Dress, Joe Fresh; shoes, Zara; necklace, J. Crew; hat. Aritzia; bag, Longchamp (thrifted)
Dress, Joe Fresh; shoes, Zara; necklace, J. Crew; hat. Aritzia; bag, Longchamp (thrifted)

A grey tube dress is the height of minimalism, yes? Of course, being me, I am going to add a bunch of accessories, but considering the restrained colour palette, I think we can still call this a minimalist look. Work with me here, people!

avec topper
avec topper
sans topper
sans topper
she hulk (what is going on with my upper body here??)
she hulk (what is going on with my upper body here??)

I have been thinking about this outfit since my trip to Van, where I picked up the hat, shoes and necklace, but decided to pass on the dress. In my mind’s eye, these pieces went together well, but I hesitated over the dress because I wasn’t sure if it was versatile enough to merit the price ($29 at Joe Fresh). A style like this can be too body-con for my taste, and I hate having to wear shapewear for anything less than the most special of occasions. But I kept thinking about the dress, and after seeing it on a co-worker, I decided to take the plunge. I bought a size up from my usual (I’m wearing a Medium) so I wouldn’t (hopefully) have to worry about sucking in, but still enjoy the streamlined cut of the dress. And you know what? It’s such a nice blank canvas, you guys. I have a ton of ideas for how I can wear it, and the heathered grey is a perfect dark neutral without being as stark as black. [As you know, I struggle with black dresses.]

Looking at these photos, I realize that these Zara flats make my (already big) feet look ginormous, but … I kinda don’t care? They’re sort of almost ugly in an interesting, high fashion way – which, come to think of it, is a good way to describe a lot of the stuff sold at Zara. That sort of thing is usually too “advanced style” for me, but I think it, well, sort of works in this case. Yes? Yes!

But, to be on the safe side, I’ve been experimenting with other footwear options too. To wit:

shoes, Pour La Victoire
shoes, Pour La Victoire
hello, heatwave!
hello, heatwave!