Dresses Worn Outside The Box: Magnificent 8

It's another Magnificent 8 post! Every quarter a group of us from multiple different age groups pick a theme and all style it in our own unique ways, showing you can be stylish at any age! This time we are sharing ways to wear clothes outside of the box. With it being a hot summer I wasn't going to layer up or wear anything drastically different, so I ended up falling back on my usual go-to way of mixing things up - taking a dress and wearing it a little differently!

Today I'm showing you how I wear a shirt dress as a kimono, and also how I wear a dress as a top. Such simple outfits but it really changes up the look of the dresses! I did wear these outfits a while ago, as I only take and share photos of outfits I actually wear on the blog and for some reason I had the wrong date in my head and this post was supposed to be last week, so I wore the outfits in advance of that!

What I wore:

Jacket: Atmos&Here Nigella collarless shirt dress (worn as kimono)
Necklace: Lovisa silver love knitted heart pendant necklace
Tee: Zalora Basics maroon stepped t-shirt
Shorts: Jeanswest Heather Bermuda short in black
Shoes: New Balance Coast women's running shoe in black 
Bracelets: the usual plus Hermes Kelly double tour bracelet in rubis
Bag: Rebecca Minkoff Love cross body bag in grey

Why I wore it:

I wore this on the day our 3 day lockdown was announced in Brisbane. Unfortunately when I heard the news I'd been wondering when the best time that day would be to go out and get another loaf of bread as we were about to run out. I wasn't the only one suddenly needing groceries that day...had to join the longest line and wait over 35 minutes just to get into the grocery store. Thankfully I still had my pick of bread, they were restocking lots over the store and everyone was polite - I saw most people like myself only needing a few things, no overflowing trolleys. 

Did like my outfit for the day though even if it was a bit of a confusing day that definitely didn't go as planned. Having to tell my kids that our weekend plans and much looked forward to party were cancelled was pretty tough but truly 3 days was nothing! It was a nice long weekend at home before the lockdown was lifted as expected when there were no more cases.

I've worn this dress as a kimono before, and have worn it with this tee before too! Sometimes I worry this shirt dress can be a little short with the curved hems, so wearing it as a kimono over shorts instead is a great alternative. And it does work so well with this burgundy tee! The black Bermuda shorts matched the black in the print of the dress, as well as my sneakers. I wore my New Balance sneakers as my intention was to go for a walk around my favourite trail after quickly stopping at the grocery store but I decided it was probably best to get home and have an early start to lockdown after that hectic and time consuming experience! 😂


Last worn: printed shirt dress, burgundy tee, heart necklace, Hermes bracelet, black denim shorts, New Balance sneakers, Rebecca Minkoff Love bag.

Other ways to wear: printed shirt dress worn two ways, burgundy tee in a capsule wardrobe, black denim shorts and print mix, Rebecca Minkoff Love bag worn 30 ways.

Perfect for pregnancy: burgundy tee and hidden second trimester bump, Rebecca Minkoff Love bag in third trimester.

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Other Ways I've Worn These Dresses:

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What I wore:

Dress: Atmos & Here Willow printed tee dress (worn as a top)
Shorts: thrifted Jeanswest distressed denim shorts
Shoes: Converse Chuck Taylor All Star coast blue
Bag: Chloe periwinkle small Paraty

Why I wore it:

This was another rare kid-free time! Again the boys were with their grandparents and I had a massive to do list to tackle so I dressed simply with my comfortable Converse and another pair of denim shorts. With the blue Chloe small Paraty bag this would be a bit monochromatic so I thought this tee dress would be a fun way to add a bit more colour, with the bright floral print!

Again this isn't a new combination for me, this tee dress felt a bit short when the kids were little and crawling around everywhere, so I'd wear it as a top then. It also looks great worn under a pencil skirt for the office, where it would definitely be too short to wear on its own! It did seem to bunch up a bit when I was taking a photo but I didn't mind as I wore this through the day - it was so comfortable and the bright print so cheerful!

Unlike the day above, I managed to get a lot done in the precious few kid free hours I had on this day!

Last worn: floral tee dress, denim shorts, Converse, Chloe Paraty bag.

Other ways to wear: floral tee dress layered for winter, denim shorts and kimono, Converse and culotte shorts, Chloe Paraty bag and maxi dress.

Perfect for pregnancy: floral tee dress in second trimester.

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How You Can Wear It:

You don't have to wear a dress simply as a dress! Shirt dresses can be unbuttoned and worn like a kimono or duster depending on the length of your dress. A cute printed dress can be tucked into a pair of shorts and worn like a top too - great for a busy day of running around where you don't want to be tugging at the hem of a dress all day, or just for a way to change up how you style a favourite dress.

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The Magnificent 8

The Magnificent 8 is a collaboration of 8 stylish women, ranging in age from early 20’s to early 80’s. The mission of this collaboration is to showcase how ageless style is. There are no age restrictions on style. So wear what you want, when you want, add a smile, and strut your style with confidence. And be sure to check out all 7 of these other amazing ladies!

• Grace of Graceful Rags
• Mica of Away from the Blue
• Roxanne of Glass of Glam
• Shelbee of Shelbee on the Edge
• Rena of Fine Whatever
• Eugenia of Age of Grace 
• Lesley of Jodie’s Touch of Style 
• Charlotte of Jodie’s Touch of Style

Every quarter, the group chooses a theme and each create an outfit that suits our own personal tastes and fashion choices and we post them on the last Wednesday of every third month. So be sure to go check out everyone’s posts with the links above for style inspiration at any age as they show you their take on ways to wear things outside the box!

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Kmart Tiered Midi Dresses - Dressed Up and Down | Weekday Wear Link Up

For today's Weekday Wear Link Up, I'm wearing these pretty Kmart tiered midi dresses again! They are so easy to dress up or dress down, as you can see by the different ways I've worn them here.

What I wore:

Earrings: Piper glass beaded chandelier earring in cream and gold
Necklace: Jeanswest Taryn turquoise tassel bead necklace
Dress: Kmart short sleeve tiered jersey dress in Fuchsia
Shoes: Rebecca Minkoff Georgina studded gladiator sandals in blush
Bracelets: the usual plus vintage silver charm bracelet and Disney Couture Winnie the Pooh bangle
Bag: Rebecca Minkoff Leo envelope clutch in champagne gold 

Why I wore it:

This was a really fun day! We had a party at my parent's place, lots of laugher and good food, and I decided to dress up a little for the occasion. This fuchsia pink Kmart tiered midi dress is a statement on it's own, but I added the fun gold clutch and the statement earrings to make it a bit more formal.

These beaded earrings were a Christmas gift and I just couldn't resist going a little matchy-matchy for their first wear with this beaded tassel necklace. Although the beaded tassel part is turquoise and gold I thought the cream stone and the other beads matched the cream and gold beaded earrings well. Added a couple of extra bracelets to my bracelet stack and because I didn't need to carry much I took the opportunity to give my Rebecca Minkoff Leo envelope clutch another wear!

Despite the rather windy and overcast day it didn't rain at all so we got to enjoy sitting outside in the afternoon before dinner. We drove away in the evening after making plans for some fun school holiday activities, all feeling good. The very next morning they announced a 3 day lockdown for Brisbane after there was a case of the virus outside of hotel quarantine. It was a bit of a shock after over 100 days without cases outside of quarantine, but it made me feel even more grateful we were able to have the catch up we did. I know that some countries have tougher restrictions again making big family meetups like we had impossible. Luckily there were no more cases and the lockdown was lifted at the end of the 3 days so our fun adventures we planned were still able to happen too.

Last worn: pink tiered Kmart midi dress, turquoise tassel necklace, studded gladiator sandals, Rebecca Minkoff Leo envelope clutch. First time I've worn the earrings as they were a Christmas present.

Other ways to wear: pink tiered Kmart midi dress with turquoise bag, studded gladiator sandals worn 30 ways, Rebecca Minkoff Leo envelope clutch and mint dress.

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My Favourite Rebecca Minkoff Bag:

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What I wore:

Necklace: Kmart gold and navy beaded necklace
Dress: Kmart short sleeve tiered jersey midi dress in amber 
Shoes: thrifted Adidas Superstar sneakers
Bag: Rebecca Minkoff Julian nylon backpack in bright blue
 

Why I wore it:

A much more casual way to wear this Kmart tiered midi dress! A very busy day, with lots of errands to run and sports in the evening, school shoe shopping and a fun trip to the library for the kids to pick up some new books. Kept it simple with the Adidas Superstar sneakers and carried all our water bottles in my trusty Rebecca Minkoff Julian backpack. I like the bright blue against the amber of the dress and this bag fits everything we need so easily.

I had actually planned to wear this dress a little more dressed up just like the outfit above, with some statement earrings and cute sandals and a different bag for another party! We were due to go to a kids birthday party the weekend lockdown was announced, and after the 3 day lockdown was lifted visitor restrictions were back in place so the party couldn't go ahead the next week with the 20 person limit, as the whole kindy class was invited. Since I had been looking forward to wearing this dress again, I figured I'd wear it anyway, even just to run errands in, because the party was cancelled. I'm glad I gave it a wear, it does dress down so nicely.


Last worn: amber tiered midi dress, gold and navy beaded necklace, Adidas Superstar, Rebecca Minkoff Julian backpack.

Other ways to wear: amber tiered midi dress worn 2 ways, Adidas Superstar and maxi skirt, Rebecca Minkoff Julian backpack and jeans.

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How You Can Wear It:

A simple tiered midi dress in a bold colour is a great wardrobe staple! You can dress it up with a clutch and some pretty accessories, or dress it down for an easy outfit on a busy day with the kids with a backpack and sneakers.

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Weekday Wear Linkup #105

Welcome to the Weekday Wear linkup! A linkup for you to share your weekday outfits - whether that is office wear or stay at home mum wear - if you wore it on a weekday, you can link it up!

Guidelines:
1. Please link to a specific outfit post, not your blog homepage.
2. Link back to this post so others can find the link up.
3. Follow your host Away From The Blue on Bloglovin, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook or YouTube.
4. Add up to two posts and be sure to visit and comment on as many other posts as possible to get some weekday outfit inspiration!
Optional: tweet the post you linked up with the hashtag #weekdayWearLinkUp so I can retweet!

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Cotton On "The One" Tees and Soft Shorts With Rebecca Minkoff MAB Camera Bag

Last Christmas my mum got me a pink "The One" tee from Cotton On. Since then I've added quite a few more to my wardrobe! I love the range of colours, the fact that they are often on sale, soft, made with 20% recycled cotton and wash and wear well. With working from home and no longer needing to go into an office I'm embracing tees almost every day so these have been good purchases for me! I picked up these two clay coloured ones in the Cotton On sale for boxing day, reduced to $7.99 each. Plus I had a $10 rewards voucher so I ended up getting both together for just $5.98! Bargain! With the summer heat, I wore them for the first time with some cute soft pull-on shorts.

What I wore:

Necklace: Roie Designs feather, quartz and love charm long necklace
Tee: Cotton On The One fitted v tee in washed red clay
Shorts: Jeanswest Parker printed shirred short
Shoes: thrifted Adidas Superstar sneakers
Bag: Rebecca Minkoff MAB Camera Bag in almond

Why I wore it:

Wore this for a working from home day, a rather stressful first day back after 4 weeks of leave over Christmas and new years. I don't usually dress up for a work from home day, sticking with loungewear or pyjamas but I was also spending time with my mum and sister in the afternoon, since our 3 day lockdown was thankfully lifted at the end of the 3 days! Simple shorts and tee for a busy day full off meetings while trying to get my brain back into work gear and catch up on everything I missed while I was away.

I really like colour of this tee. "Washed red clay" is a good description and it went so nicely with the black printed shorts, another summer staple for me. I wasn't sure the almond colour of the Rebecca Minkoff MAB camera bag would work with this at first, but when I tried it I thought it was a good neutral with the reddish tee. I didn't need to carry much so it was a good bag choice!


Last worn: feather necklace, black printed shorts, Adidas Superstar, Rebecca Minkoff MAB Camera bag. First time I've worn the tee as it was a boxing day sale find.

Other ways to wear: black printed shorts in monochrome outfit, Adidas Superstar and maxi skirt, Rebecca Minkoff MAB Camera bag and floral dress.

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What's In My Rebecca Minkoff MAB Camera Bag:

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What I wore:

Necklace: Kmart gold and navy beaded necklace
Tee: Cotton On The one fitted v tee in eddy stripe white / red terracotta
Shorts: Jeanswest Tessa olive embroidered shorts
Shoes: New Balance Coast women's running shoe in black 
Bracelets: the usual plus Roie Designs waxed leather cream howlite beaded wrap bracelet
Bag: Rebecca Minkoff MAB Camera Bag in almond

Why I wore it:

I wore this outfit during Brisbane's 3 day lockdown, before the outfit above. While I was mostly at home, we were allowed to leave the house for exercise, so after watching the premier's morning update on restrictions and case numbers I took the chance to be the one to take the kids and Cooper out for a walk along a neighbourhood trail, and give hubby a bit of quiet at home. With the new mask guidelines I did have to wear a mask the entire time I was out the house, which was not the most comfortable thing on a walk on a humid day, but we weren't out long. We saw so many other masked dog walkers trying to get out before the day heated up too much too. Thankfully the boys understood the need to not pat all the dogs and try keep our distance. Cooper of course was too excited to see other dogs, but we have a pretty long leash to let them do their little doggy meet and greet 😂

With the terracotta stripes on this tee I wasn't sure if it would bee too Christmas-y with the olive shorts, but I think the stripes are small enough and on the terracotta side enough that it was a nice pairing together. I may repeat this around December though and make it more festive with more red! As I didn't need to carry much, just my phone and hand sanitiser with me on the walk, this little Rebecca Minkoff MAB camera bag was perfect, and everything was comfortable enough to wear when relaxing with the kids back at home too. Simple and comfortable for a very quiet Sunday at home.


Last worn: olive embroidered shorts, navy and gold beaded necklace, New Balance sneakers, Rebecca Minkoff MAB camera bag (above).

Other ways to wear: olive embroidered shorts and kimono, Rebecca Minkoff MAB camera bag and maxi dress.
 

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How You Can Wear It:

Shorts and tee is the most basic of wardrobe staples. For something a little different you can try adding a print, like I have with the printed shorts in the first outfit or the striped tee in the second outfit. So easy to do but changes up a staple outfit a little.

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