Style Prompt
A straight guy's perspective on women's fashion
Category Archives: Dresses
How To Wear A Denim Shirtdress
Posted by on May 11, 2011
Don’t.
Please, I’m begging you, don’t wear denim shirtdresses.
Denim as a shirt is among the worst things to happen to style over the last 30 or so years. Denim is great for jeans or jackets, provided that if you wear both you’re sure to mix black and blue denims. Denim on denim, meanwhile, makes me want to vomit. Every few years it seems like people revisit the denim-on-denim idea and say, “You know, I’ve seen this fail before, but this year I’m gonna make this denim top and bottom thing look good!” In reality, meanwhile, an entire outfit of the same colored denim never has and never will look good.
I think having lived through the Achy Breaky Heart days has given me the wisdom to avoid this awful and almost laughable look. I mean, the Texas Tuxedo is quite comedic, I just think the female equivalent has no place in fashion. Again, please save the $100 you would spend on a denim shirtdress and get a wonderful cream lace dress. Anything but the denim shirtdress is going to be money better spent.
Oh, the humanity… Image via collegefashion.net
Little Black (Off-The-Shoulder) Dress
Posted by on April 16, 2011
I spotted this look a few days ago over at the Be In Style blog and instantly noticed it’s allure. For me, the things that make this off the shoulder dress so appealing are how the look is both sexy and elegant. Purchasing one of these dresses, however, should be done very carefully. If the dress comes too low it steals every classy piece about this look and make it instantly skanky. The less is more theory should certainly be applied in this situation. Another thing about these dresses is that they should certainly have a good balance of showing some cleavage, yet also be keeping some mystery through the off the shoulder piece.
When I break this picture down, the thing that stands out is not the shoulder as a whole, but the lines created with the dress. These lines extend from under the collarbone, down to the upper breast, and back out to the arm; pieces of the body that aren’t normally shown but in this instance they are being emphasized. This off-the-shoulder dress separates itself by bringing out the delicate features and beautiful contours with the female form.
Anyways… this Pheobe Couture Chiffon Off-the-Shoulder Dress creates a beautiful silhouette and has wonderful pleating. The pleating with this example creates a good deal of depth which in turn keeps the eyes moving across the entire outfit.
Giovanna Battaglia vs Valentino Runway
Posted by on March 29, 2011
Accessorizing a look can make a huge difference. This brought itself to my attention again when I saw Giovanna Battaglia wearing a Valentino scalloped dress this past November. I stumbled upon the runway photograph and was disheartened to see how boring it was compared to how Giovanna wore it.
VS
Looking at the runway photograph the dress just looks like a blank canvas. To me, nothing really stands out aside from the scalloping around on the hem. Now comparing that to how Giovanna accessorizes the look it goes from ‘just another dress’ to ‘wow’ in no time flat. The biggest thing that she’s doing here is making the accessories draw equal amounts of attention which allows your eyes to view the entire piece rather than each individually. Keep in mind, the shoes are identical to the runway picture save for the black toe and heel. Meanwhile, the scarf adds the definitive touch by not only working with the overall look, but also with the contrast of her features. For this I believe she gets recognition as being a style icon. Work the colors that you’ve been given and accessorize accordingly. Good things are bound to happen if you do.
The nude dress
Posted by on March 20, 2011
For one of the first times since it’s come into popularity this season I’ve found a nude colored dress that I really like. I think the reason it works in the below example is not anything particular about the dress itself, but more the person that is wearing it (image from fashiontoast.com).
The thing that I like about this look is that the dress quietly falls out while all of the attention is directed to this woman’s face. Her already high contrast features appear to be even more so making this such a stunning picture. Moral of the story here is to follow your color palette and good things will happen.
