One thing that I’ve been looking forward to since getting both doses of the vaccine is getting to attend events and reconnect with friends I haven’t seen in person over the last year so you can only imagine how excited I was to see that Sarah Chiwaya of Curvily was hosting a picnic in Central Park. At scoring one of the few tickets available for the intimate event,  I immediately started to do some shopping online to see what I could get together at such short notice.  I mean after a year of wearing mostly bralettes, loungewear, oversized band tees and pajamas, I figured a new statement piece was in order. That is until my mother presented me with a challenge – styling an old piece that I already own instead.

For context, I am a bit of a hoarder when it comes to clothing. I think this is due in part to growing up fat during the 90s and early 00s it was borderline in possible to find anything worthwhile in my size (or bigger) so I would keep everything that fit regardless of whether or not I truly cared for it. The idea being that I just because I managed to find something once didn’t mean that I would again so I had to keep and take care of what I had. That being said, there are a few exceptions to this, like this dress.I got this dress during my freshman year at college back in 2008 during which time I had no idea what a maxi dress was while also having a slight obsession with the color turoquoise for some reason. My mother and I were shopping for church dresses of all things at Bolton’s, which as far as I know has yet to have a plus size section but it was one of those smaller stores where I managed to be much more successful in finding things that fit, most of which happened to be skirts and dresses. This was one of my bolder selections at a time that I had very, very low self esteem so I only wore it a handful of times in my early 20s before I put it into storage, not knowing that this sort of peasant style maxi dress would become popular once more a few years later with the rise of cottagecore.

The dress has a free flowing maxi length that you can’t help but twirl gracefully in when given the chance. And you can bet that I took that chance. In addition to the voluminous skirt, I really love the romantic neckline that can be pulled down for off-the-shoulder styling.  It has a smocked waist that I cinched with obi belt so that it matched my white parasol that I was determined to use as a prop for my grand entrance, hahaha. It’s been a year and a half, not that I needed an excuse but I think it’s fair to be a little extra from now on.

I got many compliments for this look both at the picnic and during my commute to and from it. This goes to show that you never know what gems you can find just sitting in your closet waiting to be be reintroduced to the world. Now that this dress is ironed and hanging in my closet once again don’t be surprised if you see me a bunch of pics of me wearing it this summer. (And don’t worry, even though this dress is super old I did manage to find some similar ones and those are linked below.)

~Get the look~

Grace Elements Fit & Flair Peasant dress (XL) | Bolton’s (old, similar here, here and here)
White Faux Leather Obi Belt | Fashion to Figure (old, similar here)
White Lace Parasol | Booth at NYCC (similar here and here)
Pressed Flower Terrarium Choker | MARIAELA

Are you shopping your closet before looking to adding new pieces? Also are you, like me, going to be more “extravagant” outfits now that things are opening up again?