with my khaki chambray on top, and I was ready to go. I felt fearless. If I could get through this challenge, I could do anything. Not to mention I was bolstered by my current binge watching of Sex and the City. Hell, if Carrie Bradshaw could pull off some of the things that she did on the show, there was nothing that I wouldn't try.
Hence, the boldness of day seven.
Last summer I had been so obsessed with the circle skirt trend, that I picked up this super cute washed out black denim one at American Apparel. A little on the short side, it's been sitting in my closet because it is certainly not appropriate to be wearing when you work with two younger boys. So I saved it for the weekend. Sneakers and skirts are an interesting trend, but I was inspired by my latest pick - a pair of faded black Authentics from Vans that were on sale for $30. I needed new black flats and knew these would get worn more than anything else this summer (sandals excluded because come on). And I had the perfect skirt to wear them with. I picked one of my favorite v-necks, again from JCrew, and wore it all out to go shopping with a friend for a new dress for her and then dinner. Boom. The first day that my enthusiasm was waning, my eagerness to try something new gave me a second wind to bring me into week two.
I'm lucky that I have enough to make the first week complete with all new outfits. And the best part of the whole challenge is that there are no hard and fast rules. Do whatever makes you comfortable, or what makes sense for your day to day life. My only rule for myself is that if I'm leaving the house I need to wear a skirt or a dress. I still wear shorts or pants to sleep because that's what I'm comfortable in. I'm sure whenever I start going to the gym, I'll be wearing pants or shorts to that too. That's okay. The whole challenge is about making you feel good about yourself, and if you're not comfortable wearing a skirt or dress for whatever reason, wear something you are comfortable in. I might mix it up with a romper in the coming days, but that's another challenge for another time.
Please visit the links above if you'd like to learn more about the challenge or the fundraising efforts. If you'd like to follow along with my day-to-day to outfits, please follow me on Twitter or Instagram where I'll be posting pictures every day! Also, you don't have to fundraise to participate - if you feel inspired by the challenge, join me! Send me photos of your outfits and we can inspire each other!
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