Hurricane Matthew blew through Orlando early October right around when Orlando Pride was supposed to take place so it was moved to the weekend of my birthday. Also that weekend, Dapper Day. For the first time, the event was to take place in Epcot, where my husband and I used to work.
It was also my first time attending. I was always nervous about going because the caliber of fashion I had seen from previous Dapper Days in both Orlando and Anaheim. I never thought I would even match something as authentic or beautiful as the women I had seen.
I took a vacation day from work to spend my actual birthday, November 11, with my husband. We went to dinner at Better Than Sex, a romantic dessert restaurant with chocolate cocktails and mood lighting. My mom had gotten me this Addicted Coffin Bat Handbag offered by Dysfunctional Doll. It is now my favorite purse.
My dress was another Amazon purchase. A purple wiggle dress from a company named Newdow. The dress is actually made well, I bought a Vassarette lace slip to wear under it and it fit like a dream and hugged all my curves. My shoes, Dolce by Mojo Moxy, also came from Amazon. I found the 4″ heel to be far too high but I don’t wear heels often.
Pride being on the same day as Dapper Day gave me the idea to wear a Lindy Bop dress I had seen in the new arrival section. A space unicorn pattern with rainbows! I needed it but my size was sold out on the U.S. and the U.K. site was very pricey. I found Didi’s Boutique through a search online and ordered the Audrina Space Unicorn dress immediately. With international shipping, the dress cost me under $50.
Customs held the dress for a little over a week and the dress was set to arrive on the day I needed it! Marie, the shop owner, was remarkably helpful and checked up on me the whole time. Thankfully, it all worked out and I wore my Lindy Bop bright pink petticoat under the dress to really make the rainbows pop. Marie even threw in a pair of unicorn shoe clips from Atomic Mollie that I used as a makeshift brooch.
The dress did double duty at Pride. The parade folks pointed me out, I collected compliments all around the park, and I even enjoyed a wonderful conversation with a young girl in love with my dress and considering taking on the vintage look with a little Lolita flair. I told her “go for it, you might be nervous at first but in the end, be yourself”.
Items featured:
Audrina Space Unicorn dress by Lindy Bop
Pink Petticoat by Lindy Bop
Vintage V-neck Capsleeve Pencil dress in Purple by Newdow
Tracy D’orsay Pump in Cobalt Floral by Dolce by Mojo Moxy
Coffin Bat Handbag by Addicted from Dysfunctional Doll
My Vintage Friend 