Happy Wednesday everyone, I hope you are having a fantastic week! Besides our crazy wind storm last Friday the weather has been lovely and I have to say I am finally starting to get out of my winter slump. And more importantly today is my birthday!
I am having a low key day today but I am flying home to visit my family tomorrow and we are having my grandfather’s celebration of life. Plus it will be the first time I get to spend Mother’s Day with my Mom since I was in my early 20’s. I can’t wait to spend time with everyone, it’s rare that we all end up in the Sault at the same time these days.
So I started my Instagram page in the months leading up to my 40th birthday and then I officially launched the blog on July 1st. And as my following has grown from hundreds to now over one hundred thousand (thank you!) one thing never changes and that is the people that freak out when they find out how old I am.
And I have to say seeing all of your reactions never gets old, it always makes me smile. And it’s not because I am scared of growing old or obsessed with looking young, it’s because it’s a reminder of how blessed I am. Plain and simple I got good genes from my parents and I moisturize and that’s pretty much it. So for those of you who think I am in my late twenties or early thirties, thank you! I will most certainly take the compliment. If you have seen a picture of my Mom you can see she looks young too.
Of course for a birthday post I had to feature a dress that was worthy of the day and I decide that this Bardot style off the shoulder beauty from ASOS was the one.
I am going to start this off by saying that I have a serious love hate relationship with ASOS. I always want to wear their cool pieces but they just never seem to come in my size. I realized that the only other time I have featured them on the blog is for my Oscars post last year in that gorgeous gold velvet gown. And I would have never found that if I hadn’t seen Kelly Augustine wear it.
So as I keep seeing all my peeps wearing amazing pieces in my feed I did a little research and realized that a lot of them are able to get the non Curve collection in up to sizes 18 US. And that certainly explained a lot!
But I am not a quitter and I started visiting the site more frequently and slowly but surely I am seeing more styles that come in a 26 US. And if you get pieces from their in house ASOS Curve Collection the fit tends to be generous. The other thing to note is that things sell out quickly! So if you want it I wouldn’t sit on it, trust me I have had that happen to me a couple times now and had to shed a tear of regret.
So when I came across this dress the colour and the ombré effect are what caught my attention. And while I am not a huge off the shoulder fan, I think a dress for a special occasion is the perfect time to give it a try. I have to say I was really impressed that this one stayed in place, it didn’t ride up even when I was posing. It has the jelly like trim inside to help keep it in place too.
The top half of this dress is made of a heavy scuba material which I think works with the style. In contrast, the skirt is a lightweight jersey with pleats that is perfect for getting your twirl on. In the end I am not sure how I feel about the combination of the two fabrics. On one hand it makes sense but on the other it feels like a mismatch. I am wearing the 26 US and I think the issue for me is that the top is too big. When you are wearing an off the shoulder like this you want it to fit snug so you feel secure. Ultimately I think I would have sized down but I am not sure how the skirt would have fit.
If you live in the US or have a US mailing address the great thing you can do with ASOS is sign up for Premier Delivery. For $19 a year you can get 2 day shipping with no minimum order amount and free returns. If you make 2 orders a year, it is worth it. So in my quest to keep trying new styles I signed up for this and was super impressed as normal delivery times can be a bit slow.
When Taurus season began I saw a post that says the colours for the sign are pink and green. And to be honest I had never known there were colours associated with each sign, did you? So I did think it was pretty ironic that I had already chosen this dress and the perfect bag to go with it from Aldo. I love the pop of green with the pink glitter against the pink. I then added my rose gold sandals from Lane Bryant as well as these pink ombré tassel earrings that are also from Lane Bryant. A rose gold bracelet from Avenue completed the look.
So here is to Year 43. I haven’t completely figured out what I want to accomplish this year but there are already some exciting projects in the works and I have learned to take it as it comes. I am content with my life and am happy to enjoy whatever comes my way. Thank you for all the birthday wishes, I love you guys!
Special thanks to Rebecca of Rebecca Northcott Photography for capturing these special birthday images.
Dress by ASOS | Shoes by LANE BRYANT | Bag by ALDO | Earrings by LANE BRYANT | Bracelet by AVENUE |
