A Midsummer Night's Dream: The Dress Edition
Dress inspiration for all your summer solstice needs.
I was recently invited to a summer solstice party. I have always seen pictures of girls throwing the cutest midsummer parties and dreamed of throwing one. While I am not the “hostess with the mostest”, I will have to settle with being invited to a summer solstice party instead.
I have one slight problem. The dress code is bright and colorful dresses and I have come to realize that my dress collection is quite morbid. I love black dresses. Short, midi, or maxi, if I’m going to buy it, it’s going to be in black. Or an occasional navy blue.
I started browsing the internet for a good quality dress that had some color to it. I could not find a thing that I loved that was in my price range. I figured if I was going to spend more than $25 on a dress, I want to love it and wear it again. I found so many dresses that I would have bought if I could have bought them in black, but nothing with color.
I thought maybe I would just get a dress on amazon and return it after, but I did not love anything! The struggle has been real finding something colorful that I would genuinely wear again. I have reluctantly decided to wear a dress from my closet. I am a very pale girl (a big insecurity of mine) and I feel like I slightly blend into the dress from my closet, but it is a pretty dress. Maybe I’ll sun a little before the party. Or just get sunburned, that’s usually how it goes.
After looking at what feels like one thousand dresses this past week, I thought I would put together a collection of the best summer party dresses I found. They are all so beautiful, I just want them in black. Or navy blue. Apparently, I am Batman. Batgirl, to be exact.
Banana Republic: Knit Cross-Back Maxi Dress
I thought this dress would make me look like a cool girl with a bulky gold necklace, but I just was not in love with it enough to know I would wear it again.
Zara: Embroidered Poplin Dress
I would have snatched this one up, but my size is out of stock.
J.Crew: Paloma Dress in Striped Cotton Poplin
Loved this one but it was way out of my budget.
Hollister: Smocked Waist Criss Cross ack Midi Dress
This one was a winner for me, I was going to purchase it until I realized it would not arrive in time:(
Hollister: Sofia Side Mocked Maxi Dress
This was my backup if the dress above did not work out, but it would also not arrive in time. It was out of stock at my local store too:(
Steele Label: Caterina Dress
I found a knock off of this originally on Amazon with zero reviews. I thought the photos were definitely taken from an actual shop, so I reversed image searched the amazon listing photos to try and find the real dress. I did! It was so out of budget… but it is stunning!
Anthropologie: For Love and Lemons Carla Strapless Maxi Dress
I have walked into Anthropologie and read the price tag on this dress about 8 times and am equally disappointed every time I see it (as if it was ever going to change). I hope one day I get lucky and find it in the sale room. Would have worn to the party if I had $300 to spend on a dress…
If you have found yourself struggling to love colorful dresses (or less morbid dresses) during the summer, I hope you have found some inspiration. For more summer inspiration, you should take a look at my Summer Fashion Pinterest Board! Thank you so much for reading!
Love,
Taylor
What a lovely collection of dresses! Thank you for sharing.