19/08/13 - Outfit of the Day: Summery DIY

You may remember that last summer, I ventured down to London and while I was there, I did a spot of vintage shopping around Brick Lane (you can read the post all about that trip here).  On that shopping trip, I purchased only a couple of items and one of them was a lovely summery vintage dress.  I can't remember exactly how much it cost me, but it was definitely around the five pound mark.  That's why I love vintage shopping; while it can be vastly overpriced, you can find some utter bargains.

I love the idea of vintage dresses and some lucky people can pull them off in their original form.  However, I don't believe that I am one of those people.  While I loved the colours and the style of this gorgeous dress, it was just a little too long for my tastes and made me look really frumpy.  Since I bought it, it has been waiting patiently to be altered and I finally got around to doing it.  My wonderful mother helped as I'm not exactly a dab hand with a needle and thread, and between us we took a couple of inches off the length, hemming up both the under and outer layers of the skirt.  We also had to take in the sides of the dress as the elasticated waist had gone with age, and it looked ridiculously baggy.  It's still not a perfect fit, but I don't really mind.

Excuse the unprofessional pictures taken in my garden; I really wish I had a personal photographer to negate my need for desperate self-timer stresses!  Also, please forgive the awkward poses - I'll never make it as a fashion blogger, as I feel so self-conscious 'modelling'.

I love the fun print and the style of the dress.  It's a shame the elastic at the waist went, as obviously this has changed its shape but we altered it the best we could, and I like to think it looks okay!

Hat - SoulCal from Republic (£5 in last summer's sale)
Sunglasses - Steve Madden from TK Maxx (about £12)
Sandals - H&M (last summer, £7)

I haven't worn the dress out yet, but this is probably how I'll style it when I do.  Summery dresses are just such an easy wardrobe staple to throw on with a pair of nice flats and your shades for pretty much any daytime plans.  

Tell me about your best vintage finds and bargains in the comments!

Also, if you'd like to see more posts like this, just let me know.  Writing about fashion stuff doesn't come as easily to me as other subjects, but I like to try something different now and then!