Need opinions on holiday dress idea - too steampunk?
I really like this dress jacket that I found on ebay. I'd like to wear it as a dress for the holidays (with only a lacy camisole or slip underneath. I want to wear it as a dress, not as a jacket (though I think it would also be really cute open over black leggings and a tank).
I think it's cute, and I say if you like it, go for it!
I like the idea of wearing it with leggings, a tank top, and flats (like the one's in your link). I think it would be cute for the holidays, and it looks like it would be warm too.
I think it's great! You should totally get it Kaplods and if you don't mind, maybe post some photos. Either way, have fun with it and enjoy it! My favorite part of it is that beautiful jeweled color, which makes it very holidayish and btw, velvet is very in right now so you'll be on trend!
I have one that looks exactly like it except it's wool and not velvet. I like it and think you should go for it! My only worry is whether it won't be too hot?
Last edited by runthecontinent; 11-09-2012 at 09:01 AM.
I think it is cute and you would enjoy it. Check their measurements against yours before you order it. I would be concerned about the length, most of all. It is hard to tell how tall the model is, but I think it would be overwhelming if it were too long on you. You want it to hit at the calf, IMO, not the ankle!
I agree with Ruth, though. You might want to find out if there is a heavy lining, because I'd be worried about being too hot too.
I like the shoes, too. Though you might check local stores. I found these (which are cute and which I am wearing today!) in 8W at a local shoe store for $25.
I don't really like it. I think the color is a bit odd for the holidays and I think it is too big/full to be velvet, just seems a bit over the top. But that is just me and I am only posting because you asked for opinions. If it makes you feel good and you like it, go for it and don't worry one second what random strangers like I think.
Thanks for all the comments everyone. They've all been very helpful, especially the critical and counterpoint ones. Don't get me wrong, I appreciate the "I love it" comments too, but the critical ones are always the ones that help me make decisions. When buying books on amazon.com I always read the 1 star reviews first and the 5 star reviews last.
Most of the issues raised are ones I've thought about too. I was also worried about it being too warm, but it isn't lined and I've had a viscose/rayon velvet skirt before. It should be fine for all my holiday get-togethers except the one at my parents home (they keep the house ungodly warm). It will be a plus at the in-laws because both sets keep their homes a little on the cool set (and hubby's mom and her husband keep their home downright frigid).
Holiday colors may be regional, because midnight blue and jewel tones of blue have always been fairly popular where I've lived (not as popular as red, green, black, silver and gold, but still quite popular). I like the idea of a slightly less traditional color, especially since I look absolutely horrible in most of the more traditional ones. I'm extremely fair complected, so in black or red, I look like a vampire, and in silver or gold I look like a ghost (and in most metallic styles, the ghost of a very fat, low-rent prostitute).
I can pull off green, but only if it's the absolutely perfect shade of green, and Christmas green sits right on the border for me. If it's the perfect shade, it can look good on me, or not-so-much, and so I'd really have to see it in person and try it on, to see which side of the fence it lands.
Blue is much more "my color" as there are very few blues that I don't look decent in, so long as it isn't so pale that I start looking ghostly (a prettier, higher class of ghost, but bottom line fat ghost is still an impression I'd like to avoid).
Fit and length are also going to be non-issue thankfully. I absolutelyI love that holyclothing gives the actual dimensions of the garments. I don't know why all catalog retailers don't give the actual dimensions of the garments, it makes life so much easier than trying to figure out sizing.
The boots are making it a little hard to tell where the length falls on the model exactly, which is another reason it's so nice that they give the actual measurements. The 46 to 48 inch length, hits me exactly where I want it too (Probably just a teeny bit longer than it appears on the model, but pretty close).
I love this company, because I've bought from them before. I have one dress fro them that I haven't been able to part with, because I love it so much. It's green (not quite Christmas green, but close and I love how I look in it), and has been my holiday dress for the past six years, but everyone's probably sick of seeing it, and it's really way too big. I'm hanging on to it, just because I love it so much. I could have it altered, but it's starting to show it's age as well, and I really want something new.
Last year when I tried on my green dress, I thought I could get away with just cinching the belt tighter. It looked great in the mirror, but in all the Christmas photos, you can see my bra strap(s) whenever the neckline slipped off center. It was too big to stay in place.
I had noticed the problem at home, and thought about pinning my bra to the dress, but I couldn't find the right size pin. I thought it would be fine, but in hindsight should have taken more precautions against slippage (some sock glue would have come in handy).
I'd really like to have something new and that fits better this year, and I like that it's a little over the top. I'm just wanting it to be a "bit" over the top, not WAY over the top. I want it to say Christmas not Halloween.
Now that our financial situation and my health have both improved, I'm starting to have more enthusiasm for investing in my appearance, and dressing for style rather than only comfort and price.
Hubby rather gently pointed out that my current wardrobe is more gym/jammies (soft knit pants, soft knit tops, even soft-knit panties and bras).
He's completely not into fashion for fashion's sake. He said he doesn't care if I decide I want to dress like a japanese teenager with Hello Kitty tees and big bows in my hair, but he'd like to see me happy and in love with what I wear and comfortable in my own skin, like I did when we met.
I didn't realize I had lost that, until hubby and I took stock of my wardrobe and realized what a sad state it's really in. When I met him (even at 375 lbs) I wouldn't have gone to the grocery store or the laundromat in what I now wear to "go out."
I agree that it needs more accessorizing. I thought of a belt, but my hips are disproportionately large, and sometimes a belt makes that even more obvious.
I thought a patterned silk scarf might look really nice (but I'd have to be careful with color, pattern, and length or it could cross into Halloween territory again).
Need opinions on holiday dress idea - too steampunk?
