Dress Review: Strawberry Crush

Hello Kittens!

Last week I posted a Perfect Pairing post featuring a dynamic duo of strawberries (if you missed it you can check out my post Matching Your Dress to Your Teaware Part 31: Sweet Strawberries for Spring and Summer here). Today, I wanted to post the full review of the dress I featured in that post.

Back in early March Trashy Diva released their Berry Chantilly collection, the second collection they released for 2017. This spring ready design features a dainty all over print of ripe strawberries on and off the vine, as well as an assemblage of green leaves, white flowers, whimsical white ribbons, and fun black outlined parasols all set against a sunshiney background of soft buttery yellow. This collection was released as a full collection with many cuts including the Hopscotch dress, the 1940's dress, the Trixie dress, the Camilla dress, a romper, as well as several separates, the Alexa tie top, the Hottie top, the classic skirt, and high waisted shorts. This collection even has a dress for the littles (children that is) with the Baby Posey dress. With so many cuts and options to chose from it makes it both hard and fun trying to pick which cut is right for you.

I immediately fell in love with the feminine flutter sleeves of the Camilla dress! I just adore ruffles and all things super girly on my dresses. I imagined pretending I was a 1930's debutante feeling the flutter sleeves gently brushing my arms in the wind. However, it appears that Trashy Diva knows me better than I know myself. When my package arrived shortly after launch date (yes, it has taken me that long to write this review!) instead of the Camilla dress it was the Hopscotch dress that was staring back at me! Since it was in my size and since it was there I decided to try it on anyway just to see it on before sending it back. Lo and behold it was love at first try on. Why did I ever turn my back on the gloriousness that is the fun and beautiful Hopscotch dress?!

The Hopscotch dress is one of my favorite cuts by Trashy Diva. This 1950's style cut features a full skirt, and modest bodice (two things I most prefer in dresses), the bodice is darted to give a nipped in look and has a cute peter pan collar that buttons with a hook and eye closure at the collar. To shy away from being too modest and buttoned up though, this dress has a front slit down the neckline which gives it a little daring without being too cleavagey. This dress also features small sparkling decorative white and rhinestone buttons along the front of the bodice, cap style sleeves, and for a fun little bit of pizazz, a cutout in the back. For full functionality, this dress has an invisible size zip and comes with pockets. This print came in a soft stretch rayon. It took me a bit of get on board with this kind of fabric as I have my reservations on how period appropriate it is and in a way it is so comfortable it almost feels wrong, but I have learned to embrace it and love that if feels almost like wearing pajamas or being wrapped up in a favorite blanket. For size reference I took my usual size in this dress. Even though the fabric has a lot of stretch and I know a lot of ladies like to size down in the stretch rayon, I like how my usual size in this dress keeps me from getting pull at the bust.

Needless to say, I decided to keep the dress. Though it wasn't the one I originally ordered, it ended up being the perfect one for me. I had a joke with my husband that I might as well join a Trashy Diva dress of the month club where I just give them my money and they send me anything they wanted as I would probably end up loving it all. In full reality, there are indeed still some cuts I have yet to try which I would love to. I'm hoping that for those cuts the right prints will come along one day. Another day Camilla, another day...

Trashy Diva Hopscotch dress in Berry Chantilly- Front View

Trashy Diva Hopscotch dress in Berry Chantilly- Front View

Trashy Diva Hopscotch dress in Berry Chantilly- Side View

Trashy Diva Hopscotch dress in Berry Chantilly- Back View

Trashy Diva Berry Chantilly- Close Up

Dress Review: Dog Days of Summer

While the winter is slowly but surely making its way out I am enthusiastically waiting for the warm weather to hit!

Seeing the new Spring collections rolling out by Trashy Diva makes me all the more excited and impatient to finally get to wear dresses again without tights and overcoats! Bring out the light and airy prints as the sun shines down on my skin <3

The Dogwood print is the first new Spring print by Trashy Diva to hit the site. It features an overall bright turquoise blue reminiscent to me of a clear tropical beach or as Trashy Diva has described it on their website, the color of a bright spring sky. While my eye is really drawn to the bright tropical sea colored turquoise blue of the body, this print is all southern charm. It was created as a love letter to Atlanta perhaps in celebration of Trashy Diva's new store launch which just occurred there a few months ago. It features a southern inspired all over print of dainty dogwood blooms in white with accents of dark green, light yellow green, shades of grey to add depth and rendering to the blooms and a smattering of dark burgundy. It is an incredibly feminine and dainty print which I think is just so pretty and charming.

I opted to get this print in the separates, the 1940's skirt, the Lena blouse, and for fun the Alexa tie top, imagining all the different ways I can wear it and all the different things I can pair with it. I am looking forward to wearing this all together as a set making it look like not just one dress but two completely different dresses when worn with the Alexa tie top. I'm super excited as well to wear the pieces separately... the 1940's skirt paired with a white Trixie top, or perhaps even the Citron green trixie top they came out with several months back. For so many other combinations of completely different outfits I also am looking forward to wearing the Lena blouse or Alexa tie top paired with a seersucker or chambray skirt or even shorts! That's 6 different combinations just right there. What I love about separates is that there really is no end to the different looks you can put together with them!

Let's get back to the pieces themselves though. The 1940's skirt in this print is a bit different from other 1940's skirts I've seen released by Trashy Diva. This skirt features a wide waist band which is wider in the front and tapers down a bit as it goes towards the back. I'm not sure if it's because of this different band style, but I ended up having to size down from my usual size up in skirt and get my usual dress size in this skirt. Not sure if that line makes sense... but usually in skirts most ladies will have to size up. I usually have to size up. But for this skirt the size up was way huge on me and I ended up exchanging this for a size down from what I usually order in skirt. This a-line skirt has two pockets and is gathered at the waist. For some reason both skirts I received from Trashy Diva seemed to have more gathers at the sides then in the front which I feel makes the drape a little funny in the front. Even with steaming, it still has this funny kind of drape where the folds seem stronger in the front and not as equally distributed as is usual with their 1940's skirts.

I also got the Lena blouse as a perfect accompaniment to this skirt. It features a pleated bust with a structured underbust to accentuate curves. It has stretchy ruched side panels for easy wear which helps ensure a great fit. Also helping with the fit, this top has adjustable straps which can be buttoned at three different settings to make shorter or longer in the straps as needed. I got this top in my usual size.

And because I love the idea of making a dress look like a completely different dress with the addition of a tie top, I also got the Alexa tie top in this print. Like Trashy Diva's previous Carol tie tops, this top ties in the front and has an overall similar construction. However, unlike the Carol tie top, this top features petal sleeves which features fabric that layers over each other at the shoulders rather than the usual gather puff sleeves that the tie tops had before. This unique structure is supposed to help with movement of the arms and allows for full arm range movement. I've always felt that my tie tops fit a little blousier than I like so for this one I ordered it in a size down from my usual size which I feel gives me a better fit. I don't think this size advice would be able to be applied across the board to ladies though. I have heard that with the tie tops some ladies have had to size up. I think it all depends on body type with the limiting factor here being how broad your shoulders are.

One other note to add is that this print came out in a light airy flat rayon rather than the stretch slightly thicker rayon they have been releasing lately. For fans of the old flat rayon can rejoice! It's back!

And so there you have it! I hope you have found this review helpful and hopefully not too long!

Trashy Diva 1940's skirt, Lena top in Dogwood-Front View

Trashy Diva 1940's skirt, Lena top in Dogwood-Front View

Trashy Diva 1940's skirt, Lena top in Dogwood-Side View

Trashy Diva 1940's skirt, Lena top in Dogwood- Back View

Trashy Diva 1940's skirt, Lena top, Alexa Tie top in Dogwood- Front View

Trashy Diva 1940's skirt, Lena top, Alexa Tie top in Dogwood- Front View

Trashy Diva 1940's skirt, Lena top, Alexa Tie top in Dogwood- Side View

Trashy Diva 1940's skirt, Lena top, Alexa Tie top in Dogwood- Back View

Trashy Diva Alexa Tie Top in Dogwood shoulder detail- Close Up

Trashy Diva Dogwood- Close Up

Dress Review: The Bird's the Word

March of last year Trashy Diva put on a March Madness

Trashy Diva proposed to re-release an older print and put it up to a vote to the fans which one it should be.  They selected a few prints at a time and let them go head to head until they had a winner. Then they repeated it again for another round, and then another (or so) until finally the winners themselves went head to head. It was all good fun. Though I do know emotions ran high for a lot of us who would get emotionally invested in hoping "our" print would win. In the end, it was just a super exciting thing to know that Trashy Diva was officially going to release an older print and that they were even proposing that this would be a annual release which they are dubbing their Heritage Collection. After the fun of March Madness, us Trashy Diva fanatics lovers sat on our hands with bated breaths until the print was to be released in the winter of that year. And so, while this post is, late to the actual release of the long awaited print which came out early January, here is my review of the highly anticipated Love Birds print.

Love Birds is everything I had hoped it would be! It is an amazingly beautiful novelty print of pastel birds, flowers, and flowers in cages on a black background. It is an incredibly dainty print which is girly, feminine, and sophisticated all at the same time. Some ladies that I've heard from who have seen this print in the original silk release from Trashy Diva say that this release of the print is even more beautiful because the pastels are so much richer in color. This print (this second time around) came out in the Hopscotch, Gia, Trixie, 40's, Camilla, and Ruby Mini dresses, sizes are going quickly though!

Watching it from its release, the clear favorite of many was the Hopscotch dress, a gorgeous swing style dress with mandarin collar, cap sleeves, decorative buttons at the bust, and flirty back cut out. But for me, because I told myself I need to start only buying one dress per print (if even that many), and because the colorway of this dress reminded me a lot of the previously released Hourglass print which I already have in the Hopscotch dress previously worn here, I decided to go instead with a new to me cut, the Gia dress.

The Gia dress is a perfect cut for emphasizing the feminine girly-ness of this print. It features a full gathered swing skirt, perfect for twirling in! It also features a flattering though modest v-neckline both in the front and back, as well as cute little puff cap sleeves. For extra convenience and ease of wear this dress also has a hidden back zip and pockets! Like a lot of other prints released this past year by Trashy Diva the Love Birds print comes in a super soft smooth stretch rayon. Also, for those that are so inclined, for this print, Trashy Diva paired with UK jewelry designer Rosita Bonita to create beautiful fun matching pieces to go along with this print which includes brooches, earrings, and two different styles of necklaces which feature either the pink birds or blue birds of the print.

Trashy Diva Gia dress in Love Birds- Front View

Trashy Diva Gia dress in Love Birds- Front View

Trashy Diva Gia dress in Love Birds- Side View

Trashy Diva Gia dress in Love Birds- BackView

Trashy Diva Gia dress in Love Birds- Close Up

Trashy Diva Love Birds- Close Up

Trashy Diva Gia dress in Love Birds with matching Rosita Bonita earrings

Dress Review: Trashy Diva's Wine Dots

Dots are my solid

I love prints. So much so that I hardly ever wear or buy solid colored dresses. But there comes a time when I just want to wear something more neutral than a super fun novelty print or a feminine floral. So what's a print loving gal to do? Gravitate towards dots! I love how polka dots are fun yet can still be neutral. And Trashy Diva's Wine Dots are a perfect combination of just that-- fun yet neutral. The maroon background with cream color dots reads a bit more like brown when worn-- not that the dress looks brown, but just that that's the color that comes to mind when you see it/wear it in person.

While I loved this print the first time it was released several months back, I initially decided to pass on it because a) I already have this print in the Trashy Diva Ashley blouse from the first run when this print was first released in silk, and also b) let's face it, I have a LOT of dresses and not just a lot of dresses but a lot of polka dot dresses. True, I didn't have a wine dot dress and true, I love Trashy Diva so much, but I was and am still trying to control myself and be a little better with my spending. However, when I saw that Retro Glam was having a boxing day sale that made it possible to snag this dress for 40% off I knew it was too good a deal to pass up! Especially when I figured that with the exchange rate from Canada this dress was already marked lower than it was being sold at Trashy Diva for and shipping was actually cheaper buying from them rather than buying from Trashy Diva directly. Anyway, long story short, I bought it. I don't regret it. And now I have a new dress to review for you all here :)

Initially, if I were to have any pick out of the Wine Dots collection, I would have gone with the Camilla dress. I'm such a sucker for flutter sleeves. However, this was not a dress that was being stocked at Retro Glam so I grabbed it in my second choice instead, the ever trusty 40's dress.

I love Trashy Diva's 40's dresses. They are perhaps on my top three list of favorite cuts by them. They are so easy to throw on and look fabulous without much work or fuss. They feature a flattering a-line skirt, fitted waist, a v neckline at the front and back, and gorgeous ruching at the under bust, shoulders, and back which give the top visual interest without being too overwhelming. Also, they have a back zip which means it's easy to get on. This print came in a lovely soft stretch rayon which many ladies have suggest feels like butter. What I love about this fabric in the 40's dress is that because of the stretch you can really get a perfect fit. Where it used to be with the flat rayon or rayon crepe de chine 40's dresses that the sides at the bust might billow a bit or the shoulders might slide, now instead, this dress fits like a dream.

Trashy Diva 1940's dress in Wine Dots- Front View

Trashy Diva 1940's dress in Wine Dots- Front View

Trashy Diva 1940's dress in Wine Dots- Side View

Trashy Diva 1940's dress in Wine Dots- Back View

Trashy Diva 1940's dress in Wine Dots- Close Up

Trashy Diva Wine Dots- Close Up (sorry this came out a bit blurry)

Dress Review: Black Friday Haul!

I wasn't kidding when I said I have quite a backlog of blog posts to catch up on! 

This was from way back in early December, when Christmas decorations were still up and my hair was still long, but I definitely wanted to be sure to get this post out eventually.

I love Black Friday! As with most of us shopaholic vintage repro lovers, it is my favorite shopping day of the year! I look forward to it every year, planning and plotting what I will be going after during this (usually) biggest sale of the year. And so here is my haul. I'm actually surprised I stayed as good as I did this year and went after just a few things I've really been after! (and one impulse-ish buy) :)


Trashy Diva 1940's dress Psychedelic Ferns 

Trashy Diva's Psychedelic Ferns collection came out back in August of 2016 and was one I had decided on right away to skip. I was weary of the "psychedelic" component of this dress. Just how bright/neon was this green? Also, by all accounts on Trashy Diva's website, this print was also described as being a 70's inspiration print. Now, I love 70's geek and swoon over some of the looks in Mad Men's later season as well as swooned over a lot of the 70's looks Modcloth was putting together for Fall 2016, but 70's psychedelic wasn't really my cup of tea. It wasn't until Halloween started to approach that I started to see this print in a whole new light... a la Oogie Boogie from Nightmare Before Christmas. All of a sudden, this dress was starting to look like a perfect October or darker mood year round dress. And so, that is all it took for me to really want to have it! However, I still had my (slight) reservations, and bid my time until Black Friday hit in hopes of scoring this dress on sale.

When I got this dress in the mail I was happy to see that while the green ferns were bright, they weren't too insanely neon or anything. That in combination with the black background and the classic 1940's cut, and all my fears and weariness of a serious psychedelic 70's look were banished from my thoughts.

This dress is made with a thicker and sturdier feeling stretch rayon that Trashy Diva's been liking to use on their dresses this year (if you are familiar with their other collections, think Ruffled Feathers, Venice Nights, Wine Dots, and Love Birds). Honestly, it's not my favorite fabric Trashy Diva's been using (I find it just a little too comfortable perhaps which oddly makes me feel a little frumpy) but in the 1940's cut it actually works so well! Because of the stretch I feel like the structure of the dress is really staying on and fits everywhere it's supposed to. No shoulders sliding down, not too much billowiness at the bust and sides that you can often get with the regular rayon or Crepe de Chine that past 1940's have usually come out in. Taking my usual size for Trashy Diva dresses, I found this dress to fit very comfortably, fitting snug without being too tight. Oddly, I got the same exact size in the same cut in the Ruffled Feathers print (another stretch rayon) and found this one to fit slightly looser which is what I prefer.

A bit about the cut... the 1940's dress is one of my favorite cuts by Trashy Diva. I love the classic look of it. I find it's one of the easiest to wear, throw-on-and-go-and-look-fabulous dresses that Trashy Diva makes. Sure you might need to pin the cleavage closed a bit sometime or wear a cami underneath for modestly but other than that, once it's on it's a pretty non fussy dress. It has a back zip and plenty of cute tiny pleating to keep it visually interesting on top. However, no pockets on this beauty.

Overall, I'm super happy with this dress and all the more happy that I was able to bid my time and get it on a sale especially considering my reservations about it initially.

Trashy Diva 1940's dress in Psychedelic Ferns- Front View

Trashy Diva 1940's dress in Psychedelic Ferns- Front View

Trashy Diva 1940's dress in Psychedelic Ferns- Side View

Trashy Diva 1940's dress in Psychedelic Ferns- Back View

Trashy Diva 1940's dress in Psychedelic Ferns- Close Up

Candice Gwinn Fontaine Coat Dress in Dark Blue Ribbed Rayon

The Trashy Diva coat has been on my wishlist since it first hit Trashy Diva's website back in the winter of 2016. While I have a million coats already and while I know I don't usually rotate my coats too often, I still really wanted this coat. It's so great to have a dress length coat to wear with retro style dresses. All the better that this is a distinctively 1940's style coat to wear with 1940's style dresses! And so I bid my time on this one and decided to buy if I could during the sale, since I didn't really need it. I have to say though, that this coat exceeded all my expectations! And that's coming from someone who knows just how detail oriented and stunning Trashy Diva coats tend to be.

This dress is made from a heavier weight ribbed rayon fabric with lots of black velvet detail at the collar, cuffs, folded over pockets, buttons and belt. The top portion and arms of the coat are lined in a thick weight rayon/acetate material so it's not going to keep you super warm in you're in an area that snows but for most of our winters here in Northern California where the temperature doesn't get too much lower than 50-55 degrees F generally during the day and about 40 degrees F at night, this coat will keep you warm enough. As is usual with Trashy Diva's coats, there is a snap button and a hook and eye at the waist to keep everything looking polished without any button gaping. I sized up one from my usual size in this and found there was plenty of room to wear layered with my dresses.

Trashy Diva Fontaine Coat Dress in Dark Blue Ribbed Rayon- Front View

Trashy Diva Fontaine Coat Dress in Dark Blue Ribbed Rayon- Front View

Trashy Diva Fontaine Coat Dress in Dark Blue Ribbed Rayon- Side View

Trashy Diva Fontaine Coat Dress in Dark Blue Ribbed Rayon, snap button and hoop and eye detail- Close Up

Trashy Diva Fontaine Coat Dress in Dark Blue Ribbed Rayon, snap button and hoop and eye detail- Close Up

Trashy Diva Fontaine Coat Dress in Dark Blue Ribbed Rayon, Velvet detail- Close Up

Lindy Bop Gilda Swing dress in San Francisco Print

This Lindy Bop dress was a last minute spur of the moment purchase around Black Friday. I'm including it here with my Black Friday purchases even though sadly there wasn't much going on for sales at Lindy Bop at the time and I ended up paying full price for this. (Perhaps it's because they are a UK based company that they didn't participate too much in Black Friday?) Anyhow, for the price I did pay for this dress, I was extremely happy with what I ended up getting.

From my past experiences with Lindy Bop, I have found that while they have great prices on dresses, you never know what you will end up getting in terms of quality both in manufacturing and in fabric. This dress ended up being a resounding success though! The fabric on this dress is the softest cotton I've ever felt on a dress (actually 97% 3% elastane). It also has a great sturdy feel to it. The dress is fully lined, even at the skirt, which is one of my favorite things on dresses! It features front functioning buttons, cute cap sleeves, a side zip, and pockets. The skirt displays a mid century style border print of San Francisco which was the real selling point to me! I can't wait to wear this dress out to the city on the next warmish day I'm out there! I love that the skirt on this dress is pleated at the waist as well which helps showcase the print better rather than a gathered styled skirt.

I wasn't sure what size to order in this dress because I've heard that Lindy Bop's sizing can be all over the place. To add confusion of their sizing system, while all their dresses come in UK sizing and are labeled as such on their UK website, their US website labels their sizing as S, M, L, XL etc. for which the sizing doesn't completely translate... Is L a UK size 12, 14 or 16? Because I was so unsure about the sizing and because this dress has front buttons (and potential gaping problems) I opted to go with a size up from what I usually would buy from other companies. It did end up being a bit large on me. Thankfully though, it does seem a belt helps. If you are looking to get this dress I'd recommend ordering your usual size. Overall though, I am highly impressed with this dress and will definitely try Lindy Bop again if they keep impressing me with cute prints and cuts like this one!

Lindy Bop Gilda swing dress in San Francisco print- Front View

Lindy Bop Gilda swing dress in San Francisco print- Front View

Lindy Bop Gilda swing dress in San Francisco print- Side View

Lindy Bop Gilda swing dress in San Francisco print- Back View

Lindy Bop Gilda swing dress in San Francisco print with added belt- Front View

Lindy Bop Gilda swing dress in San Francisco print with added belt- Side View

Lindy Bop Gilda swing dress in San Francisco print with added belt- Back View

Lindy Bop Gilda swing dress in San Francisco print- Close Up

Lindy Bop Gilda swing dress in San Francisco print- Close Up

Lindy Bop Gilda swing dress in San Francisco print- Close Up

Outfit of the Day: French Quarter and Halloween Harlequin

Hello there Kittens!

This past weekend was a good mix of seeing friends, staying at home catching up with good ol' netflix and some horror themed flix, and partaking in Halloween activities!

On Friday Tim and I met up with some friends at a German bar in nearby Alameda to celebrate a friend's birthday. We got to hang with the gang, gorge ourselves on German food, and drink beer while enjoying the live band the bar had going.

On Saturday, in contrast, it was a very relaxing day. I got to watch the first disc of the first season of Ash Vs. Evil Dead and catch up on a few episodes of American Horror Story Hotel.

Then on Sunday, Tim and I went out to the Candle Lighter's Ghost House in Fremont! I had a craving for caramel apples and I knew this was just the place to get them-- and get to go through a fun spooky house while we were at it. ;) While I haven't been to the Fremont Ghost House in a while and definitely can't say that I go every year, it is a bit of a tradition, especially for the locals. In fact, this year they are celebrating their 48th year running! Some things that I absolutely love about the Fremont ghost house: 1) the ghost house is set up in an actual historic 19th century Carriage house, 2) admission is only $3 though that doesn't mean it's not a whole lot of fun! These people really put on a great show and you can tell they really put a lot of time and thought into what they put together. 3) I love that they have booths set up for games, face painting, photo booths, and caramel apples! While my primary stop is at the caramel apple booth I do love seeing all the kids and grown up kids having so much at all the different booths. 4) I love that the people that put together this event are a non-profit group who use the funds they raise for community-based projects in the area and use it to give to other non-profit groups. And last but not least, 5) while I mentioned previously that the Fremont Ghost House is not something I can say I go to every year, it is a place that runs deep in my bones. As a kid and all through the present I've always loved driving past this historic carriage house interestingly located on the edge of a large town shopping center right off of a busy main street. I love how it makes me really think of the past and what the area might have looked like when this historic house was first built. It adds such an air of mystery both in this questioning of the historic past of this area and also in wondering what this house might have looked like inside during its heyday and also during the present. It's such a wonderful treat to get to walk in through the doors when they open it the to the public for their annual Halloween Ghost House!

Candle Lighter's Ghost House, Fremont, CA

Historic 19th Century Carriage House, home of the Candle Lighter's Ghost House

Caramel apple booth!

After a good day with my caramel apple after seeing the Candle Lighter's Ghost house!

Outfit of the Day (Friday):

As I mentioned before, on Friday after work Tim and I went out to meet up with some friends at a German bar to celebrate a friend's birthday. For the occasion I decided to get out one of my favorite dresses, my Trashy Diva Annette dress in French Quarter print. I paired this with a black mohair cardigan I got several years ago in an Australian boutique shop and a pair of basic black flats. For a finishing touch I wore a pair of faux cameo earrings I got from a plantation in Louisiana during our trip there last October, a skull bracelet Tim bought for me a couple weeks ago from Spirit, the Halloween store, and I also wore a faux cameo cat sweater clip I made a couple years ago. You can see the tutorial here.

Trashy Diva Annette dress in French Quarter- Front View

Trashy Diva Annette dress in French Quarter- Front View

Trashy Diva Annette dress in French Quarter- Side View

Trashy Diva Annette dress in French Quarter- Front View

Trashy Diva Annette dress in French Quarter- Front View

Trashy Diva Annette dress in French Quarter- Side View

Faux cameo earrings and cat sweater clip- Close Up

Outfit of the Day (Sunday):

On Sunday, to visit the Fremont Ghost House, I decided to wear my new Pinup Girl Clothing Jenny dress in Halloween Harlequin. I paired this with my black mohair cardigan, a Trashy Diva black obi belt, and a pair of basic black flats. For a finishing touch I wore this with a pair of Rosita Bonita Halloween cat earrings which I bought last year from Trashy Diva and a lime skull brooch which I bought recently from Luxulite on Etsy.

Pinup Girl Clothing Jenny dress in Halloween Harlequin- Front View

Pinup Girl Clothing Jenny dress in Halloween Harlequin- Front View

Pinup Girl Clothing Jenny dress in Halloween Harlequin- Side View

Pinup Girl Clothing Jenny dress in Halloween Harlequin- Front View

Pinup Girl Clothing Jenny dress in Halloween Harlequin- Front View

Pinup Girl Clothing Jenny dress in Halloween Harlequin- Side View

Rosita Bonita Halloween cat earrings and Luxulite lime skulls brooch- Close Up

Bonus Pics!
(mini) Dress Review:

Since I have this dress out for the blog, let me just say a few words by way of a mini dress review.

I was super lucky one day and snagged this Pinup Girl Clothing Jenny dress in Halloween Harlequin print when a single dress in my size popped up in their final sale section. It was being offered at a great price because it has a snag in the fabric at the front side of the dress-- something that isn't noticeable at all when worn with a cardigan or shrug, and also not too noticeable when worn alone because of the location of the snag. With it being offered at such a great price and seeing that this dress at the time was completely out of stock anywhere near my size, I jumped at the chance to get this. Add a 15% discount code I had sitting around and this dress was truly mine for a great price! I got this dress in an XL which according to the website should have been my perfect size for this style. However, I do feel it is a touch too big and just a bit too long for my short torso. Nothing I can't overlook for such a cute dress but it is a bit of a bugger when things don't fit exactly as you hope they would. I do think though that if I sized down it would probably be too tight (for what it's worth). It is back in stock here.

Like other Jennies this dress is boned and lined in silky soft black fabric at the bodice, is made from a wonderfully heavy material, and comes with a delightfully full gathered skirt. The dress also features a back zip for the ultimate in convenience, adjustable shoulder straps to help with the fit, and also has pockets!

And because I adore matching sets so much, I couldn't resist also getting the matching shrug in black with Halloween harlequin trim. I got this shrug in my usual PUG size, large and it fits just right. I really love the finished look this shrug adds when paired with the matching dress. I did however opt not to wear them together on Sunday for the ghost house as I felt just a little too awesomely Queen of Halloween for the short and somewhat informal jaunt that day.

Pinup Girl Clothing Jenny dress in Halloween Harlequin with matching shrug in black with Halloween harlequin trim- Front View

Pinup Girl Clothing Jenny dress in Halloween Harlequin with matching shrug in black with Halloween harlequin trim- Front View

Pinup Girl Clothing Jenny dress in Halloween Harlequin with matching shrug in black with Halloween harlequin trim- Side View