Under the (Theme Park) Lights: Dapper Day Reality

I was fortunate to be part of Fall 2012 Dapper Day in Disney World, and as Estelle knows well, I’ve been planning and plotting for a few weeks now…

My Dapper Day outfit was as much inspired by magical imagining as it was by practicality. Yes, it had to look good and honor the Imagineers who envisioned their Parks full of well-dressed guests, but it also had to be something that would be comfortable to wear in early September and fairly inexpensive.

With help from Estelle and my friend Sarah, I put together a Dapper Day inspirational pinboard, which helped me narrow down the types of things I was interested in. Ultimately, I ordered three dresses online and waited.

When they finally arrived, I put on an impromptu fashion show:

While all three dresses were lovely, I ultimately decided to go with the dress that, as far as I’m concerned, had the most re-wearability:

Vintage Silhouette Wrap Dress:  Heartbreaker for Ruche // Wedge Shoes: American Eagle for Payless (similar here) // Freshwater Pearl Necklace: Ultra Diamonds

I also bought a super cute pair of earrings (also from Ruche) to wear. I love how the shape of the earrings echoes the shape of the pattern in the dress. Unfortunately, I rarely wear earrings, and my ears decided at the last minute that they didn’t really want to be accessorized. But aren’t they cute?!

 Let’s talk for a second about these shoes:

 

They were fairly inexpensive when I bought them several years ago, and they are still really cute. However, I will never, ever, ever wear heels in a Disney Park again. I say that on behalf of my poor, innocent feet, who did nothing to deserve the blisters that resulted from my poor choice in footwear.

If I had it to do again, I’d absolutely choose a pair of flats. Maybe these dressed-up flats (from Ruche)?

Of course, that’s just me! Dapper Day was, if nothing else, a feast for the vintage-loving eyes! I saw so many, many dapper dudes and dudettes wearing their vintage-inspired finest. Here are some of my favorites:

I caught this dapper pair sitting near Minn and Bill’s on Echo Lake.

Lovely ladies, including this one, outside the DVC booth on Sunset.

Her outfit was totally vintage, from head to toe.

In vogue, for sure.

I caught this lovely Cinderella dashing from the Tune-In Lounge with no shoes on. (Check out her tumblr!)

The next Dapper Day is scheduled for February 24, 2013 on both coasts… and I’m already planning what I’ll wear!

What about you?

Be sure to check out my husband Rob’s thoughts on Dapper Day over at Mouse on the Mind today!

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