Decisions Decisions

I have a bridal shower coming up in just a few weeks and I can't wait!  I asked my ladies to tell me the date so I didn't go making any conflicting plans, but the details are at their discretion- a surprise!  The only thing I've been told is how to dress, and really even that hasn't been much.  I was told to wear a dress for a "garden party" and I know it will be early October.  That's the sum total of what I know.  Fun right?

Off I went in search of the perfect dress.  At first, I thought floral.  And I found this dress at Urban Outfitters that seemed like it would fit the bill.  It was the right weight for the season, it was the right fabric for daytime, and it seemed like I could wear it to work with tights after the shower.  I had a coupon code for free shipping, and they offer free returns, so I decided to see if it would work.  When the package arrived, I was quite excited!  And it did fit, but it just wasn't quite right.  The top wasn't as flattering as I'd hoped.  Boooo.

I moved on and kept looking, and found a great reddish orangeish dress from French Connection (pictured below in black).  It doesn't look like much in the photo, but trust me, its really cute on with those great puffed sleeves.  But the top wasn't quite right-- the fit was off, and it was definitely too low cut for work.  Still, this dress struck a chord with me. I decided to think it over.

I also spent some time looking around the White House Black Market website, and there, at the top of the page, was this gorgeous dress.  So pretty!  So vintage!  So NOT a daytime dress.  Sigh.  I moved on.

Then on Friday after work, I headed to the Saks flagship on Fifth Avenue, not really thinking about the dress but hoping to buy some new makeup.  I love shopping there for makeup because the ladies who work there do excellent work.  After picking up a few things in cosmetics, I decided on a whym to check out the dress selection upstairs.  I immediately found a sales lady to help me (for the same reason as the cosmetics- the ladies who work at that particular location usually know their stuff) and after a quick tour of the Milly, D&G and Alice and Olivia sections of the store, we saw Diane von Furstenberg and had an identical "duh" moment.  Why didn't I think of it before?  I love DVF- her work is always ladylike, vintage inspired, and work appropriate- but still comfortably edgy.  Granted, I do not usually buy DVF if it isn't on sale.  But just this once, I felt like I could look at dresses and not worry about the price.  After all, I am turning thirty in a month (note the shameless use of my thirtieth birthday to justify a splurge; I plan to get major mileage out of this excuse for the next few weeks)!

My new best friend at Saks and I poured over DVF's signature wrap dresses, sheaths and separates.  And we found it!  A gorgeous dress made of felted wool jersey (work appropriate!) with short sleeves (seasonally appropriate!) in a lovely shade of red (garden party appropriate!) and as an added bonus, it channels my favorite TV character, Joan from Mad Men.  Even better, the sales lady saved me big bucks on my dress (and the cosmetics) by opening a Saks charge for me- ok, yes, I know all about the perils of store credit cards, but I pay them off in full every time I do this, I promise!  Plus, Saks has a points system and you get gift cards periodically for spending money with them- which is better than most stores do. And so  I took this dress home and tried it on for J. and when I saw his face, I knew it was worth it!

My DVF winner!  Mine will be red!

Have you splurged on a clothing purchase lately?