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Yes, I have ignored blogging for awhile and yes, I am still wearing dresses.  I think some thought this craziness was going to end after a month.  My vision was for a much longer period of time, but we'll see.  I have felt trapped by my dresses and that has resulted in me not wanting to blog and pass along my poor attitude.

I had a good talk with my kids the other night.  I was complaining and entertaining the thought of putting this whole thing behind me.  Odd, most of them chastised me for wanting to give up. The dynamic of preteens advising me to stick to it, was enough shame for me to try to adjust my attitude.  

Em did give me some good advice.  You see, I tend to be more left-brained than right and that results in using formulas instead of creativity.  The way I have approached this dress idea has been, dress or skirt + granny blouse + cardigan = outfit for the day.  At the start, this worked well, but now I am bored.  She talked with me about changing up my formula or even throwing it out all together - not that I would abandon my love of vintage, granny blouses, and the like - but to look at things with new eyes and be willing to mix old and new, patterns, and looks.  It did help.  This is what I pulled out of the closet today -

Not sure that the patterns work too well together.  I think it would be better if my gingham print was slightly smaller or if my sweater covered all but the collar.  I tried buttoning up my cardigan, but it looked lumpy and bulky.  Overall, I liked the mix of colors and fabrics.  Bonus - it gave me an excuse to wear my new, bright pink lipstick. 

Over the last few days, I stumbled across a blog that did inspire me.  It's refashionista.net.  This lady takes thrift store finds, adjusts and alters them to make them more fashionable.  I think she tries to do one a day.  I think I wasted over an hour looking at her blog.  Although she is half my size and age, I was inspired to try out some new things and look at some of my existing finds in a new light.  The truth be told, I play well off the genius of others.

I have taken some "before" pictures that I will post along with the "afters" once I have worked my magic.  Actually, it might take some magic......

I did get one dress done.  I posted pics of this on a Thifted Thursday post, but here's a reminder -

I unpicked the collar and removed it - it was a little much. Trust me, with my double chin, I don't need any more bulk in that area!  Then, I simply topstitched it back together.  I did save those beautiful buttons.  I'll use those on another project.  I also took off about 6" off the length.  I like it much better with the changes - they weren't too difficult, but getting a good picture can be!

I really liked it paired with my thrifted red shoes.

I also sported this outfit over my hiatus.  It's about the only picture I ended up taking during that time.  I found my sweater at Forever 21 and the dress was thrifted. I did like the two together, but I love the two people together. :)  We even match....ah....

Last, but not least, I have been wanting a vintage patent leather purse, like I used to play dress up with. I have seen ones in the antique stores for around $15.  That's a little more than I am willing to pay.  My patience paid off.  I found this number at the local thrift store for a mere $1.  Another formula: me - $1 = happy girl!!

So, I will try and move forward with more creativity and a better attitude.  With the sun shining, snow melting, and a fly buzzing, a new season looks possible and I know that will help - out with the wool, in with the cotton!