One Non-dress wearer’s guide to Online Shopping

The other day I had a business meeting, which meant my usual attire of jeans and a cotton t-shirt weren’t really appropriate. I threw on a pink dress that lived at the back of my wardrobe and raced out the door, hair unkempt and without a trace of make-up. “Mummy, where are you going, are you getting married?” asked my 3-year old as I kissed him goodbye.

There were two possibilities:

1. I looked so amazing that I appeared to be ready to walk down the aisle; or
2. My son was so shocked to see me in a dress that his only reference point was the wedding photo that hangs in our doorway.

I’d like to say it was option one, but alas, it was more likely to be option two.
The bonus of catching a train into the city for a meeting? Multitasking. Nothing makes a train delay more bearable than shopping on your phone. So, what’s the best way for a pants addict to buy dresses online?

1. Stick with brands you know and love
My wardrobe basically consists of about five brands on rotation. I can’t help it. I’m a creature of habit (hence the jeans and t-shirt rut). The plus side of this is that I know which sizes fit me well in specific brands and styles, which makes shopping online a breeze. Before I’d even departed from the train station I’d found one of favourite brands, Cooper Street, which I found at this awesome online discovery Meluri.

2. Stay focused
It’s not my fault that I stumbled across these pants. It is probably my fault that they ended up in my shopping cart.

3. Be realistic
Have a specific occasion in mind so you know you will get practical wear from your purchase. I don’t usually wear dresses to work, but I do have a beachside holiday coming up. Enter, this Viva Maxi. Another aspect of being realistic is knowing how you will wear a dress. I will not wear it with red heels and perfect hair as in the product imagery (I said I was buying a dress online, not a miracle, so let’s take baby steps!). But, I knew that I had thongs (again, no miracles) and that it could be dressed up or down for night or day. (And let’s face it: I will probably be more likely to dress it down….)

4. Stay within your comfort zone
I’m not going to make the leap from jeans to little black dress. It’s not me. More likely than not you will try something daring and end up never wearing it.

Now, once my package arrives on my doorstep, the trick will be to actually wear my new dress. Who wears the pants in my house? A feisty 3-year old, it seems.