Hi Friends!
Wow, it’s been busy over here! Remember when I blogged 3-5 times a week? Sigh.
I am embarrassed to admit I once thought that having a baby would give me MORE time to blog – because babies sleep a lot right?? HA! I’m still not sleeping over here.
So what’s been going in our lives?
We spent most of October traveling, getting ready for said travels, and recovering afterwards. (Yes, I realize that Thanksgiving is next week…what?!) Once upon a time, I packed the night before a trip, but that doesn’t fly anymore. Let’s just say, babies need SO MUCH STUFF, and on top of our luggage, we had to bring a stroller, carseat, breast pump bag and cooler, and diaper bag! I even made multiple Excel spreadsheets to map it all out. And contacted several airlines to double check what we could and couldn’t carryon. To make things even more challenging, of course we were flying different airlines for different legs of our trips. I hope to share Reid’s packing list on the blog soon – you know, if you guys want to read about blankets, pacifiers, nose sprays, and Vitamin D drops, haha.
Today, I wanted to talk to you guys about affordable wedding guest and semi-formal dresses. Pre-baby, I often wore “new” dresses for weddings. After all, there are so many photo ops at weddings, and it’s fun to document different looks. For that reason, I was a big fan of Rent the Runway. However, since we were bringing Reid along, I didn’t want to risk him spitting up or having a diaper blowout on a rental dress. Or to have to deal with shipping the dress back while we were in a different city. (Again, not a big deal pre-baby, but I didn’t want to add anymore to-dos to our already packed schedule, interrupt nap time to find a UPS, etc).
Anyways, for our friends’ San Francisco wedding, I figured I would just re-wear a black dress I owned. I didn’t think I needed to try it on – after all, I’m back in my pre-baby pant size/weight now. But a few days before our trip, I decided to try it on JUST IN CASE. And a good thing I did, because it wasn’t even close to fitting. I proceeded to try on every single other wedding appropriate dress I owned. And none of them zipped up. I totally didn’t account for the fact that because I’m nursing, I’m a different size on top now!! Oops. (Smacks forehead).
AMAZON to the rescue. I was stressing about having to go last minute dress shopping with Reid in tow. But then thought I’d give Amazon a quick look, even though I wasn’t hopeful that something would work out. But they surprising have very affordable wedding guest dresses, or dresses you can wear to semi-formal occasions. With lots of great reviews!
I ordered several to try on, including this burgundy, off the shoulder, asymmetrical dress, which is perfect for a fall or winter event. It even matched the gray and burgundy pinstripe baby suit that I bought for Reid for $20! (Also an Amazon find!)
You can wear this neckline higher on your shoulders, or lower so that it hugs your arms – there’s a thin silicone band on the inside of the dress’s neckline to help avoid slipping and sliding, so the dress will sit where you want it to! I also love the folds in the dress’s waistline, making it much more forgiving. I’m 5’4″ so this dress was more of a midi length on me! Also, it comes in a bijillion different colors! I feel like if you’re looking for a budget-friendly option for your bridesmaids, this dress would be PERFECT! Everyone can just order their own size.
I also ordered this green dress – even though I had time to go dress shopping before our friends’ wedding in North Carolina. Again, these Amazon dresses are so affordable! The weather in Mebane, NC was still in the 70s, so this strappy dress worked out perfectly. I accessorized this dress with a scarf, worn as a shawl, but it’d also look great under a blazer or faux fur (see my favorite shown here) or a holiday party. Or with bare shoulders and just a fun necklace in the summer! Also, I’ve thrown this dress in the washer and dryer twice, and the material holds up really well. This dress also comes in a ton of colors, and you can easily adjust the straps to make it higher or lower cut.
Definitely check out Amazon if you need a semi-formal dress!
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