The Jerk Who Didn't Blog

Yep, that's me. The jerk who knew one of her friends was going to Disney World, and with all of the best intentions wanted to get a few more posts up before she went, is now faced with less than a week before her friend goes. So said friend of the first part is posting some sample outfits from her previous trip for the friend of the second part very last minute!

Searching for treasure in Magic Kingdom!
Double-up on tank tops, denim bermudas, my trusty Skecher Goga Mat sneaks<
deer antler necklace, leather wrap bracelet (love!)

Dressing 4 Disney - Night & Day

Disney World has many facets to it. On the surface, to the uninitiated it appears to be "just a theme park".  Be we who have taken the opportunity to fully embrace Disney know it is so much more.

People are always surprised when I tell them that fully half the reason we love to go to Disney is for the food! We have a sit-down meal nearly every night of our trip, some of them quite swanky (and there are entire blogs dedicated to the food at Disney, like my favorite DisneyFoodBlog.com, for instance.) Sure, some people will still walk in with cargo shorts and muscle tees, but that's fine. We're not there to look at everyone else, we're there to enjoy one another's company, soak in the joyful atmosphere, appreciate excellent customer service, and of course eat delicious cuisine from around the world (and World !).

10 Tips for Picking Shoes for Disney

The easiest way to sink your day at the parks? Painful, achey, blistered tootsies. Those parks are big, and there is no short, quick walk ANYPLACE. You don't want to be limping back to your room within a couple of hours; you wanna go all day! Picking the right shoes is important.

This topic is very near and dear to my heart. As someone who suffers from daily foot pain, the prospect of walking for hours and hours, miles and miles, every single day on hard pavement is a terrifying one. But over the years I have figured out some ways to make my days walking in the parks a lot more comfortable. Here are a few tips I can offer:

Dressing 4 Disney - Keep it Casual

My summer wardrobe is coming together beautifully. These comfy orange braided leather sandals came and are in "walking around the house testing" as we speak. I love the simple crochet detail on the Old Navy tank--just enough to punch it up without being overdone. I found the brown leather wrap bracelet I have been seeking (not this one posted, though I love the fishhook closure!), which has a lightweight feel and effortlessness to it I really wanted.

Dressing 4 Disney - Keep it Casual by tribaldancer featuring a canvas crossbody

Dressing 4 Disney - Gettin the Blues

A quick trip to Lane Bryant to return some online purchases turned into...more shopping. I came home with the most unexpected top--a lightweight envelope-back sweater tee. I thought it would chop m torso up, but it ended up looking really adorable. Paired with a navy blue tank, some gold jewelry, and the now-famous (in my house) white pedal pushers, this outfit would be a great snappy-casual evening look. Drinks around the world, anyone?

Dressing 4 Disney - Gettin the Blues by tribaldancer featuring Lane Bryant

Disney World in Summer - What I Want to Fix

Alright, so the last time we were in Disney World was in winter--the first week of December to be exact. And I will see what I can find clothing wise for photos from that one. But here are some photos from our last summer trip. What was going on in my world of theme park fashion back in 2007? Unabashed Croc wearing on my part, for starters. Hey, they're comfy, and I still don't judge anyone who wears them. But the classic Crocs are not fashionable, full stop. It's a choice to wear them despite that fact...and choice I have made not to do.

Alright, here is one of my more egregious fashion faux pas. Comfortable without question. Great for a dance class (which is what this all is--dancewear!), but for fashion, theme park or otherwise? Oh 2007 Shay *shaking my head*...you so funny. Note ubiquitous Overland Equipment bag. It's a theme.

Me and my baby in "China" (with Pal Mickey! Oh how I miss him.). A-line tank, jean shorts, and probably Crocs or tennis shoes. Note the bag, no accessorizing of any sort.

My "nice night out" for my birthday at Narcoossee. Delicious dinner, views of Wishes fireworks across Bay Lake...and a plain black jersey dress with a very casual necklace. Again, comfortable, but not much of a boosted style profile for evening. I mean, this doesn't look that different from the dance clothes I wore in the first pic, right? I could be wearing cropped palazzo pants and Crocs out of frame for all you know (I wasn't, but now you can't unsee it...). I swear I had a different handbag, no crossbody or ripstop nylon to be seen.

I think my shoes were probably my black braided leather thongs with kitten heels. Similar to the image below, but with a heel. I am pretty sure my brain just went "Heel! That means fancy!" *facepalm*

So there's a little perspective on what I wore in the past. A "where I came from", if you will. Where I hope to end up is what this blog is all about!

Dressing 4 Disney - One Skirt A Dozen Ways

In our family, we TRY to share a single checked bag and bring our carry-ons and call it good. Methinks this upcoming trip will be harder to accomplish this, thanks to...well...Dressing 4 Disney. Ha! BUT this just creates another challenge, right?

Mixing and matching is the only way to get a week's worth of fashion into one checked bag. Here is a simple mid-calf jersey skirt I own from Old Navy, and a bunch of options for snazzy combinations, day and evening. (It's all about OPTIONS!)With my stretched ears I can't usually wear dangly earrings like these, but they were both so lovely I had to include them. The belts? They come as a three-pack! Aren't they adorable? I have found belts do a LOT to pull otherwise drab outfits together for me. One could easily include a shrug, sweater, or lightweight linen shirt in this collection for cooler evenings and yet more options.

Dressing 4 Disney - One Skirt A Dozen Ways by tribaldancer featuring a a line skirt

Dressing for Disney - Beachy Flair

I now own white pedal pushers. White. Pedal pushers. Like...non-ironically. That fact will not seem strange to many, but here in Seattle, the old "Don't wear white after Labor Day" would usually be better summed up by "Don't wear white...ever." We don't wear a lot of white. We are plenty white already without any help, thanks to nine months of grey skies and drizzle. But when putting together looks for balmy Florida, this fantasy of mine came to the surface. You see, white pants are something I have never felt I could pull off. No, not just geographically speaking, but just...me. I am a plus-sized 5'3", so white and light colors are something I shy away from and instead favor either saturated colors (like orange, fuscia, turquoise) or earth tones (deep plum, navy blue, burgundy). And of course black, the universal weight-loss miracle color. There is this world of pastels, neons, and whites that live outside of my vision--I can see it out of the corner of my eye, but I will not look directly at it.

Yeah, like that.

To me, white always looks so carefree and beachy. Like I should be on the deck of my boat with the wind in my hair, sipping champagne. Or strolling down some avenue perusing the shop windows for my next Hermes scarf or Birkin bag. Why I associate white pants with such extravagance, I will never be able to pinpoint, but there it is. So when I was skimming through various fashion blog posts and online catalogs, and invariably all the summery white dresses and shorts and sarongs are on display for the season, I felt the call...and I answered the challenge. I knew I had this green and white swingy A-line tank and thought it would go great with some white shorts or capris. The pedal pushers at Lane Bryant looked cute and were on 50% sale, so I snagged them.

I am happy to say I have since received them, tried them on, and decided yes...I CAN wear white pants. They fit well and look cute (in my opinion of course), and bonus, as a true neutral they go with tons of other items in my summer wardrobe for mixing and matching. Now, to get my skin to contrast just a teensy bit more...

Dressing for Disney - Beachy Flair by tribaldancer featuring yellow glasses

Trashy Diva hits the parks

If you love retro fashion and are not familiar with Trashy Diva, then you need to remedy that immediately.  Here, let me help:
http://www.trashydiva.com/post/what-i-wore-to-disney-world/

She took a trip to Walt Disney World and took photos to share her Disney fashion sense.  Her heels? ACK! I am amazed when people can walk all day in them, but that's not for me. The dresses? Oh yeah, I could rock those.

As far as theme park fashion, in her words:

"If you haven't been to Disney World, don't think you have to hold hands with Mickey while wearing a Disney T-shirt with flip flops & eat fast food burgers everyday. You can if you want - and many people do - but it is what you make it! ~ Candice"

I couldn't have said it better myself!

And while you're at it, also check out:
http://www.trashydiva.com/post/What-I-Wore-Fit-For-A-Disney-Princess/
Way more reasonable shoes. I think my bias is showing. :)

Dressing 4 Disney - Hipster in the House of Mouse

Anytime there are owls, giant glasses, and fedoras, it makes me think of hipsters. I don't care, I love the look. Pop of orange/coral makes the darker browns and navy blues of this outfit a bit more exciting. How cute is the owl purse, I mean seriously? Super comfy Merrell sandals make walking easy (though I included my fantasy yellow All Star high tops as well, though my feet have been too wide to wear them most of my adult life).

Dressing 4 Disney - A Touch of Hipster by tribaldancer featuring a blue top

Dressing 4 Disney - Beat the Heat

I actually have many of the components in my closet right now: the cargo bermuda shorts (a bit lighter blue), the top, sunglasses and necklace, and a flower much like this one. The shoes, bag, and bracelet are my creative additions, as are the specific makeup and nail looks I added for a little extra somethin'.

Dressing 4 Disney - Beat the Heat by tribaldancer featuring crossbody handbags

Dressing 4 Disney - Classic. Comfort.

A casual look, with a few polished details.The striped tee has little button details on the shoulders, trouser-style bermudas, layered necklace and fun bangles. I love my Haiku bag, though I don't have this color myself, and I have been wearing my Skechers Flex walking shoes almost every day since I got them. Sooo comfy. The earrings I can't own but wish I could--these are traditional post earrings and I have 00 stretched. These would make great plugs!

Dressing 4 Disney - Classic. Comfort. by tribaldancer featuring an enamel bracelet

Dressing 4 Disney - Meet the Mouse

I am not afraid of full-on whimsy when it comes to Disney. I wear my ears loud and proud. Doesn't the Big Cheese himself deserve a little homage? I think so! I would be proud to shake his hand wearing this look, and I would be comfortable in the heat at the same time.

I bought this Old Navy dress in XL Petite and it fits me like a GLOVE. Bought it in three more colors while they were available. I wear Luvees or Jockey Skimmies under my dresses in summer to prevent rashy thighs and to add a little modesty protection when getting around town (or in the case of the parks, on and off rides).

My Mac Russian Red lipstick would look stellar with this look. And I think I just might get my nails done like this before I fly out on my upcoming trip. Ya know...to get in the spirit!

Dressing 4 Disney - Meet the Mouse by tribaldancer featuring a brown shoulder bag

Dressing 4 Disney - Around The World Showcase

I saw the dress at Dress Barn online and HOPED it would be adorable in person. IT WAS! It fits me like it was made for me--not too long, not too short. It's light and gauzy but without being limp or see-through. I took inspiration from my favorite park/part of a park, World Showcase, and accessorized accordingly. The heels are incredibly comfortable, I walked all over a mall shopping recently to test them out. I could easily wear them a half-day at the parks without pain!

Dressing 4 Disney - Around The World Showcase by tribaldancer featuring a floppy hat

Dressing 4 Disney - Spring is Sprung

Let's be honest, there are shoes I wish I could wear, and shoes I am better off wearing. This outfit has the more practical flat leather sandal I would wear during a long day in the parks, and the cute peep-toe wedge I would wear if I didn't have to walk for miles. The latter might be good for a "hang out at the resort" day, or shopping at Downtown Disney, or a short evening heading to Illuminations and a late night cocktail at World Showcase. Drapey colorful tunic over cotton blend cargos, simple accessorizing, peachy pink lip and cheek with natural eyes. I totally went to Etsy and bought this necklace for my upcoming trip. It made me think of Ellie in Up!

Dressing 4 Disney - Spring is Sprung by tribaldancer featuring engraved jewelry