I look at this dress from Reiss and it just makes me happy. The color is bright, the silhouette is modern and the shape is flattering. There is just so much good going on with this dress that I decided to feature it in today’s One Item, Five Fashionable Ways. However, I want to warn you, the dress isn’t exactly cheap at $340. And yet despite its higher price tag, I still chose to make shift dress outfits using this piece because I think it is important to talk a little bit about investment pieces and why we can be so reticent to invest in clothing.
Part of the reason we don’t like to spend, especially in things like this dress which doesn’t appear all that versatile, is we can’t justify the expense. Now, I completely understand that for some people, regardless of how many wears you can get from one dress, $340 isn’t even close to being in the galaxy of affordable. Yet, before you completely shut this conversation down because of price, I want you to hear me out because I want to talk about investing in the best you can afford in general.
Generally speaking, I believe it’s our lack of knowing what to do with something once we bring the piece home, that we often bloat our closets with the same old, same old over and over again. Take, for example, a little black dress. I’ve met clients with seven little black dresses in their closet when one would be more than sufficient. If I were to take all the money they’ve spent on the superfluous black dresses they would easily have enough money to spend on variety. This leads me to believe that lack of understanding about how to get dressed is just as much a part of the problem as money is as to why we don’t take risks and invest our money in more variety. However, what if you could take a dress like this Reiss one I am featuring and get just as much wear out of it as some of the more basic things in your wardrobe? For example, what if this dress that costs $340 could be worn once a week for a year, let’s say, and you had enough options to change up the look so that it wouldn’t look or feel repetitive? $340 divided by 52 is $6.50 per wear. Now, when you invest, the chances are greater you won’t dispose of a piece of clothing after a year. Let’s say you hold on to this dress for three years and only wear it once a month. The dress worn once a month for three years still only costs around $9.44 per wear. $340 doesn’t seem as expensive anymore, does it?
Yet, we need a comparison to drive home this point. So, let’s take three black dresses and say the total for these three dresses is only $210. For example sake, let’s just say one is $100, one is $70 and the other is $40. Even combined the three dresses are much cheaper than the one dress at $340. However, because of the repetitive nature of all three dresses, you’re probably not wearing all of them and there is an extremely good chance that one still has the price tag on it. Let’s say you wear the $100 dress once a week for a year. Sure, that dress only costs you $1.90 per wear but you still have two other similar dresses just hanging there. So, if you wear the $70 dress a handful of times per year, let’s say 5 times a year, that dress costs you $14 per year. Then, let’s say the $40 dress is hanging in your closet with the tags still on it. Well, that cheap dress you bought is actually the most expensive item in your closet at $40 total, not the $340 dress which costs between $6 and $9 depending on how long you own it. Do you see my point?
In no way am I suggesting you live beyond your means, but before you shut down the idea of investing in the best that YOU can afford, I want you to think of all the money you’ve wasted on things that were either repetitive or were purchased simply because the price tag was cheap. In essence, cheap has nothing to do with the actual price tag but more to do with the use that you will get. I have a navy dress that I spent around $80 on. At the time, for me, $80 was a bit steep. However, I’ve worn the dress at least 100 times in the past three years and the dress now costs me around 80 cents per wear. Never have I regretted investing in pieces that get me mileage.
Yet, how do you know if a piece will get you mileage? This is the other stumbling block that keep most women from stepping out and trying new things. Invariably, we’ve all made mistakes. I just gave a skirt away that I held on to for years because I loved it yet only wore it twice. It’s one of the few fashion mistakes I’ve made in the past ten years. Mistakes will always be made and items we think will be versatile won’t be. However, over time, the more purposefully you shop, the clearer you are on your needs, the more you think before you buy of how you will wear an item you want to buy and the less you just buy something haphazardly the less this will happen. I promise. This is also why I do this series, to give you examples of multiple ways one item can be worn. If I am going to suggest this $340 dress, then I should at least prove to you that it’s versatile. So, let’s take a look at some shift dress outfits using this one dress.
Five Reiss Shift Dress Outfits
Look #1
The simplest way to wear this dress is to grab your nude shoes, like these from Enzo Angiolini, you know the pair that I’ve told you that you will get multiple wears from? Yea, those. Next, for transition, this ivory bag from Big Buddha is both classy and roomy. Lastly, all it takes is these tonal coral earrings from Ben-Amun and a gold bracelet to finish the outfit. Oh, by the way, when you invest more, you often have to do less to your clothing to make it look good.
Look #2
To make coral more corporate, consider wearing it with gray. Black and coral is just so Halloween, but gray offers the neutral versatility of black without your risking looking like a human candy corn. All the additional components in this look I’ve used in weeks past. While accessorizing can be an added expense to your clothing budget, the beauty about them is that they can easily be worn multiple times a week. Here, a pair of gray pumps by Nine West a dark gray investment bag from Lord & Taylor, coral bangles from Blu Bijoux and classic earrings from Bette Carre create a soft sophistication.
Look #3
Bringing back the nude shoes and gold bracelet from the first look, instead of a tan bag, the look can easily be tweaked with a different handbag, like this coral one from Big Buddha, a tote bag that you use multiple ways in your wardrobe, paired with a little contrast using mint earrings from Julie Vos. In cases of accessories, they should be seen as clothing, the more use you can get from them the more you can spend.
Look #4
Teal is one of those colors that complements whatever color you are wearing. Here, for a very different look, I added teal to the outfit through these shoes from Max Studio, a handbag from Latico Leathers and earrings from Modcloth. To tie it all together, Fab.com’s Happy Scarf in teal paisley finishes off the outfit.
Look #5
Another way to wear this dress would be to belt it. I like the style of this belt from Max Studio because it is wide enough to look like it belongs there and the design mimics the neckline of the dress. While you certainly could use the nude shoes and coral tote bag used previously and still create a totally different look, for variety, I added these Stuart Weitzman snakeskin pumps and J. Crew’s Goodwinn Tote.
