Can you think of anything scarier than letting your partner pick out an outfit for you? What about a festive Christmas outfit? When SimplyBe asked if Husband and I were up to this challenge, I felt nervous right away. Husband is a wonderful father and husband. But a clotheshorse he is NOT. His hair is normally scruffy and his clothes are often wrinkled. In fact, Husband hates shopping so much that I normally buy his clothes. So the prospect of him picking out an outfit? That I have to wear in public? Terrifying.

But, I have spent years trying to cultivate a sense of fashion awareness in Husband. And I wanted to see if he had an idea of what I like to wear and what styles suited me. So, armed with my sizes, Husband spent FOUR HOURS on SimplyBe putting together an outfit on Polyvore. And this is what he picked out.

 

What a pretty dress. I love the velvety fabric and the bit of tulle at the bottom. I have a tough time finding dresses that fit me since I wear a smaller size on top, but this fits extremely well. I don’t normally like a cap sleeve, but I like this one. It fits well and I can wear a normal bra with it. I find it hard to feel festive when I’m wearing a strapless bra. I don’t have any other clothing from Joe Browns, and am really impressed with the quality and fit of this dress. I will definitely shop that brand again. The dress looks nice with or without tights, depending on how cold it might be. I added some burgundy tights for some Christmas colour.

I would have liked a brighter or sparklier dress, as it is a Christmas outfit, but I think the cardigan was put in for that touch of glittery fun. Although the cardigan is lovely, I would not wear it with the dress. Husband does know that I adore a cardi, so he gets bonus points for that. I think a shorter cardi or a shrug would have looked better. This cardigan is boxy, and would look great teamed up with a white tank/vest or t-shirt and with skinny jeans or a simple mini. Teamed with this dress, it looks like I am a member of the 1950s girl gang, The Blue Ladies.

Oh, these ankle boots. Beautiful, soft grey suede. Divine, and so comfy. Husband knows that I can no longer wear proper heels. Last year I fell down the stairs and broke one toe and sprained another. My feet need to be held in well, otherwise they ache. I will definitely be able to wear these boots all night whilst feeling festive.

For anyone that follows me on Twitter or Instagram, you might have noticed there was an incident with the boots on Sunday. When I opened the parcel from SimplyBe, the first thing I did was try on the boots. While I was putting on the left boot, my two-year old threw the right boot into his sister’s bubble bath. Disaster. Luckily the boot dried well and the lovely suede was not ruined.

The handbag has a cool, retro look to it. I probably wouldn’t have picked it out but I’m glad Husband did. And for this outfit, I would have preferred something silver, gold or pink, just to brighten it all up. But it really is a gorgeous clutch. One side is black leather and the other side is black and gold. There’s also a handle that you can use, but I prefer it as a clutch.

 

 

 

 

 

I wear a lot of grey and black and navy blue. So all these colours fit really well into my colour palette. But as it is Christmas, it would have been nice to see some gold or burgundy in the outfit. Then again, jewellery and tights can really add a splash of colour and sparkle to any outfit.

There was no jewellery included in my outfit, so I grabbed a necklace that used to belong to Husband’s paternal grandmother. I don’t wear too much jewellery but I like to at least wear a necklace or earrings on a night out. Husband likes my hair down, so I styled it straight. I wore just a little bit of make-up as Husband does not like the stuff caked on my face. And neither do I (I don’t even own foundation). All in all, I’m quite pleased with my outfit. The dress, boots and clutch work really well together. Simple and elegant. Husband did a pretty good job. What do you think?

 

This post is linked to Real Mom Street Style on Reasons To Dress and Fashion Friday on Mummy’s Got Style.

SimplyBe sent me the outfit, that Husband picked out, for the purpose of this review. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.