Sketch Dress / What Happened To Dressing Up?

Dress: Me Made  |  Shoes: Keds (Poshmark)  |  Earrings: Target  |  Purse: Marshalls

There's something so perfect about a "twirl worthy" dress! Ever since I can remember, I have always loved dresses and dressing up. I'm the person who plans her outfits around where I am going...not to make myself even more of an odd ball or anything, and my definition of "casual" doesn't fit into the vocabulary of others around me. Tell me "Oh, it's just casual dress" and I'll show up in a midi skirt, graphic T-shirt, and sneakers while everyone else is in t-shirts and jeans. I'm often one of the only people in the room wearing a dress, and I'm one of the few people who "overdresses" for church. 

After years of being the most dressed up person in most circles, I have come to just accept it and go on with my life, but that hasn't stopped me from wondering "what happened to dressing up?" What happened to people actually wearing dresses and skirts to go out instead of throwing on their "nice" t-shirt and "nice" jeans. I've always wondered what happened to our standards of dress in America, and after my travels, I have come to realize that it's apparently just part of who we are as an American society....we are laid back and casual people, and the same goes for our view of fashion in many facets of our life. 

That's one of my favorite parts about travel, is seeing what everyone is wearing and studying the fashions. I love the effortlessly chic styles of France with classic skirts, trench coats, and sneakers. I love the flowy and airy summer dresses of Rome with leather sandals and straw purses. I love the bold and fashion forward styles of London, full of diversity and color. I love how fashion can be such a voice for a society and culture, because like I always say, fashion is a language all its own. However, I can't help myself from missing the idea of "dressing up", because in today's day and age most people are not willingly going to dress up unless you tell them. The funny thing is that I always have people stop me when I am out and about and tell me how much they love what I wear, always saying something like "You know, you don't see many young ladies dressing like that now a days" and it reminds me how much our mindset of fashion has changed, and how old fashioned I still am :) I will never give up the right of dressing up, and will forever love travel all the more in that respect because I am surrounded by people who still view fashion with an eye of classic charm. 

A bit of notes on this look...this is one of my "Quarantine Creation" dresses.....i.e. I made it during Quarantine :) It has been FAR TO LONG since I have had time to "properly" sew and even longer since I have allowed myself the freedom and creativity to design. This was one of my 3rd dresses (modern dresses at least) that I made and I absolutely ADORE how it turned out. I made it from some fabric that had been in my stash for awhile. This fabric is the most unique print because it is a navy blue floral sketch, so it looks like an artists floral sketchbook and its is so pretty! The white and blue give me a lot of "classic" china vibes, while the print itself is new and modern. Apparently my new design "aesthetic" is romantic and ladylike and this dress is all of that wrapped up with a bow (literally, it has a bow). 

Aside from the dress, one of the styles I have been obsessed with lately is the pairing of sneakers with dresses, so I decided to pair this dress with my new favorite pair of white ked's sneakers, and let's just say I wore this outfit all day! 

Are you a fan of dressing up?

- Madison