Dinner With the Girls!

Drafts:

Earlier Drafts:
Anne-Marie considers these shorts and these heels her summer staples.
Katie loves this purse for summer outings, and she previously paired these heels with a more subdued outfit.
Liz already professed her love for this striped tank and these rose gold sandals.

Composition:
On Anne-Marie:
pink and green patterned tunic (inherited from either mom or sister?)
linen shorts (Lulu's)
nude suede heels (Seychelles via Piperlime)
brown suitcase purse (gift from sister via Target)

On Katie:
cream "dandy" tank (Ann Taylor)
dark green shorts (JC Penney)
pink heels (Bakers)
green purse (Coach)

On Liz:
navy and white striped tank (Gap)
black pin-striped vest (H&M via sister's closet)
black beads (unknown)
black linen skirt (Forever 21)
stone colored leather bag (Kate Spade Westbury Dani via Ebay)
rose gold sandals (Old Navy)

Composition:
When we recently got together to catch up over dinner at the Cheesecake Factory, we realized it was a great chance to stage a photo shoot!  And after enduring several scrutinizing looks, we have a new respect for those of you who take your photos out in public!

Anne-Marie:
Tunics!  Until dinner with the girls, I had forgotten about tunics!  And how much I love them with shorts in the summer when my tan line is too obnoxious to wear strapless tops!  This outfit is actually the fourth I tried that night.  My closet was conspiring against me and took pleasure in showcasing the outline of my bikini with every other garment.  This light cotton number came to my rescue.  Now, the hefty brown satchel I carried is another matter.  I tote it everywhere and affectionately call it my "Mary Poppins Bag" because it holds everything.  E-v-e-r-y-t-h-i-n-g.  But its container merits do not negate the fact that it is far too bulky in both color and size for this otherwise easy look.  I m on the look-out for a new, seasonal, hold-everything bag.  Maybe one like Liz s white Kate Spade would fit the bill?

Katie:
As everyone knows, I am a huge fan of frills and dramatic clothes.  I am also a recent shorts convert.  So I decided to pair them together and see how it went.  I like this cream top for the fun flounces on the neckline.  I normally wear it with a skirt or tailored pants, but I wanted to see how it would work with an incongruous bottom.  These slate green shorts provided the contrast I was looking for; it's casual summer fun meets romantic dandy wear.  To highlight the contradiction, I completed the outfit with these bold statement heels.  I like the way the little frills on the shoe match the frills on the shirt, and I thought it was a fun way to punctuate this sartorial venture.  Also, I've been wanting to try shorts and heels, and this particular evening I had the attitude of go big (tall?) or go home.  For a bag, I just went with my beloved bright green purse since I think wearing different shades of the same color can add some sense of unity to an outfit.  Looking at the pictures, though, I'm not completely sold on that decision.  Perhaps I'll try a brown bag like Anne-Marie's or another neutral next time. 


Liz:
Why did I show up to dinner with the girls wearing an outfit that paired navy with black, horizontal stripes with pinstripes, and a menswear-inspired vest with a full short skirt?  Well, where else could I go wearing such an experimental ensemble?  One of my favorite things about participating in the style blog community is how much it has encouraged me to try out styles that are outside my comfort zone, so I thought dinner with my co-bloggers was a good time to experiment.  Another thing I like about going out with these two is that I never have to worry that my outfit will look like "too much" in comparison;  I know they're also going to be wearing clothes that  say "I had fun putting this look together."  Today's post also marks the blog debut of my new Kate Spade bag, which is the summer replacement for the Kate Spade bag I blogged about earlier.  I bought the bag as my MA graduation gift to myself, and since that accomplishment is one I got to share with Anne-Marie and Katie, this post seems like the perfect place to introduce it.  My only regret about my outfit is that these two seem to be sharing some kind of color coordination ESP, and I didn't get the memo.  Look at them-- they're both wearing bright pink, cream, and slate green and they both combined shorts with heels! 

Prompts:

• What do you wear for dinner out with the girls?
• What situations or events encourage you to try more experimental styles?