Thursday, June 17, 2010

Wedding Fashion: Rehearsal Dinner

Draft:


Composition:
yellow and pink beaded dress (Catherine Malandrino)
black belt (Macy's)
black sandals (DSW)

Usage:
(Note: I'm traveling between June 16 and June 28, so I won't be commenting or responding to anything until I return.)

This past weekend my oldest friend, who I've known for 20 years, got married in an absolutely gorgeous wedding at which I was honored to serve as a bridesmaid.  The ceremony was beautiful and so touching, and the reception was a blast - one of the best times I've had all year.  But I'm getting ahead of myself.  Before the wedding, there's the rehearsal, to avoid confusion and panic (especially for me, the wedding illiterate bridesmaid) on the big day, and the rehearsal dinner.  For these events, I wore this dress. 

I adore Catherine Malandrino - her clothes are feminine, classy, and always have little flirty, sassy touches that set them apart.  I drool over her fashion but rarely get to experience it firsthand.  I'm lucky enough to own two of her pieces: this skirt, which I received as a Christmas gift, and this dress.  I got it awhile ago at a Nordstrom's, marked down from $500 to $150.  I haven't had an event to wear it to until now.

I very rarely wear yellow, but I like this festive, bright yellow and pink color combination.  The beading of the dress at the neckline gives it built-in bling.  Truth be told, I'm not completely thrilled with the way I styled this dress.  With all the color, I thought a black belt would look good, bringing out the black hints in the dress, and paired with the understated black sandals, the dress could really sing.  I think it looks ok but not great.  I wanted a pink belt, but I didn't have one/couldn't find one that looked good with the dress.  Next time, I'd like to try it with pink heels and a pink belt to really embrace the color.  Or would that be overkill?

Prompts:
  • What suggestions do you have for styling this dress in the future?
  • What do you wear to rehearsal dinners or other wedding related parties?

3 comments:

Amanda said...

I think I'd do a thinner, gray belt with a less prominent buckle and pair it with pink heels. And I think it wants a bracelet.

Regardless of accessories, you are, as ever, lovely.

Scholar Style Guide said...

I think this is a great dress for a rehearsal... and a great dress, full stop. I have this anxiety about dressing for another girl's wedding in a way that won't detract attention from her... but at the same time, if she picked you to be a part of the wedding, she doesn't want you going completely unnoticed, either. I think you did a great job here of dressing appropriately for an event in which you were playing a very specific "role" as bridesmaid.

While I like the print on this dress, I think the most fantastic feature is the jeweled neckline. If you used a belt that matched the color of one of the jewels it could help focus the attention on that detail. (And I like the suggestion of a thinner belt, too- feels more formal to me.) Then maybe a gray shoe would draw attention to the gray in the print, or I do like the idea of a brightly colored heel as long as it's not too matchy-matchy with the belt.

-Liz

Joe Blow said...

Just jacked off to this picture