Lovely Lace

Portmans Lovely Lace dress, Windsor Smith Sandal Heels

Dressing in lace and thinly strapped heels for a Medical Gala Night, I consider this appropriate for these kind of occasion. It's very similar to "Lover" the label french lace designs, and the best part is buying a nice dress for a bargain, this is a Portmans Lovely Lace dress, RRP is currently $129.95, it was on special for $65 because the zipper was broken, then Portmans DFO Essendon Store had a further 50% off sale on faulty items a few weeks ago.... my final bill was $32.50!

My mum has her own alteration business hence I'm always inclined to buy faulty bargains, because I get things fixed free of charge, though it does take a while to get it back into my wardrobe.

These size 5 Sandal heels from Windsor Smith were also the last pair in store so I got it for $25!

All in all bargains are not hard to find, but you got to be patient, seek and you shall find.

Persian Print

Pink An Phuoc Shirt ($20AUD) | Zimmermann Brocade Dress | H&M Blazer ($50AUD) | Windsor Smith Heels ($25)

I work at least 6 days a week and sometimes all week, so this is one work outfit of the week. I intended to post up daily OOTD, but with time constraints I am lucky to even upload one post a week, I would love to be more consistence.

I am petite so I love my “An Phuoc” shirt, which is fitted for Asian bodies, the gold & black Zimmermann persian print strapless brocade dress was a gift (and I love it, though I personally think strapless anything is unflattering on anyone skinny as me, hence to hind all the boniness - the pink shirt brightened up this dress and covered up my cleavage so it's appropriate for work), H&M Blazer to keep warm due to the change in Melbourne's weather, and to finish off, these black strappy Windsor Smith with it's golden heels synchronized with this dress colour (last size 35 on special hehehe). 

Royal Blue

I was attending "The 8th International Convention of the Vietnamese Physicians, Dentists and Pharmacists of the Free World In 2014 Melbourne - Gala night" and wore this outfit for the night.
It was a night where Vietnamese health professionals and friends alike came together to celebrate their achievements, fun but the food wasn't good as I was waiting for 2 hours for food. The event was held at the Pullman Hotel in Albert park, this venue was beautiful over looking the lake and city, it was a 5 degree night with rainfall which made it all so more magnificent.

I would have titled this post differently, but stuck with the fancier name "Royal Blue", or else this would have been called "Something Recycled", as I have worn this dress over 4 times since 2012 heheheh.
I've worn this to 3 weddings and now this Gala, it was custom made from China. Inspiration came from Elie Saab and Carla Zampatti designs, I mixed and matched textures, materials and their designs to come up with this piece.

OOTD:

Dress: Royal blue with embellishments, high side cut dress (made in China, and after wearing it over 4 times I think it was worth every penny, I did pay about $250AUD with shipping for it). So sometimes asking around, seeing what you like and negotiating with a trusted Chinese company may not be too bad after all. I've had my fair share of bad experiences with Chinese sellers. Though I've said it was custom made to fit, I still had my mum alter the bust and length to fit better.

Accessories: "Love Bracelet" inspired by Cartier, and the Gold Chain belt is actually the bag strap detached from my vintage Salvatore Ferragamo bag which I always carry around hehehehe

Heels: Windsor Smith black thin sandal strap front with a golden heel - which was on sale for $25AUD as this was the only size 5US left in store

The main colour was Royal Blue to this outfit and my accent colour was gold, though blue is a cool colour and gold is more of a warm tone, in my opinion it collaborated very harmoniously.

Tip: Don't be afraid to match cool and warm tones as this could give great contrast, and accessories such as belts could just come off a detachable bag strap, so seek and you shall find.

this pink gown has also been warn over 4 times, that's my twin sister in the pink! we look alike?

this is the detachable gold chain strap from my Salvatore Ferragamo bag 

food of the night (it didn't taste good and we were waiting over 2 hrs for it): lobster on egg noodles, snapper, fried rice, pecking duck and crab claws (full of flour, no real crab meat). 

Patterned Specials

I've recently bought this pair black strappy sandal heels from Windsor Smith for $25 (bargain!), I've been eyeing this style for a while but haven't bought anything since I didn't want to pay too much for what I may not wear on a regular basis. They are made of leather with a golden plated heel.

Shopping Tip: personally I rarely buy anything at full price as I know "what goes around comes around" in fashion, something I like will eventually go on sale, especially my size (I'm XS in most clothing size and a 5AU/35 in shoes). Same would apply to you if you are petite or XL in shoes or clothing size. I would usually shop at Factory Outlets where most items are more then half price, or buy something that's "faulty" or oversize, as my Mum is an alteration genius! EBAY is my next platform and of course closing down/warehouse sales are the best

I'm also into vintage old styled items, hence I paired this with a flowy ankle length white with blue patterned print skirt, and a Louis Vuitton Yellow Epi Petit Noe. I bought this bag from a Japanese eBay seller for about $220AUD with shipping, I would only buy branded vintage items from Japanese sellers because it is illegal to sell fakes in Japan and there is a huge penalty for that type of trade in Japan. 

EBAY Tip: never rush into buying branded items, be patience, search around and only bid when you are happy to pay that price, hence I was on the look out for over 3 months, before I found something that nobody wanted to bid anymore for, don't get desperate and increase your budget out of the blue, there will always be another item. But in saying that it all depends on your luck and how many people are bidding. Goodluck with eBaying it's addictive!

To top this attire up, I wore a sleeveless lacy top with a white woolly button sweater to keep warm.

OOTD:

TOP: Lace sleeveless top - bought in Vietnam, H&M woolly button sweater
BOTTOM: Flowy white with blue pattern printed ankle length plaid skirt - bought for about $14AUD online www.aliexpress.com, style inspired by the beautiful actress Fan Bing Bing
HEELS: Strappy sandal leather heels from Windsor Smith
Belt: Patent Salvatore Ferragamo
BAG: Louis Vuitton Yellow Epi Petit Noe

Beige on Beige on Lace

OOTD - Outfit of the day

Dress: lace midi beige dress custom made because I loved Kate Middleton's lace dress =)
Bag: Louis Vuitton Vernis Brea MM
Shoes: Windsor Smith Power Blush Patent Heels
Ring: ask her husband!?!

 

 

Engineered Lace Shift

Engineered lace Shift Dress by Portmans / Nude Tan PowerBlush Patent by Windsor Smith 

 

 

Hi! How are you doing?

I love anything white and delicate, especial French lace dresses, this isn’t “Lover” the label but it’s darn similar to one at a fraction of the cost. This is an Engineered Lace Shift Dress by Portmans with intricate detail. Its RRP is about $119, this was on the faulty rack at DFO South Wharf (Melbourne) for $50, and luckily it was a size 6AU (last one). This wasn’t a faulty item, it was missing an inside slip (but I have plenty of that in my wardrobe) hence I got it for only $25 (50% the sale price) for a missing slip. Happy as daisy!

You could dress this up by wearing heels or dress it down by wearing sandals. Comfy for all day, I wore this to work and to a travel expo, but some choose to wear this to weddings. Everyone’s entitled to their own style, so be yourself and dress however you want to dress. There is no rule in fashion.

What’s your bargain story?

Enjoy the rest of your days… ladies and gents stay beautiful, healthy, wealthy and wise
xox take care :)

Disclaimer: I am not affiliated with anything above, everything on my blog is my honest opinions, so I am not being paid or given free products to review or promote. My opinions are of personal experience and thoughts, so feel free to comment if you agree or disagree so I can also learn more from you.