festive fashion

Sartorial Saturday…On a Sunday–2023 in Outfits

Time for a look back at all of the significant outfits I wore in 2023! I only included looks with purpose, so my super casual grocery shopping outfits, for example, won’t be seen here. But it was a busy year, with a decent amount of travel and special events, so I had a lot of reasons to “dress up,” including a few days with multiple outfits. You’ll see my favorite brands well-represented…Miss Candyfloss and Rare Dirndl for clothes, and Splendette and Erstwilder for accessories. There are also a few “cute casual” outfits sprinkled throughout on days I didn’t feel like wearing a dress or it wasn’t appropriate for the occasion. And there are also a few rare “Sartorial Saturday” looks that I photographed just for fun (like my Daisy Duck Disney Bound), that I didn’t wear anywhere in particular…but most are outfits that really went somewhere!

It was a lot of fun to put this gallery together, and it also helped me keep track of what I’ve been wearing…I think I wore everything in my wardrobe at least once during the course of the year, and you can definitely tell what my favorite pieces are, because they’re on repeat!

Sartorial Saturday–The Top Five Dirndl Looks of 2023

I know I said yesterday that I was sharing my last “Top Five” photos list of the year, but those were photos I took…today I’m sharing my favorite dirndl looks that I wore this year, which are photos take of me, not by me!

I’m starting back in May, when we went to Maifest at Grant’s Farm. I really love the pops of pink of the apron and ribbon against the darker background of the dress, and I also really love the setting of the picture!

My second Everyday Dirndl was purchased specifically with paying homage to the Austrian flag in mind, and the full look is even better than I hoped. I love the white “Surprise Me” apron Erika created for me, and I think my accessories, which featured lots of edelweiss and pops of white and red, are the perfect accompaniment!

Next up is the look I wore to Belleville Oktoberfest. I borrowed an apron from another dirndl to go with my purple dress, and added my iridescent Docs and some purple accessories to complete the look.

Speaking of borrowing an apron, this is the dress that goes with the apron in the previous photo. This time, I added a fancy, sheer floral apron to my harlequin print dirndl for St. Charles Oktoberfest…I love the autumnal color scheme!

And finally, a look featuring my new Christmas apron. Not the look I wore on Christmas Day (which I also love), but the one I wore to the Belleville Christkindlmarkt, adding a green ribbon and red accessories for a festive look.

I really love finding new ways to mix and match my pieces, and I can’t wait to see what I come up with next!

Sartorial Saturday…On a Monday–Festive Fashion 2023

Here’s a look back at my “Festive Fashions” this Christmas…I got really lucky this year, because Christmas Eve and Advent IV fell on the same date, so I got to wear two different outfits to two different church services. For the morning service, I wore my Tassie-Aurea dress from Miss Candyfloss. I accessorized with a sparkly hair comb from Vixen by Micheline Pitt, my most sparkly Christmas brooch, and a pair of Splendette Duchess bangles. I wanted to wear my cape with this dress, but it was just too warm!

For the evening service, I wore a very old dress from Igigi that used to be my every-Christmas-Eve look. I haven’t worn it since before the pandemic, but I decided that since I got to go retro in the morning, evening was a good time to just go glam. I accessorized with the same brooch and hair comb, and switched out my Splendette stack.

After we got home, I changed into my dark green Miss Candyfloss Chantilly-Pine dressing gown, as is my Christmas Eve custom. I kept the brooch and hair comb, and switched out my Splendette stack again, and added my newest Splendette beads.

This morning, I wore my red Everyday Dirndl from Rare Dirndl with my new Christmas apron. I mixed up the accessories, wearing an Edelweiss wrap bracelet-as-choker, and a Splendette stack and earrings, plus a wintry floral crown:

I really love coming up with festive looks, and this year was especially fun!

Mani Monday

For Christmas, I went for a fun, freeform pattern on my nails (because I didn’t want to mess with stripes again!) in Christmas colors, using Sally Hansen Miracle Gel “Me, My Elf & I” (green) and Holo Taco “Favourite Sister” (red).

Sartorial Saturday–Joy to the World

It’s the most wonderful time of the year…the time when I add a new Christmas apron to my dirndl closet!

I’ve really come to look forward to Rare Dirndl’s new Christmas apron every year. This year was extra special, though, because they tried something different. Instead of offering just one print, they let you choose between a “kitschy” or “classic” print, and then sent you a mystery apron to fit the theme. For the members of their Facebook group, they also offered a live event where they previewed the available fabrics, and allowed group members to request specific prints before the sale was made public. I went into the sale knowing I wanted something primarily green, and I was thrilled to find this gorgeous print with phrases from familiar Christmas carols printed on it!

I added a green ribbon to my “Die Heimat” dirndl to go with the color of the apron…I really love the way it pops against the grey!

I chose red accessories, including a necklace and bracelet from Rare Dirndl, plus a fun pair of Christmas ornament earrings I found at Target:

It’s a lot of fun to wear a dirndl to the local Christkindlmarkt!

I’ll be wearing the apron again for Christmas, but in a completely different way…stay tuned!

Mani Monday

Today’s mani is inspired by the iconic stripes of that famous Christmas treat, the candy cane. I used a base of Holo Taco’s almost-white shade, “Featured Guest,” and did stripes of “Favourite Sister” on top. My skill at striping is still terrible…I always make the lines thicker than I mean to, and they’re never straight…but hopefully it still has that candy cane vibe!

Sartorial Saturday–Christmas Glam

Today I’m taking a look at a very glamorous Christmas dress, the amazing Tassie-Aurea dress from Miss Candyfloss!

I have wanted a dress in this style, which has lovely scarves that trail from the shoulders, for quite a while, but I hadn’t found quite the right color or length (Miss Candyfloss has made dresses like this in a floor length in the past). When I saw this dress in ivory, with a lovely rust-colored flower print, I knew that it was perfect, because while it’s a Christmas dress, the color palette can work in pretty much any season!

I kept my accessories fairly simple since the dress is so gorgeous on its own, so I added a simple, subtle stack of Splendette Duchess Bangles and my standard necklace with matching earrings and called it a day.

I feel like I’ve stepped right out of White Christmas, which is just about the highest praise I could give any dress!

The scarves are my favorite feature of the dress…they add such an elegance and wonderful sense of movement!

You can even wear them different ways!

Even glamorous dresses can have pockets!

Now that I’ve tried this style of dress, I’d love to add it to my wardrobe in more colors and patterns!

Sartorial Saturday…on a Friday–A Match Made in Accessories Heaven

It’s the day after Thanksgiving, which means it’s now socially acceptable to get my Christmas apparel and accessories out of my wardrobe! To kick things off, let’s take a look at a new accessory I added to my collection this year…a Daisy Duck “Deck the Halls” bag charm from Baublebar!

I love Daisy in her sparkly Christmas sweater all tangled up in colorful Christmas lights, and I love how well she goes with my equally sparkly red and green sequin Loungefly “‘Tis the Season” Christmas mini backpack I got last year. It’s a glittery match made in accessories heaven!

Mani Monday

This is the most Christmas-y mani I could come up with…Sally Hansen Miracle Gel “Me, My Elf and I” topped with “Deep Sea Diamond” alternating with “Can’t Beet Royalty” topped with “Sunken Treasure.” It doesn’t get better than green and red with lots of silver and gold glitter!