A floral wrap dress is the ultimate favorite for comfort, effortless style and summer chic. The simplicity of a one piece garment begs only the question of what accessories to add.  Easy to pack and lightweight, so no worries on exceeding the weight limit for checked baggage if you're travelling, plus they need little or no ironing when you get to your destination.  Cosy it up with a scarf in the evening, a denim jacket or even a leather jacket during the cooler seasons.  Plus, a wrap dress accommodates both our fat and thin days with ease, and who doesn't need clothes that do that?

Mid length dresses go beyond the limits of a sun dress being equally at ease day or night. Eliminate the formal look with flat strappy sandals.   White sneakers and an over-sized tote for a casual shopping trip to the flea market or even the super on trend flat bejeweled slides for a morning coffee with the girls.  More formal pumps will turn the look into evening glamour.

If you had the extra piece of pizza you knew you shouldn't have had and you've blown up like a giant fermented wheat ball about to go off bang, the wrap dress is your saving grace. Let it out and nobody will be any the wiser, tomorrow you can pull it right back in again when you've deflated!  The silhouette of the wrap dress is very forgiving and liberating so it works for most body types, as well as most dress sizes that we're likely to encounter in any given week in our mid life years!

So lets talk about underwear!  I'm not a fan of bra straps intermingling with the spaghetti straps of my dress or camisole or any top for that matter.  Unless it's a fitness top which is deliberately designed to show off your sport bra then avoid the display altogether. If you like your outfit to keep a fuss free chic look invest in a really good strapless bra.  I have the same one in black and nude and I live in them all summer long.
 
This particular dress I'm wearing is from Topshop and has the tulip style cut at the front, so it gives a little sexy peak of the legs when you walk or sit. I just have to be mindful if it's a windy day and blowing toward me so to avoid a Marilyn Monroe moment!

Here are some links to create a similar look to the one I'm wearing in this post including the same dress from Topshop:

Here are links to some other super cute mid length wrap summer dresses:
​

So that's a wrap! ​
​Wishing you all a wonderful week and thank you for stopping by!

Karen xox

There are some things in fashion that I've loved since I can remember despite the coming and going of current trends. Whether considered by those in the know as "in" or "out" I couldn't have cared less, I've been wearing pink since I was able to buy my own clothes, and animal prints have never really been out of fashion. I've undoubtedly made adjustments over the course of time yielding to a particular hue of pink or a varying print of leopard in order to stay on top of my game, but never have the two favorites waned.

Christian Dior introduced animal print into his 1947 collection officially naming it "haute couture", so for many including the wealthy fashionistas of Paris, leopard print has long since been a sign of luxury. Whenever I wear anything leopard print I feel luxurious with a certain power or fearlessness, it must be the animal instinct rubbing off on me! 

Even though anything and everything is available in animal print, it does not mean you should wear it all at once. One piece in any single outfit is by far the chicest and easiest way to go.  Less is definitely more with animal prints. Besides, trying to match up prints can prove very difficult as they all seem to differ just a little bit, in color, size and/or formation of spots.

Leopard print doesn't generally work well with other patterns, it's definitely not a choice for bold pattern mixing. It's better by itself and paired with solid colors. Black is a good color to wear with leopard as well as red or orange.  For a summery vibe I've chosen to wear it with white jeans which works well since the blouse is a sheer fabric and therefore has a softer hue of colors.  Leopard also pairs well with blue jeans,  here's a LINK to a blog post I did last year wearing this same blouse with blue jeans which resulted in many compliments.   

Add some pink into the mix and that big cat becomes a kitten. Pink is cute and girly and adds a little sugar to sweeten your leopard prowess. I'm a sucker for pink and it's the summer time, no further justification required! Pink is a relatively easy color to match. Plus, when you're wearing it as an accessory as in this example, each piece is far enough apart not to notice if it's not a perfect color match. Earrings, bag and shoes, something for the top middle and bottom - all nicely balanced so the leopard print still takes center stage. 

I've linked the items below that I'm wearing in these photos, or similar if the exact ones are no longer available. If you're not ready for a lot of leopard just yet, consider an accessory in the print.  A pair of leopard print shoes with an all black outfit, or perhaps a leopard belt on a red dress, or a leopard bag or clutch. With leopard print, no matter how small the piece you wear, you're still going to get a significant bang for your buck.  It's sure to be your pop of luxury, the haute couture in a pret-a-porter world!

Thank you for stopping by and have a wonderful week my friends!

Karen xox
​

There are very few clothes that are comfortable to wear during the middle of the summer in Arizona, and very few clothes is about all that is humanly possible to handle when the temperature soars from anywhere between 105 to 120 degrees with the addition of humidity which increases during the monsoon months of August and September.

Pants are the last thing we normally contemplate during this season, but here's a pair that can happily take you from day to night without feeling that you're wearing pants or anything at all for that matter.  They're light and airy, loose fitting, comfortable, don't crease, don't stick or show perspiration.  Another great find from H&M at only $19.99 and they're bound to hold their own through a couple of seasons if not a couple of years.