Welcome to Dressing 4 Disney! Let's Get Disney Fashion Forward!

Hello and welcome to my Dressing 4 Disney Blog!

This has been inspired by my next trip to Disney World coming up this summer, and my desire to dress a little more fashionably than I have in the past. Comfort is king for me, with the incredible heat, and all the stand up sit down walk walk walk! Air conditioning inside, 90+ degrees outside, rain squalls, soaked on one ride, racing through the air on another...it's like dressing for 2-3 seasons while hiking a mountain...and now I want to look FASHIONABLE??

Yes. Yes I do.

And if you're here, maybe you do, too.

There are a lot of fantastic Disney fashion blogs out there, but most of them focus on
a) "fantasy" outfits themed to characters, attractions, parks (think the incredibly popular and oft-copied DisneyBound),
b) still more "fantasy" outfits, piling on layers of jewelry, bulky name brand handbags, and ridiculously high heels, none of which work for a long day in the parks, or
c) teenagers in teensy weensy cutoff jean shorts and shirts with cute cartoons and flirty phrases

I love DisneyBounding, and the creativity using an artful blend of colors, textures, and detailed accessorizing is really inspiring; but it isn't realistic or practical. It's a mish-mash of whatever items Polyvore has in its database, ignoring any actual availability, pricing, sizing...basically, nobody has these things in their closet.  The fantasy outfits depict ensembles worthy of a spread in a magazine, which is equally unrealistic unless you are a stick thin supermodel who actually only lives in the pages of a fashion magazine (hello in there!). And the teenagers? They're the real deal. Probably the closest to real park wear of the three...but good only until you're about 21. After that...you might want to up your game (and lower your hemline?)

You'd have to be madder than a hatter to wear some of the looks these sites and Polyvore accounts proffer (see what I did there??!. So what is a 30-something, 40-something, 50 and beyond avid parkgoer to do when they want find ideas for dressing "their age" while still feeling put together, fashion forward, and still comfortable and practical enough to see us through long hot days on the theme park pavement? Why, make my own freaking Polyvore sets and collections, start a Facebook page to bring together some like-minded folks, and BLOG ABOUT IT!

Would love to hear about your adventures in fashion in Disney. What do you do to make yourself look a little more stylish, while still being theme-park savvy?  Stay tuned for some inspiration boards, based on REAL CLOTHES I would wear to the parks. Sure, there will be a few fantasy elements in there--what's the fun in only living in the real world? But my goal is to create looks that "Everywoman" (and maybe even later "Everyman") would truly wear. Clothes that wear well, wash well, fit well, flatter, pack well. Is that so much to ask? I say NO!

Let's do this thing.