Just wanted to give you guys the heads up on a couple of things:

Sephora is having a sale on their starter kits for Bare Escentuals – Wet Seal has a sale going on:  check out this military jacket, faux leather jacket, cap sleeve wrap, denim capris, rosette top - Ralph Lauren has great tops on sale: here, here, here, here and here – Overstock.com is having an inventory close out sale: anne klein suit, belted dress, plus size lace dress, draped cardigan

Also, thank you for all the fun emails!   I am working on answering all of your questions as fast as I can.   Keep those emails coming!  Send them to: livi@sensiblystyled.com

Ciao Ciao.  Happy Shopping!

image: not around photoshop right now so this is what you get: me being shocked by such great sales!

vintage, circa 2005

We got this email from one of our readers:

Ok, so I used to be a cool LA girl who bought far too expensive clothing and worked out.  Flash forward 4 years, a temple wedding, 2 kids (and the weight that comes with them) annnnd an invite to my coolest LA girlfriends Beverly hills wedding in October.  Black tie optional AND 3 months postpartum?  I could just die! Rule out anything empire waist.  I have been subscribing to your blog for several months now and really enjoy it.  If you have any suggestions please let me know.

Thank you,

Katy
is fashionably frustrated.

Well Katy, I don’t know your exact size but I found a few ideas for you!   My suggestion for you is wearing a solid color and play heavily (and strategically) on the accessories!   They can glam up an outfit and make you look more present and put together in an instant!

Dress Ideas:

From Left to Right:

Asymmetrical Dress, Gray Shabby Apple, Gray Jen Clothing, Daydreamer Wrap Dress

From Left to Right:

Necklace, Bracelet, Hair Piece, Ring, Stud Earrings

Here are a few great finds from Mod Cloth!

How was your weekend? Mine was great! I turned 25 yesterday! Woah! And Zach and I are in Seattle visiting my brothers family… I’ll try to post more later this week!

Target has a great selection of modest dresses right now! And, BONUS… all of them (besides the orange one) are under $25!!! Woot!

From left to right: Black tiered dress, purple dress, green dress, black wrap dress, orange dress (it’s still only $39.99… not bad)

Have a great weekend! I’ll meet you back here on Monday… with a sweet little giveaway!

Last week my friend Maggie was in town visiting and we wandered over to Anthropologie… and I got this tiny windows dress (in the pink… but in the photos it looks MUCH better in lavender). I am in love. They actually didn’t have my size, so it’s in the mail but I’m really excited for it!

It was 50% off…. only $59.95… AND it’s 39.5 inches long!

Dress, Dress (I NEED THIS!!!), Blouse, Plaid Top, Shoes

Purple makes the world go round… see you tomorrow!

Seriously, who doesn’t love a good floral print hanging in their closet? One thing that I love about florals is how feminine they are. I also love that each pattern is so different, yet give off the same feminine feel. (minus the dress on the bottom left… that is definitely a different look than the others)

Clockwise from top Left: Dress, Top, Dress (Thanks Heather!!!)  Skirt, Swimsuit, Dress

AND here is an awesome offer from Charlotte Russe (Is this what you mean Beth???)

Get an extra 30% off sale styles! Valid from Thursday, 6/24 through Wednesday, 6/30. Enter promo code: Extra30 at CharlotteRusse.com

Hey! So… here are some really cute dresses by Mikarose. Have a great weekend!

Top, Dress, Tunic, Flats, Top with Ruffle.

Thanks Jessica! Seriously, sometimes I get stuck in a rut… and love it when I get tipped off to great finds from our readers! Thanks!!!

When I think of cute clothes, I usually think of stores like Anthropologie (of course), J.Crew, Banana Republic…places that I consider on the expensive side. They just look nicer to me. But, I think a lot of my opinion is successful marketing from those companies. If you take 20 minutes to browse on JCPenney’s website, I think you’ll find quite a few things that you really like, and for a great deal. When shopping at places like JCPenney, places that aren’t as fancy/chic/expensive/whatever the word is, I always try to ask myself:
“If I saw this exact item at Nordstrom, would I love it?”

When I take the JCPenney-ness out of it, sometimes I find myself loving something that I wouldn’t have if I had focused on where it came from. Am I the only one that does this? JCPenney has a lot of cheesy/tacky/mom jeans kind of clothes, but they also have cute clothes. I like cute clothes, and I also like a good deal, so it’s worth wading through the frumpy clothes to find the really cute things.  Here are some pretty dresses to check out, all for a great deal:

black wrap dress, pink dress with ruffled neckline, plus-size wrap dress, floral top dress, gray dress with pockets (I LOVE this dress!  It would be so fun to accessorize.), flutter sleeve dress with belt, plus-size pink ruched dress

Loving the dresses I’ve been seeing! Magenta Dress, Patterned Dress (this dress is called “Watering Can” I LOVE that name, it makes me want to buy it and then garden while wearing it!), Striped Blue Dress, Yellow Dress, Purple Dress.

Have you all been over to Shabby Apple lately? There are so many cute things going on over there. First, I’m still in love with this dress from the Manhattan line (which is also available in plus sizes), and I don’t even really like animal prints. Then, there’s the fantastic 1943 line (my beautiful sister has this dress and it’s seriously adorable), the too cute Central Park line, the not-really-my-favorite Carousel line, a new Baja line (which is wonderful)…and then two more slammin’ lines to torture you with.

First, a line called Golden Gate.  It consists of 6 different dresses that are each available in 9 different colors.  These are perfect for a bride who is looking for cute and modest bridesmaid dresses.  You could pick the color and then have your bridesmaids pick which dress they like best, or you could pick a few colors and have everyone in the same dress but in a few different hues.  Oh, and all of the dresses in this line are available in plus sizes.

As far as I know, there’s no law against finding your new favorite dress among these lovelies, bridesmaid or not.

Second, the new Oh La La line.  I’m really in love.  I love the ruffle front dress that comes in green, yellow, and magenta.  And the stripe top with the black A-line skirt?  Too cute.

Which line is your favorite? What dresses do you have your eyes on?

I’ve had my eye on that cute short-sleeve jacket from Shade Clothing (bottom left) for a little while now, so a light spring green color came to mind this week. I’m definitely feeling the freshness of green lately. Oh, by the way, you know that these Color Wednesday boards are just a big round-up of lovely things all in the same color, right? I was thinking about it this morning and wouldn’t want someone to think I’m implying that green chino trousers would look great with a striped green cardigan, green earrings, and green espadrille wedges. Yikes, that’s a lot of green! These are just fun options to consider adding to your wardrobe to liven it up with some color, but color when it’s all matchy-matchy looks kind of silly, no? What do you think?

striped cardigan, button down shirt, floral skirt, cardigan, earrings, v-neck tee, dress, skirt, slingback flats, pants, knit dress, lightweight jacket, slingback wedges, espadrille wedges

This week’s giveaway just thrills me.  It’s from William Riera, one of our great sponsors, and just wait until you see what they have to offer!  As you know, I’m a little bit obsessed with knits, specifically knit dresses.  I received the “Renee” dress to review, and I truly love it.  This dress is a gorgeous blue jersey knit with a very subtle sheen to it.  It’s impeccably made, the detailing at the waist and at the sleeves are beautiful, and the color is a rich deep sapphire blue (and not a yucky, dullish navy).  This dress is so easy to wear.  It’s comfortable and flattering.  I’m fairly large-chested and the scoop on the neckline of this dress is just on this side of my comfort level, but would be more than adequate for anyone whose bra size doesn’t have any double letters in it.  I will definitely go to William Riera USA for a dress in the future, and I think the next one I’m going to try is the “Vera” dress.  That purple is just too gorgeous.

Okay, so enough about me and my new favorite dress, let’s get on to the giveaway!  Go on over to William Riera USA and check out the selection of dresses (and jewelry!) they have to offer.  Then come back here and leave us a comment on this post letting us know which of their gorgeous dresses is your favorite. The giveaway ends at midnight MST on Wednesday, and then we’ll pick one lucky winner and William Riera USA will send her her favorite dress!  Hope you win!

Okay, so here’s the deal. Sometimes I put together outfits and look at them and know that they are cute. While other times I put together an outfit and am a little frightened as to what people might think. So… what do you think of this outfit? Is it too busy? Anyways, I think it can be fun to go a little color crazy. And that’s what I’ve done here. Whether it’s too much for a wedding or not, I’ll leave that up to you to decide. I found this cute Etsy shop for plus size women and wanted to use one of their dresses… I think they have a great selection. I also love blue paired with yellow, which is why I chose some yellow pumps. It makes me happy. And then for some added color I chose a purple belt, and a colorful floral necklace. Enjoy!

-Natalie

Hi everyone!  I chose a cute yellow dress for a spring wedding.  Yellow is fun, and this dress seems cheerful and playful enough for a wedding, but still conservative and respectful for such an important event.  Since these style boards are always like my dream outfit wishlists, I put on her a watch that I’ve had my eye on for a long time (in black and gold, although my favorite is the tortoise shell one).  Add a simple (and cheap) necklace and some super fun shoes and you’re all set.

-Emily

p.s. I found this dress in Nordstrom’s Dress Shop.  Seriously, if you have an event coming up that you need a dress for specifically, don’t waste your time looking in other places.  Look here first.  There are so many cute options, and you can find a lot of sale items, too.

Alright, seriously ladies, I went a little crazy with the purple this week. And I’m not even purple’s biggest fan! But I kind of found a groove for searching sites for items of a specific color, and within minutes I found so many cute things. So…this week we have double the Color Wednesday fun because I just couldn’t edit down.  I think I would love all of these things.
I think that a deep purple is definitely one color that I need to try more often.  Like the shawl collar cardigan in the first picture?  It kills me.  So cute.  Or that belted dress with the silky bodice in the second picture?  Perfection.
It’s really interesting picking things by color because I usually have my favorite colors to wear (black, gray, red, white, florals, etc.) and don’t even pay attention when something cute is available in a purple color.  But, I guess that’s the point of Color Wednesday, to get us out of a color rut and show some new options.
Let’s all add some (grape) punch to our wardrobes with pretty deep purples!

dress, top, cardigan, ruffled blouse, belt, knit dress (it’s gorgeous!), crocs, moccasin flats, scarf, capri yoga pants, boyfriend cardigan

dress with rosette, layering tank, knit henley, swimsuit, striped dress, heels with bows, crochet hat, dress with waist-tie, houndstooth shift dress, silky belted dress, suede heels

From left to right: Dress, Top, Sweater, Top thanks Brooke! Swimsuit

Clockwise from top left:

Tunic-plus size, Sweater- thanks Jenna! Top- thanks Mary! Dress, Swimsuit

For most of my life I hated the color navy. I thought it was just about the most boring, nondescript color ever. Lately, however, I’ve been warming up to the idea and find myself drawn to navy clothes quite often. It’s a perfect neutral, and pairs itself so well with tons of great colors.
Want to add more color to your wardrobe? Use navy as a neutral base and then add pops of color. Ballerina pink and bubble gum pink look great with navy, as do lime, a soft tangerine or salmon color, and golden yellow.  For example, look at the pretty tank with the floral collar.  The coral rose just pops right out at you and then later you notice the navy top.  I like that.

Navy is also a great color to use when you’re sick of wearing black, but want the chicness of black.  That navy pump is a perfect replacement for all the times when you’d probably wear your good ol’ black pumps, but want something just a little more interesting.

clockwise from top left:
loose cardigan, necklace, dress, sweatshirt, yoga pants, blouse, scarf, belt, swimsuit, silk pullover, pumps, shawl cardigan, floral tank

Can I just say that the Lirola shop on Etsy is absolutely amazing? Just looking at Liron’s designs gives me goosebumps. Liron makes each and every garment by hand! The details and design of each and every piece is just beautiful. I had a hard time picking out which pieces to post because I really do love ALL of them! So go on over to Lirola’s Etsy Shop and look around. I promise that you will be inspired by, and in love with, her designs!

If you would like to purchase a piece from Lirola use code: senisblystyled at checkout for free shipping! (One week only! April 5th- April 12th)

This dress is dreamy…

At Banana Republic for $120.00 (yikes)

Dear, dear moms out there. Moms of teenage daughters going to prom. Wow.
I had the idea that I would find some cute, modest prom dresses and post about them. I figured, like how hard is that? I’d just sit down and boom! – in a few minutes I’d have a great prom post put together. Boy, was I wrong! It’s like thinking that I could just sit down and boom! – discover a cure for the common cold. How did I think that in a few short minutes I could solve a dilemma faced by mothers and daughters for generations?

So, I’m sorry to tell you that I did not find the magic answer. But, I came up with a few things that may work for you, or at least give you more options.

I hope I don’t make any enemies with this, but I have a strong dislike for the kind of dresses that you may find when you google “modest prom dresses”. Do you know what I’m talking about? They are huge, candy-colored, Disney Princess-ish, rhinestoned monstrosities. Yards and yards of crunchy taffeta or cheap satin (which, by the way, is a difficult fabric for even the tightest of bodies to pull off).  Who wants to wear a huge thing like that to a dance?  Seems awfully hard to dance in, right?

Now, if that’s the kind of dress that your daughter dreams about, then go for it. If she loves it and you love it, then who cares what I think!

But, if she’s a modern kind of girl and she’s stuck between wanting to be modest and looking/feeling like she fits in at a prom full of skimpy dresses, I have some ideas. My senior year (which was 10 years ago, so take my advice with a grain or two of salt) I didn’t want to mess with some big dress that I would never wear again and decided to wear a cute top and a cute skirt with some fun heels.  I had a great time that year dancing with my friends, and you know what?,  I still have the top and skirt (and the heels, actually!) in my closet to this day. I still love them. I can’t say that about the satiny dress I wore my junior year. It had a very short shelf-life, and the whole night I was messing with my dumb opera length gloves and my satin wrap-thingy.  I was trying so hard to be fancy and it really killed the fun.

Maybe try and steer your daughter towards a dress that is cocktail length and something she could see herself wearing again.  Then, you can keep it young and fun with some great accessories and killer shoes. That way, you’re getting your money’s worth with a dress that will be used more than for just one night, and playful jewelry and accessories are inexpensive and easy to come by. The key to making these dresses work for a formal is to ACCESSORIZE! If the dress has a full skirt, add a fun crinoline skirt underneath to add some fun retro flair. Add a big floral belt to one of the kind-of-plain dresses and/or wear a fun hairpiece. Go big on the jewelry, go wild with the heels, just go for it.  A dance is meant to be fun, right?

1. Blue satin 2. Black tiered 3. Pink shift 4. Black ruffles 5. Peach sparkly 6. Green dupioni

1. Pink knit 2. Black lace (can’t find it anymore, sorry) 3. Gold belted 4. Black wrap 5. Plum chiffon 6. Red chiffon
If I were going to prom, I would wear this:

dress, silver shoes, bracelet, hoop earrings, necklace, ring, pink shoes
I’d put a half-tee underneath for a little sleeve coverage, maybe a fun slip for some extra fun, and then I’d have to decide if I was going to go silvery and sparkly or colorful and jazzy (by they way, if you go this route, buy like 4 of that necklace and pile ‘em on top of each other).
Now that I think of it, I’ve got a 10 year reunion later this year, I think I’m going to get this dress for that!

A few more ideas:
Try searching “modest bridesmaid dresses“. They’re usually shorter (better suited for a dance/party than a floor length gown), they come in lots of colors, and they’re made in formal fabrics so they’d work well for a prom.
Most of these dresses are from Nordstrom, and if you don’t like anything you’ve seen here, then go to their Dress Shop to see hundreds of more options.
If you’ve found the perfect dress but it’s too short – don’t forget the magic of a Vintage Hem slip.
If you’ve found the perfect dress but it’s a bit too low cut, try adding some trim like this, or find a tee with a similar neckline and layer it underneath.

Good luck on your search ladies!

This would be a great outfit to wear to a spring wedding! Thanks Jess! Total cost: $89.48

Sweater, Dress, Shoes

Thanks for sending in this dress Lindsey! I love when people send me stuff!

At Victoria’s Secret on sale for $19.99!

I am really in love with this dress from The Limited.  It’s on “sale” although I usually don’t spend that kind of money on a dress.  But maybe this time, because I think this dress is fantastic.  Perhaps with a cool belt?  Ooh, and maybe with the watch I’ve had my eye on for a while?

Probably not, but if I were the spendy type, I’d be spending on this.

This dress has spring written all over it. I LOVE it!!

Dress, Cardigan, Shoes, Hair Clips

My friend Jessica just sent me the links to the clothes in this outfit! And I LOVE them! Jessica should really be the one running this blog because she seriously dresses super cute all the time. Me on the other hand… I’m all talk Thanks for the outfit Jess! (She sent me more outfits that you will be seeing throughout this week and next)

Gathered Cowl Dress at Banana Republic for $98.00 (coupon code to get 25% off BRSAVE25  – ends today!)

Cropped Cardigan at Old Navy for $19.50

Rumer peep-toe high heel huarache at Banana Republic for $120.00

I Love the bold flowers on white!

At DownEast for $34.99

The skirt of this dress looks super flowy, like somehting that should be worn on the beach.

At DownEast for $39.99

This would look super cute with a yellow cardigan!

Trista Striped Dress at Delias for $44.50, 35 inches long.

I LOVE this dress! I love the color, I love the cut, I love it all! It’s perfect for Spring and Summer!

Gracelyn Eyelet Dress at Delias for $44.50, 35 inches long.

Simple black dress.
Therese Black Shirtdress at Delias for $44.50, 35 inches long.

Another great Delias dress!

Alayna Shirt Dress at Delias for $44.50, 37.5 inches long.

I really, really, really like this dress!

Marielle Eyelet Dress at Delias for $49.50, 37.5 inches long!

Don’t forget to comment for a chance to win the Shabby Apple Giveaway! (Ends tonight at midnight)

Lovely dress.

At Fossil for $64.00.