Tomorrow evening, June 15th, is my synagogue’s annual dinner. It’s a formal event, but not black-tie. Most of the women will be in fancy suits. A few will be in medieval/bohemian type outfits (which I would love if the clothes actually flattered the women wearing them, but that’s another story). I plan to do a “Sharon Stone” thing- black floor-length skirt, black shell top, and button-down overshirt. I’ll be dressing it up with black heels, a black evening bag, and dramatic earrings. The outfit is completely appropriate for this event, and even better, all the components are available right in my closet, so I don’t need to shop.

The question is: must the button-down overshirt be white, or can I get away with a color? I have button-down shirts in white and in fun, flattering colors, but I’m not 100% sure.

I’d say as long as the color is saturated you should be good.

I was considering between white, peach, and turqouise, but I’m leaning toward the peach.

Turquoise sounds good if it is a rich, deep, vibrant turquoise.  With black shoes and bag, a pop of color might be just what you need to get a tad out of the “safe” category.  Having read most of your posts, I doubt you will err in any case and will look fabulous and have a wonderful time!

We just got home from the dinner. Here is a fashion review…

I decided to wear the peach shirt because I figured that the color was very feminine.

Believe it or not, that outfit was not entirely “safe,” in that it was definitely something that none of the other women at the dinner would be wearing. As I predicted, most of the women wore suits. A couple of the older women wore outfits of fine fabrics in “old lady” styles. One of the honorees wore a bohemian-style outfit. Since a fancy suit was expected, I was pushing the envelope slightly, but I got a bezillion compliments. Even the ultra-conservative dressers I know were saying how nice I looked.

The funniest one came from a friend who has naturally red hair and fair coloring. She loved the peach color on me and complained that she can’t wear it. I was a little suprised, because I have fair coloring and red hair (albeit from a bottle), and I find that peach complements that coloring, but she said that she can’t wear it. Plus, this friend is a smart dresser.

Now I’ve got a new dilemma: What will I wear to next year’s dinner? Hmmm…

Just goes to show that “pushing the envelope” can definitely pay off—it’s a risk to wear something a little different, but it’s so nice not to be wearing the same thing as everyone else—definitely makes you a standout!

Angela - 16 June 2008 08:16 PM

Just goes to show that “pushing the envelope” can definitely pay off—it’s a risk to wear something a little different, but it’s so nice not to be wearing the same thing as everyone else—definitely makes you a standout!

I agree. What I don’t like is when women “push the envelope” in unflattering and/or inappropriate ways. Pardon my lack of modesty, but there were a few other women at the dinner who “pushed the envelope,” but I honestly think that I was the only one who did so in a flattering way. End bragging. Sorry, but when I see fashion mistakes, I can’t vent otherwise.

When it’s flattering to you, then pushing the envelope isn’t much of a risk.

Yes, no matter what the occasion is, I try to be a little different from everyone there whether it’s a vibrant color or a spunky pair of shoes. On the other hand, I know people who try to push the envelope so much so that I don’t think they know there’s an envelope even there.

Our synagogue dinner is a fancy, but very intimate affair. We all know each other, and as corny as it sounds, we really do feel like one big family. One of the traditions we have at the dinner is that one of the leaders takes pictures of all the people there, and then puts them up on an easel in the synagogue lobby. Well, there is a beautiful picture of my husband and me. If I do say so myself, I looked pretty darn good. More importantly, I looked like me and not exactly like everyone else.

I thought my outfit would shock a few people, but if it did, no one said so. All I heard was how nice I looked. It really does pay to take a few risks in fashion, as long as it’s still flattering and appropriate.