Cheap Thrills : Dresses under $30

Seashore Stripes Dress | Geo Print Dress | Floral Peplum Dress | Square Neck Sheath

Pleated Sheath | Classic Striped Dress | Colorblocked Georgette Dress | Colorblocked Zippered Dress

DIY: B&W Striped Dress

When I saw this b&w striped fabric, I knew I had to have it. I wasn't sure what I was going to make with it, but decided to take it home anyway. As most of you might know, I'm a beginner at sewing and have no knowledge about fabrics and their characteristics. I will buy anything that catches my eye which is a mistake (for a beginner)! I'm not 100% sure if I'm describing the fabric correctly, but it is a very light weight cotton material with no stretch to it. It has a smooth slippery texture which moves around when you try to cut it. The edges also fray like crazy which drove me nuts. You also have to be precise with your measurements when working with a fabric that does not stretch. I had to take apart the bodice quite a few times due that I didn't leave enough seam allowance for the sides and invisible zipper.
  SPG recently posted this really helpful article on fabric selection and too bad I didn't have this with me before I bought a whole bunch of fabric during my last shopping trip.

Below, I have created a fit and flare dress with box pleats & inseam pockets! Hope you enjoy it! 

  

 

DIY dress. (similar here, here & here)

H&M Blazer. Size 2. (similar here)

Circa Joan & David Sandals. (similar here)

Banana Republic Belt. Size XS. Had extra hole punched to fit the waist. Wish I didn't listen to the reviews and bought the XXS instead.

On another note, I just placed an order for the BP. Trolley Ankle Boot  at Nordstrom. I think these might have filled my void for casual boots. I initially wanted the gray leather, but cognac leather looked better against my pale legs. Although the reviews say the booties run small, I thought the size 5.5 (my normal size) felt big so I had the SA order a size 5 for me. I'll let you know about the fit when I get them!

Ralph Lauren Janessa Two Tone Riding Boots + Sandals

Over the last fall and winter, I have tried on numerous riding boots and have had no had success. I ordered these R.L. Janessa Riding Boots because I loved the two tone color, plus they were also on sale! Spring is also a great time to buy boots at discounted prices (if you don't mind waiting) because retailers are trying to get rid of their old fall/winter stock. I have lots of dressy boots and wanted a pair of casual boots that I'd wear with weekend or errand-running outfits and thought these would fit the bill.

The biggest issue I have with most boots is the calf circumference running too big (and I'm sure a lot of ladies have this issue as well). I remember wearing my Stuart Weitzman 'Spectacle' Boots  while shopping one weekend and this random lady chased me down and said "Excuse me, but where are those boots from because they fit your calves so well and I can never find boots that fit!"

I knew the calf circumference would run big on these boots so I decided to order 1/2 size smaller than my normal size, hoping the calf area would be smaller as well. Not sure if that is logical or not? 

I got a size 5 (normally wear 5.5) and the foot area actually fit just fine, but the calf area was a tad big. When paired with jeans, I think it's hard to tell that the calves don't fit. When wearing them with bare legs, its very obvious they are too big. I went back and forth, but finally decided that if I were to keep these boots I could only wear them with jeans and didn't want to be restricted to just that. Another thing that bothered me was the quality of the leather. Even though these boots were on sale, it wasn't extremely cheap to warrant such low quality leather. I really love the style of these boots (esp the 2 tone) and thought about it for a couple of days before returning them.

Circumference of the calf area measures 14".

If anyone has similar boots that fit them well in the calves, please let me know!

On to another hunt -- versatile sandals!

I found these wedges via Piperlime and am pondering which one to get. All are very affordable!

Steve Madden Nanncy

BCBGeneration Vernna

Nine West Reelymind in Yellow

Nine West Reelymind in Natural

Please help me out and let me know which one are your favorites.

Asos Tulip Dress With Waterfall Skirt [w/ Alteration]

When my bf saw this dress, he was horrified and said you look like a 50 year old school teacher. Scroll down to see the unaltered dress and I think you might agree with him. LOL. 

But I definitely saw potential in this dress and I think its much cuter with a mini length!

H&M Denim Jacket. Size 2. (similar here & here)

Coach pumps. (similar here)

LV speedy.

The Pros: The fabric of this dress is very lightweight and the dress is not form fitting so it's a very comfortable dress to wear [esp. for those warm spring/summer days and I'm crossing my fingers that we'll have those very soon]. I also like the ruffle coming down the skirt which adds a fun and flirty element to the dress. My favorite part of the dress are the polka dots!! I've been trying to find a similar polka dot print fabric, but haven't had much luck.

The Cons: On the model, the dress is a midi length so I already knew it was going to be super long on me. But in order to pull off this dress at the given length I think you'd have to be at least 5'6 or 5'7! On me, it's almost a maxi dress.

The armholes are also a tad too big for me and so is the chest area, but keep in mind (and I'm sure you can see) that I'm not very well endowed in that department. 

Before Alteration:

Measurements:

Shoulders: 13" | Chest: 16" | Waist: 12.5" | Hips: 17" | Length: 42"

I trimmed a whopping 14" off the length!!

Below is what I wore to dinner on a colder night.

 Asos Tulip Dress With Waterfall Skirt c/o (Size 2 regular)

J. Crew Lady Day Coat with Thinsulate. 00P

F21 Bag. (similar here)

F21 Booties. (similar here)

Spring Wedges

Spring and summer are my 2 favorite seasons because of the warmer weather and the fact that I can finally wear sandals! I lived in San Diego for a few years and loved the fact that everyone wore sandals or flip flops all year round. During the winter holidays, I'd come home to SF wearing my sandals/flip flops because I was so used to it and my friends would look at my like I'm nuts. So I'm glad spring is finally here and I have an excuse to buy and wear more sandals!

 I purchased these wedge sandals at Target while I was doing an errand run with the bf. I thought the ankle strap made these casual sandals really sexy and loved the sky high wedges. I tried them on at the store and walked around in them for a few seconds and they felt mighty comfy for wedges that have a 5" heel. I think what adds to the comfort level is the 1 inch platform in the front.

I was SO sure they were going to be my new favorite sandals for spring!

 But after wearing these for the photo shoot, I could feel that the front straps were squeezing my pinky toes and the back straps were scratching my heels. Definitely a no no after just 15 mins!

 So unfortunately these will be going back and my search continues for the perfect spring & summer sandals!

Wearing:

Women's Xhilaration® Tammy Plank Wedge Sandal. Size 5.5. RTTS

Free People tank. (similar here)

J. Crew Bling Button Cardigan in natural. XXS

American Eagle jeggings. 00S. (similar here)

Coach clutch. (similar here)

F21 chevron necklace. (similar here & here)

DIYS: Practicing & Sharing

Hi Everyone! First off, I just wanted to thank you to everyone who have been so supportive of my recent DIY efforts. I appreciate all the comments and feedback on my previous posts. It really means a lot to me! 

A few of you have asked me to make and sell my chevron maxi and at this point I'm just not comfortable yet in making clothes for other people. I am currently practicing on my friends & family to improve my sewing skills.  Hopefully at some point  I will feel more comfortable with sharing my DIYs with fellow readers. When that time comes I will definitely let you know and I hope to have your support as well. :)

See all my DIY projects: Circle Skirt, Polka Dot Shell, Blue Lace Dress, Peplum Lace Top & Navy Skater Dress, V-day Little Red Dress, Chevron Maxi and Nude Inverted Pleat Skirt.

And here's 2 more DIYs I can add to the list!

The chevron dress was a b-day gift to my bff. When she saw my chevron maxi dress, she expressed to me how much she loved it and wanted one for herself (and specified in a short version). Initially, I told her that I'm not making that dress again because it's such a pain in the butt to line up all the stripes. But since her bday was coming up, I told her I will make an exception. LoL

The original inspiration was from this BR Dress.

This dress was requested by my auntie. She really liked my blue lace dress and wanted one that was less "sexy". I said no problem! Instead of doing a nude lining, I opted for black so it doesn't look like she not wearing anything underneath. I also made the length to hit just above the knee so it shows some leg, but not too much.

The original inspiration was from this Free People Dress.

Btw what do you guys think about the new layout? I was chatting with a former client yesterday and somehow my blog came of topic. Since she designs website, I said what do you think of my layout? She said..."what's up with the blurred out header with all the girls (me)? It looks like an Asian dating website."  Hahahaha!

Review: ASOS A Wear Peplum 40's Dress

This review is long overdue! I've been so busy with DIY projects, I haven't had time to devote my attention to writing a review for this dress from Asos.

Lately, I've been loving orange and red hues so I was instantly drawn to this dress and thought the cheerful color + print would be a nice addition for spring. I'm kind of late on the peplum trend, but if I can recall correctly this is my first dress with a peplum frill at the waist. I also love the very ladylike 40's inspired details like the cute cap sleeves, the V-neck with fitted bodice and the slim pencil skirt on this dress.

 I normally would order from the petite section, but decided to venture out since my friend Jean has had luck with their regular sizing. I went ahead and gave this dress a chance after viewing it on the runway and the fit seemed very form fitting  on the model. My gauge for regular size clothing is that if fits tight on a model, then it might fit someone petite like me. 

I am wearing a size 2 regular here and you can tell that the cut of the dress is form fitting. I was shocked at how small a size 2 regular run because I normally wear their Petite 1. I thought about ordering a 4 regular a couple of weeks ago to compare sizes, but it was sold out. I just checked and looks like they just re-stocked the 4 regular. If anyone gets the 4R, let me know how it fits!

I also thought the length was a tad long on me so I decided to snip 2 inches off the skirt. I'm used to skirts that are above the knees and thought the shorter length would help elongate the legs. It was an easy alteration that I did and it took no more than 30 mins.

The measurements:

Shoulders: 13" | Chest: 15" | Waist: 12" | Hips: 16 | Length (before alteration): 38"

Let talk about the cons of this dress! Well the obvious one is that it's form fitting (I guess it could be a pro depending on the occasion) and I do wish it was a tad bigger to accommodate room for a larger lunch or dinner. This is the dress you wear when you know you're going to have a salad for lunch or else you're going to be very uncomfortable going back to work sitting at your desk. 

Another thing that bothers me is that the lining of the skirt is made of a  thin cotton material while the shell has a chiffon/satin finish. The issue is that the fabrics do not move in unison because the lining is stretchy while the shell has no give. The lining rides up causing bunchy-ness -- notice the ripples around the hip area in the picture below. This is a tad annoying because you have to tug and pull at the lining too ensure everything is looking nice and smooth.

c/o Asos - A Wear Peplum 40's Dress. Currently on sale!

Size 2 Regular

I haven't had time to take pictures, but I also have the Asos Tulip Dress With Waterfall Skirt (Size 2 regular) to review. Stay tuned to see if the Tulip Dress in Size 2 regular fits similar to this peplum dress!