How to "Dress Down" A Dress

First off, I apologize for posting at such a late hour! I won’t be able to post again until Monday because I have dance competition on Friday, prom on Saturday, and more competition on Sunday, so I did not want to keep you guys waiting. Also, I really liked this outfit today, so I wanted to share it.

Also, I also apologize for taking these pictures inside. I’ve been extremely busy, and taking the photos in my room takes 10 minutes less time. The lighting outside is so much better, but this area will have to do for some time. 

Today was all about learning how to dress down something that could be worn to a nicer event, like a night out with a fancy dinner or even a banquet of some type. I was wearing the outfit to school, and I’m all for dressing up more than the norm, but I still did not want to go over-the-top. The lace trip on the top and sleeveless nature of this shift dress was just a touch too much for a casual school day, so I added a layer (as I always do) to dress down the look. The layer actually happened to be an REI shirt that even has a little bit of paint on the side (I probably shouldn’t be telling you this, but...) that I think I’ve used for art projects. The shirt definitely did dress down the formality of the dress, but the casual feel of the top didn’t destroy the outfit. It gave it an artistic character and more complexity to a simple (yet nice) dress. Also, the light blue of the shirt and the deep green of the dress really worked well together, which was truly not my intention. The way to dress down anything is to add something, not take away something (and I’ve obviously not talking about nice jewelry). Any type of layer (a shirt like this, a leather jacket, a drapey cardigan, etc) can work, but also adding tights and boots to a formal dress or layering a pullover sweater over a dress can work, depending on the fit of the dress. Yes, it is always nice to dress up, but some occasions do not call for this type of formality, and at times, you really have to be in the mood to do it. And you might say that the lipstick makes outfit more formal, but in my opinion, lipstick is always okay and adds flair to a fresh face. Lipstick is also something people know me for, so it’s pretty hard to go a day without it. The best part about this outfit is that I could wear it with the shirt for a casual yet fashionable look at school, and when I went out to a nice restaurant for my mom’s birthday tonight, I could simply take off the layer to dress up the outfit.