Classically Curvy: Navy and Lace! Formal Date Night Look!

Hi Ladies!

My handsome husband and I had a date to the Symphony this weekend. Let me start by saying, if you've never had the chance to witness a live symphonic orchestra, do yourself a favor and add it to your bucket list! Even if the arts, music specifically, aren't really your cup of tea, I think everyone should experience it at least once. There's just something about witnessing that kind of beauty and creativity in person, that cannot be duplicated on a disc, record, or radio. You're literally seeing music and art come to life. I'm not kidding when I say the theme song to Jaws brought tears to my eyes. Its sounds crazy right? It's just one of those things you have to experience. By the way, I guess now would be a good time to explain, that this particular symphony, was celebrating the eighty fifth birthday of the brilliant composer, John Williams! Yes, the movie music legend. Everything from Jaws, ET, and Jurassic Park to Harry Potter, Far and Away, the Star Wars movies and oh, so much more. It was simply breathtaking. This concert also happened to be the season opener and was a completely sold out house!

Speaking of breathtaking we had the privilege of attending this concert by the York Symphony Orchestra, at the Strand Capitol theater in York, Pennsylvania. There is a reason this building is known as "The Crown Jewel" of downtown York. It is magnificent. The beauty and detail are almost overwhelming. Everywhere you look there is detail, it's stunning. I love old buildings with a story to tell. Art History in college, really encouraged this love of mine and I can't help but imagine, just how this beauty came to life. Who sat in the seats? What shows were seen here? I get lost in that train of thought. Oh how I love that sort of thing. If you'd like you can read more about this beautiful building here.

Photo Credit: https://www.britannica.com/place/York-Pennsylvania/images-videos

A few photos I was able to snap before the performance.

The detail really is difficult to capture in a photo though. If you are ever in the York area, I've provided a link below to check out upcoming shows and performances.

Okay now on to what I wore for the occasion! If you've read any of my other blog posts, you know I love the classics. I dabble in the trends, but there is nothing I love more than a staple classic, one that will truly stand the test of time. When you think of lace, you might think it's outdated or maybe even you think of your grandmothers old doily's. But I'm here to tell you that not only is lace a classic, this season it's also completely on trend. Just a few weeks ago lace was on the catwalks in New York for Fashion Week. While it was super common in 2015, it's back with a force. Mulberry featured gorgeous lace dresses. Alberta Ferretti and Alexander McQueen had many beautiful embroidered gowns. So don't be scared of lace if you do want to be on trend. I for one don't overly care about the trends, because my style will always be true to me. That's the beauty of fashion, there's so much to chose from, you can come up with something that is uniquely YOU. Stick with what you love and what makes you feel good, and add in trendier things here and there. There's no need to reinvent your entire wardrobe as the trends come and go. And you know what they say, "What's old is new again", it always comes back around.

This particular look for me was largely inspired by the Duchess of Cambridge, also known as Kate Middleton. She is one of my favorite, if not my single most influential, style icon. There's this lovely term in the fashion world, the "Kate Effect". I believe my dress is a direct product of the "Kate Effect". Kate wore a beautiful lace overlay dress by Erdem, the "Cecile" dress, when she did a tour of Canada with Prince William, several years back. She wore the dress as it's by Canadian designer Erdem, and she wanted to honor the country she was visiting. But the Duchess often sports lacy designs. Lace was almost instantly back with a bang and in just about every store after she was seen wearing it. And it's my personal belief, that the Duchess is largely responsible for why it's had such staying power in the fashion world in recent years. Her style is feminine and classic and that is refreshing to so many, myself included. I mean her wedding gown by Sarah Burton for Alexander McQueen, literally brought sleeves back to wedding world overnight. The Duchess has heavy influence in the fashion world, and for good reason. She knows what she's doing and she stays true to herself, always. That's perhaps the most inspirational thing about her style. And who doesn't want to dress like a princess? I digress.

Photo Credit: http://whatkatewore.com/2011/06/30/its-an-erdem-dress-for-kates-arrival-in-canada/

The dress I wore is gorgeous navy blue lace, over a beige very curve hugging, but oh so soft material. The sleeves hit at the elbow and there is no underlay in the sleeves. It's beautiful, but feels like you are wearing a t-shirt dress! You would think lace might be scratchy, not the case with this dress. I'm not going to lie. I was SO nervous to wear this dress. It is very curve hugging, and curves I am not lacking. A couple weeks ago I was inspired by Kimmy of "Kimmy Dares Greatly" on Instagram (check out her Instagram and blog here and here) she is amazing and such an inspiration. So positive in every way, the world needs more light and positivity and she's throwing it around like confetti! So with her inspiration, I decided to just go for it. Well I am so happy I did. I made up my mind, since I was wearing the dress, I was going to WEAR the dress. I held my head up high, I mean I kinda had to because I was wearing some sky high heels, but I walked into that theater with confidence and poise. Within five minutes of walking in the door, two women complimented me and said I looked beautiful, one added that the dress was simply stunning. I felt like a million bucks! I'm not normally one to really display my curves, but that won't be the case moving forward. I paired my dress with my well loved, nude heels, by Nine West, and my trusty little clutch from TJ Maxx. I love the faux diamond details on the latch of this clutch. It really adds a little something to any outfit. For jewelry I kept it simple, my dress had so much detail, anything other than simple would have been too much going on. I really wanted the lace detail to shine. I wore halo diamond studs from Nordstrom. And again inspired by my favorite Duchess I wore my sapphire and diamond ring from Zales that is of course, modeled after the famous engagement ring, first worn by princess Diana, and now Catherine. My dress is by ASOS Curve. Sadly it's no longer available. But I have linked to several wonderful alternatives below if you are interested. More than anything I want to say, don't be scared to step out of your comfort zone a little bit! What do you have to lose? Wear what you want to wear and wear it with confidence!

Dress by ASOS Curve.

Apologies for the lighting, it was very dark in the theater.