I was thwarted from wearing this outfit yesterday due to snow(!) and rain, but today, joy, the sun was shining, it was warm, and there was just enough wind to make my dress billow around fabulously! - without getting all tangled.
A beautiful long black satin dress had been hanging forlorn in my closet since the one time I wore it, to the opera, The Rake's Progress, years ago. Considering how many beautiful maxi dresss and skirts in the blogging world I've seen, I decided, why not my gown for day wear? The trick would be how to dress it down enough that I wouldn't be mistaken for Delta Dawn or Madame Bijoux.
This is what I came up with.
Details of the outfit:
- thrifted black satin gown, princess cut with full skirt, cap sleeves, and a rounded square neck. I think it was home-made because there are no labels, I'm thinking maybe sewn for someone who played in an orchestra
- long-sleeved slate-grey cotton T-shirt under a mid-thigh-length, oversized black T
- thrifted denim jacket with bits of glitter on it, and thrifted shoes
- pendant O made me
This is me twirling.
I felt so wonderful in this dress as the wind blew the satin around my legs. Good energy all around. Wearing this outfit was a challenge - I felt like it pushed the envelope - but I'm so glad I did it. Why did I wait so long? I guess I never thought I could wear my opera dress to the coffee shop. Silly me!!
This is the sketch I did today of how I felt in this dress. It's a big tighter stylistically than usual but I felt all cozy and wrapped up and satiny.
With my mind on classical music, a friend plays in the orchestra and I recently attended an evening of new music. They played a piece called Vento d'ombra, wind of the shadow, by Salvatore Sciarrino. Wow, incredible! It reminded me a bit of the Japanese wind instrument, the shakuhachi. I've included a YouTube clip of the piece below. It sounds much better live though.
That's all. Have a great weekend, all! This post might sound all la-tee-da, but that's not me. I just like sensory explosions of all kinds.
Okay...this is one of my favorite outfits on you. And just to let you know, I started sketching "what I'm wearing" just about everyday. My main goal is to develop some kind of style to my drawings and watch it improve over time. It's really fun and much less intimidating then sitting in a coffee shop trying to draw a person across the room.
ReplyDeleteThis is a more daring sartorial experiment than I've ever tried, but I think the jean jacket does the trick. Perhaps the solution is to begin attended the opera with Materfamilias from your area!
ReplyDeleteOh she is a terribly happy opera dress. A day out and looking so very amazing on you. Coffee is a must in a soft and floaty satin gown.
ReplyDeleteHappiness to you V
I also love sensory explosions and your artwork x
ReplyDeleteThanks for the inspiration! Now maybe I can come up with a creative way to put all my retired "concert blacks" back to work....god knows I have CLOSET full of them! If only the orchestra management had let us "accessorize" with leopard and denim...the audience would have been thrilled. But alas, "no excessive jewelry" was the policy. tee hee
ReplyDeletePairing you opera dress with leopard shoes for daytime is brilliant. No need for such a beautiful garment to hang forlorn in your closet. I love the mischievous twirl and your sketch, accompanied by music.
ReplyDeleteSha-zam! How utterly fabulous this looks on you. The beret and denim jacket give it just the right edge. Incidentally, I must post a photo of my denim jacket, which is so similar to yours. Great minds think alike? (Of course, that must be it.)
ReplyDeleteActually I only have 2 denim pieces: a blazer and the jacket like yours. I gave up wearing jeans years and years ago. They are just so not me, dahling! I think my audience appreciates not seeing me in them too.
Have a great weekend. I am off to work on my EFT skills tomorrow. That's Emotional Freedom Technique.
Much love from England,
Rose www.foreveronthecatwalkoflife.com xxx
You can definitely wear an opera dress to the coffee shop--you've styled it perfectly! A denim jacket is the perfect go-to dress down item. I have a couple of long black dresses that I really like and I would love to be able to wear them like this, so you have inspired me to experiment. I adore the photo of you twirling--you look like some incredible bohemian artist from the 60's. I "Squee'd" when I saw your drawing!!!
ReplyDeleteI love that you pushed yourself with this! The long sweeping satin is so glamourous!
ReplyDeleteAhhh..remember the first time you wore a twirly dress when you were a little girl? I believe you must have had the same SWEET LOOK on your face then. Adorable.
ReplyDeleteSatin dress hey? it was sitting in your closet? wow i am happy you got it out and dressed it down so you could wear it in the day time.
ReplyDeleteYou know , you could wear anything you want no matter ! but the trick is to find the right way to wear it, and you did it well, thumbs up Mélanie my friend! You have talent, lots of talent, a true work of art!
Shelley of Forest City talked about one day us girls meeting, that would be so much fun!
Have a good weekend Mélanie!
PS - you should do close up pics of O's jewellery!
Ariane xxxx
What a fun twirl! Love the sketch and the real-life look.
ReplyDeleteYou are too cool! I love combining ultra dressy with casual, it looks so good! That dress is so elegant and the jacket, shoes and beret take it to another dimension. Love your drawing, too.
ReplyDeleteHave a brilliant weekend, you inspiring lady! x
GREAT IDEAS ABOUT STYLE.
ReplyDeleteLove the elegant dress and leopard print shoes. Very Parisian! =)
ReplyDeletehttp://pinkchampagnefashion.blogspot.com/
everyday should be long a gown day :) glad you had a lovely day while wearing your gown i do enjoy wearing floor length tshirts and tank tops it feels nice when the wind hits the fabric :D
ReplyDeletehappy weekend
kisses A.
Ah, you're inspiring! I'm now thinking of a long black skirt languishing in a box under my bed -- layers of gauzy silk waiting for warmer days. But why shouldn't it come out to play on a windy day when it could swish and twirl as delightfully as yours. I love the way you've managed to tone long black satin -- which reads glam, evening -- into perfectly credible -- if creative & sophisticated -- daywear. I bet you attracted some admiring glances as you sipped your coffee.
ReplyDeleteThis is fabulous! I love the idea of taking evening wear into daytime. I adore your sketches too.
ReplyDeleteLooks great! I love taking something meant for a specific type of event or season and making it work for a different purpose.
ReplyDeleteLove the denim jacket with the gown! You made it work so well!! Hope you are having a wonderful day!
ReplyDelete-Jyoti
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You know I love this one, right up my style-alley! You look great and I'm enthused by your willingness to push the envelope. Will check out the music when time permits.
ReplyDeleteLove, Jean
You know I love this one, right up my style-alley! You look great and I'm enthused by your willingness to push the envelope. Will check out the music when time permits.
ReplyDeleteLove, Jean
You know I love this one, right up my style-alley! You look great and I'm enthused by your willingness to push the envelope. Will check out the music when time permits.
ReplyDeleteLove, Jean
You know I love this one, right up my style-alley! You look great and I'm enthused by your willingness to push the envelope. Will check out the music when time permits.
ReplyDeleteLove, Jean
So good! I'm going to wear my maxi dress today, you've just convinced me :)
ReplyDeleteThis is so chic! I love the leopard print shoes especially! I adore how you incorporate culture with your fashion posts, it's very unique!
ReplyDeleteLove from, THE EASTERN PEARL
I love some of the looks you come up with, very fearless and wonderful. I really like your painted backdrops too, may have to try that for myself.
ReplyDeleteI enjoy the cartoons of your daily outfits...:)
ReplyDeleteI have actually been wanting a too-formal-for-day beautiful, long gown to wear during the day!!! I envision mine being some gorgeous bright color and really gauzy and diaphanous. This looks amazing-- the denim jacket is perfect.
ReplyDelete