lovely lace.

Dress: Shein. (c/o) (similar here and here. Designer version here.) Bag: Target. (love this and this one.) Trench: Loft. Shoes: similar here. Sunglasses: Kate Spade.

In honor of Downton Abbey’s final episode last night, I thought I’d start the week with a pretty lace dress.  Wasn’t it the perfect ending to a pretty perfect show?  My husband made a little joke about how nicely they wrapped everything up, gave everyone a happy ending, but I don’t mind at all, I wanted everyone to have happy ending.  There have been plenty of not-so-happy parts to the show, that I was glad it ended on a sweet note.  I’m sure my college writing teacher (the one who loved dark, depressing stories) was rolling her eyes at how neatly they tied it all up, but I’m an optimist and I love a great happy ending.  Did you cry?  I may have cried a little… not ashamed to admit it.

Now about this dress.  I am completely obsessed with just about every piece by this designer.  Every single one is walking art.  The structured cuts, feminine fabrics and laces, colors, the surprising details, just all of it.  Swoon.  Double swoon.  The price tag is rather high for me though, (art or not) so when I saw this version from Shein I knew it had to be mine.  One tenth of the cost?  I can bite that off a lot easier. (It’s currently sold out, but they usually restock pieces frequently so keep checking back.  Or try these alternatives here, here, and here.)  I have several pieces from Shein, and I love that they stock a lot of really pretty modest pieces that work well for me.

Since the liner doesn’t cover the entire dress, I made a few alterations to it so that it worked for me. I lengthened the skirt on the liner (the original only hit about mid-way on the skirt)  and I decided to add navy lining to the inside of the bodice (rather than nude).  I wasn’t sure how I would feel about the contrast, but I love it.  I think it adds a little more visual pop. (Both of these could be easily done without any sewing skills by just picking up a knee length nude slip and adding a navy undershirt.)

this post was created in partnership with Shein.