Fashion Friday: My Sister Styles a Swing Dress

Kathryn is my best friend. I cannot imagine my life without her. Yet, other than a shared love of Diet Coke, and a mutual distaste for our freckles in the summer, we have very little in common.

Chief among those differences is our taste in fashion. While I’d call my style primarily preppy/classic, Kathryn’s is more edgy/trendy. I – no lie – have been dressing more or less the same since I was 13, while Kathryn has gone through many different phases and is constantly updating her wardrobe with the latest “it” thing. She totally pulls off styles that I wouldn’t touch with a ten foot pole – booties, rompers, overalls, to name a few – and I’m grateful for her willingness to “go ahead of me” and try out the trends often years before I’m brave enough to do it. She’s one of the few people I know that can wear Converse sneakers and leggings to work one day, and 4″ heels and a dress the next without anyone blinking an eye. (Let’s pause here for a second and imagine the hilarity that would ensue if I showed up at work  in 4″ heels.) Anyway, you get my point.

We’re also built pretty differently, although neither of us got the long-legged/thin physique we ordered. Kathryn is the epitome of an hourglass. She’s got amazing curves and a super flat stomach, and she’s a pro at dressing for her body type. I, on the other hand, am built like a pregnant boy have almost no curves and carry all my weight around the middle. (I’ll let you be the judge of who got the better deal here. 😉 )

Thankfully, none of those things have ever kept us from doing what sister’s do – sharing clothes.

It occurred to me the other day that, at 32 and 30 years old, we have lived apart for almost as long as we lived together (not counting that year I kind-of bummed on her college sofa while I did my student teaching – sorry girl); but that hasn’t stopped us from having an “open door policy” when it comes to each other’s closet. Not exaggerating, I don’t know that I’ve ever been to my sister’s house (and I go there often – she lives less than a mile from me) without stopping in for a quick tour of her closet – and vice versa. At any given point, I have three or four articles of her clothing and she mine. Frequently, in fact, when we are shopping together we’ll find something we both like, split the cost, and agree to share it. We’ve been doing it for our whole lives – literally – so it’s only  natural.

There are many wonderful things about having a sister – obviously – but I think sharing clothes might be the best. (Kidding. Kind-of.)

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Recently, Cents of Style – a great online clothing and accessory boutique – offered to send me one of their super popular Remi Swing Dresses to review as part of their “Fashion Friday Story” series….. I loved the dress in the pictures, so I jumped at the opportunity. However, when it came last week, I was disappointed to find that it was – sadly – not a good fit for my mom-bod. (Basically, the material clung just a little too close for comfort around my stomach. I still think the dress is incredibly flattering and easy on most people, I’m just kind-of an anomaly/hyper sensitive about being mistaken for pregnant.)

Luckily, I knew just the person to pass it on to…

The dress looked great on Kathryn. (P.S. Only the best sisters pose for you to take pictures of them awkwardly.)

She paired it with an awesome geometric tribal-looking necklace and booties and topped it off (haha – see what I did there?) with a big ole knot on her head. It hardly took any effort at all (not even a shower, truth be told), and she looks amazing – right? So effortlessly cool. She wore this particular outfit out with friends for dinner, but it could easily be worn for just about an occasion.

Just for fun, here are two other ways we “styled” the dress:

Kathryn works in an elementary school classroom with kids that have emotional disturbances, so needs to be able to get down and dirty – literally. She said she’d probably wear the dress with Chucks and a denim shirt around her waist for a more casual – but still very cool – look.

And, I, on the other hand, favored a simpler necklace with a pop of color and my go-to Jacks. I think this outfit would be great for teaching, church, or a “night out.” I love that the dress is long/modest, but it doesn’t look stuffy or boring at all; and it really is just a blank canvas for adding accessories etc. I’d also like to see it with a big plaid blanket scarf, a military vest, or a long boyfriend cardigan this winter. The possibilities really are endless!!

Speaking of possibilities, it comes in SEVENTEEN colors – I happen to love the mustard yellow and the jewel-tone teal – and sizes small to 3X. Best of all, this weekend only it’s on sale for $21.95 (regularly $34.95) plus free shipping with the code DRESS2016. Good, right?

Do you own a swing dress?! How do you style it? Grab one on sale today? I’d love to know what color you picked and what you plan to wear with it!

Happy “Fashion” Friday!

XOXO, E