I’ve gone all elegant on you this year – not a single Christmas jumper! Who is this woman and what has she done with CiCi?!
Actually, there’s no mystery here other than I acquired this beautiful red party dress from Voodoo Vixen and had barely removed it from its packaging before it demanded to be accessorised with gold – gold I tell you! And what else can you do at this time of year with a lovely festive shade like this? Red and gold are the classic Christmas combination – and a little less ‘elf’ than red and green (mind you, not that this is a bad thing!). A jumper had no chance against this dress…
This, dear reader, is the only time I have worn a dress where B has told me it looks nice – without me first parading around in front of him going ‘weeeeell?!’ Unprompted praise… it must be special! I have to say, when I first got it didn’t look that special as it swamped me, but now that a tailor has altered it so that the shoulders are shorter and the length matches how it appeared on the model (cost me £20), I’m completely in love with it. This, by the way, is something I have to do with practically every non-petite dress – it’s not that this one is exceptionally large! I usually lean towards fitted dresses, but I honestly am as pleased as a kid in a party frock here and it just goes to show that not all flared dresses drown me as I fear they will (especially not with a little stitching help). B particularly admired the neckline saying it was the ‘right shape’ for me. I think he might be onto something there, it does seem particularly flattering.
I also have to thank Holly of Alternate Normality for meeting my last minute request for this pretty gold hair flower. I’d given up trying to find one anywhere by the time I came across her range of Christmassy styles. Well-made and well-priced (and so helpful!), I recommend her shop to those in the UK particularly.
And lastly, we had to move no fewer than five pieces of furniture (not counting the tree itself, which was also dragged a foot along the floor) to get these pictures – including two huge sofas. I quickly remembered why I never take photos indoors!
Hair flower: Alternate Normality
Brooch: c/o Chronically Vintage
Dress: c/o Voodoo Vixen ‘Blair’ (out of stock on their site – try Blue Banana)
Shoes: (out of stock) Chelsea Crew via Zulily
And can you read what my darling little brooch says? Probably not, so I will tell you: it says ‘Seasons greetings’ – and indeed, it’s warm seasons greetings from this blogger as Christmas fast approaches… All my shopping’s done, hooray!
That dress is amazing on you, B is quite right! You manage to look like a vintage Christmas postcard in these pictures… This is Christmas class!
Well that is a fantastic comment, thank you 😀
This is such a perfect Christmas dress – the fabric and print are SO gorgeous!!! You look beautiful and I love the gold accessories – and those SHOES! You do the best Christmas outfits 🙂
Yay, winning at Christmas! I've got a real new-found love for gold this year; I don't know why I've been a silver girl for so long…
Oh that's such a beautiful dress, I adore the print! Are the feathers velvety? I also love those shoes, they look like the perfect pair to dance in. A truly wonderful Christmas ensemble.
Yes they are flocked 🙂 It's really beautiful indeed. The shoes are padded, and I wasn't expecting it for the price!
Oh wow this dress is so beautiful on you! I also love how you accessorize…so very Christmas like! 🙂
I am very happy I finally found cute Christmas hair accessories that didn't break the bank 🙂
That is a gorgeous, festive frock – and the brooch really makes the outfit. Can't beat a well-placed brooch for providing the perfect finishing touch.
Very true! I'm a very lucky girl to have been sent it as a gift; Jessica was so on the button with what she sent to me!
What a Christmas beauty you are! The gold accessories look wonderful with that shade of red, very festive and classy. Will this be your Christmas day outfit? It should be a contender for sure! Xxx
It's going to be what I wear at an early Christmas dinner this weekend, but I'm actually thinking my Christmas day dress will be something else… which has fur on it 😀 xxx
Oh wow, unprompted praise – I know the joys of that too! I usually walk into a room in a new item of clothing, clear my throat, then look pointedly at Ben. If this elicits no response, he then gets the "What do you think?" question, then the "But which bit of it do you like BEST of all?", so unprompted praise is high praise! And I can definitely see why – this is stunning! The shape and fabric are beautiful, and of course, the gold accessories. I'm off to check out Alternate Normality now – they look awesome!
Ha this sounds eerily familiar… Although my line is usually 'But WHY do you like it?' I am seriously so happy I found Holly's site – so many gorgeous and inexpensive accessories. I'll definitely be a returning customer!
Gorgeous dress on you! It looks like your alterations completely paid off as this dress looks absolutely perfect on you! I love everything you styled it with too! So lovely!
They definitely did – it made a huge difference to lop an inch off here and there!
Loving the red and gold, I have some similar pics I took just last week. i also just got some shoes from bait that look so similar to these, but not in gold, some real class! I think I need to get a local tailor too, I have the same issues all the time. Especially with my upper body, always too big.
I think I know the shoes you mean 🙂 Going to a tailor is so worth it for things you really love but are put off wearing because they don't look quite right. It's expensive to do it for everything, but fitted dresses like this I can't recommend it enough for! No one is 'normal' sized though, really…
Oh it's SO darling! I love the detail of the feathers on the fabric!!
That's good as you're going to be seeing some feathers again in the not too distant future 😉
Wow you look absolutely stunning in this glamorous Christmas look! I adore the gorgeous red dress, it suits your perfectly, and the gold shoes and brooch complement it perfectly.
Saba x
http://www.trulymadlydeeplyfashion.blogspot.com
Thanks Saba 🙂 It's largely all thanks to such a pretty dress! x
Oh my goodness this silhouette is beautiful on you!!!
I don't know why I avoided flared dresses for so many years now!
Wow wow wow, you are stunning and this is styled to perfection! x
😀 thank you Kayla! x
It was definitely worth moving all of your furniture out of the way to get these shots! Incredible dress, the shoes are perfect and the flower is spot on. This is what a Christmas dress should look like!!!
I'm not sure B agrees, ha! I am inclined to agree that you can't do much better than this dress for Christmas 🙂
How did you get the lighting so perfect inside? I'm always so impressed with your photos.
This dress truly does suit you. The colour and pattern is gorgeous and of course having it fitted to your exact size is an issue I can relate to. It is smashing. This looks like a professional shoot.
bisous
Suzanne
Aw thanks 🙂 We were using two very old studio lights – very warm-toned so they weren't ideal and we had to play around with where they were positioned, but got there in the end… I am very pleased if they look in any way professional!! x
No wonder B was so enthusiastic – you look beautiful! I love the rich red with the gold accessories. You're right that it practically screams Christmas. You're the prettiest present by the tree. 😉
Aw, thank you 🙂 I don't think it's hard to be prettier than my presents, the way I wrap them 😀
What a breathtakingly beautiful Christmas ensemble. This rich, regal shade of ruby sings on you, sweet CiCi. Thank you so much for including that festive vintage brooch from shop here. I practically squealed aloud when I saw it styled in such a sophisticated context. Gorgeous, gorgeous, uber gorgeous!
Big hugs,
♥ Jessica
The brooch was made to be with this dress <3 It looks so perfect there!
Fabulous festive outfit and really very classy too! Love the red and gold and the dress now fits you beautifully. The brooch and hair flower are great final touches.
I can't believe I lived for so long without gold in my life – particularly gold hair flowers!
This is such a gorgeous outfit Cici! I love the pretty sheen to the fabric and those peacock feathers really give it such a luxurious look ~ particularly when paired with your elegant gold accessories. I was always a silver girl myself, but I've definitely picked up a strong appreciation for gold and rose gold ~ both beautiful shades for sure!
You look so stunning in this ensemble; I hope you get lots of chances to wear it this holiday season! ❤
xox,
bonita of Lavender & Twill
I've been the same way for years, but I've recently realised gold actually suits me a lot more. D'oh! I've already worn this outfit again for an early Christmas dinner – just as fun the second time 🙂 xx