Warming to Dresses in Winter

True confessions...I did spend a lot of this weekend in sweats. 3-day weekend? Oh yeah. Not really Saturday since I had to get up and out the door to pick up E at her cousin's (bday party and sleepover the night before) and get her to basketball not-too-late. She loves it...who knew?

And p.s....those of you like me with older boy and younger girl who don't get to pass much down other than snow pants...it's amazing what a little elbow grease and new laces can do to athletic shoes. E voluntarily wore M's soccer cleats this past fall, with new sparkly silver laces. For basketball, she's got his Nike Air's from last winter, outfitted with black/white graphic shoelaces as well as the promise that she can decorate them with stickers this week.

So I did shower and get dressed that day - but I spent a good portion of the weekend working (house-working and real-billable-hours-working), so I felt justified in sweats. Love love love the 3-day weekend!

I did have to get dressed in normal-ish clothes Sunday evening for church since it was my turn to do Vestry welcome. So I got to try out an outfit I had been contemplating ever since I got this dress dress at the Loft last spring (size M)...but didn't have the black turtleneck to do it.

I just love this dress. I always feel chic - whether with bare legs and sandals or tights and heels. It is so stretchy and comfy. And I loved it layered - much like my Christmas Eve outfit with black tights & turtle as a backdrop for one stand out piece.

So...J Crew black merino turtleneck sweater, size M - the important thing here is not to go too large, you really want something fitted, but not tight, otherwise you lose the whole comfort thing. Then silver hoops, black tights, black boots. And a ponytail so the neckline isn't too cluttered. And by the way, not only was this insanely comfy...it was warm! I will definitely do this again.

Polyvore of Sunday(evening)'s outfit:

1/17/10 by HeidiGblog featuring J Crew

I really do love dresses in winter. Well, let's be honest...I love dresses all year long, but summer and winter are easiest. (I always have a hard time with bare legs when it's not quite warm enough.) Yes, you aren't wearing pants, but tights and boots are usually pretty warm to me. And when you've got a sweater dress...that's just about as cozy as you can get. And it helps get me out of the jeans/Winnie rut.

Let me tell you about this dress that I stalked last year at Banana Republic. I think it started out around $98. I kept trying it on in the store realizing that alone, it was just blah and really needed the right piece to bring it together. I wanted it. Stripes...sweater dress...gray and tan...But I just couldn't justify it. I believe I even ordered it twice from BR (free shipping, natch), once at FP (when I kept my black BR sweater dress - yes, I was on a major sweater dress hunt last year) and then again when it was further on sale for about $35 or $40. But again, returned it. Finally, I found it again in store in late January or February, I think, marked down to about $15, so then I snagged it. Patience does occasionally pay off, ladies.

But I still had the styling issue. Just plain, it's a bunch of big old stripes. Not great. What it needs, is a great big old scarf to cross those big old stripes. And that's how they usually had it styled in their print ads. Just a necklace, even some of my chunky pieces weren't enough. When I went to put it on last Tuesday, I realized that the BR cashmere wrap that I got this year was the perfect color to go with the dress...and it had the visual impact the dress needed.

Especially since I've lost weight and the dress is looser than it used to be...definitely need something to cut the horizontal of the stripes. Considering that I was absolutely miserable on Tuesday with that icky "starting to come down with something because of lack of sleep" think, I believe I did pretty well. It perked me up and kept me warm.

Other than the big old scarf and a pocket watch necklace, I just had my dark brown boots and tights. I think brown works with this better than black. If I had lighter boots, I would probably try them. And next time I wear it, I might even have a Polyvore since I'll be clipping the pic above.

How often do you wear dresses in the winter? And how do you make them work for you?