Mother-of-the-groom journey: hits & misses

Happy Tuesday, friends!  Welcome to an update on my Mother-of-the-groom journey with hits and misses!

Yes, there has been a “miss”, and I want to address it because I promised to take you through the journey as the mother-of-the-groom.

My desire was to help others who will be mother-of-the-groom or even a grandmother in making your best confident clothing choices.

So, let’s get started…with a positive note…in my mother-of-the-groom journey.

MOTHER-OF-THE-GROOM JOURNEY: A HIT

Last weekend, we were invited to the bride’s parent’s home for hors d’oeuvres, wine, and gift opening with the happy couple.

We are only 19 days away from the big event, and it was a blessing to share this time with our young adults and watch them open some special gifts.

The food was delicious and our hostess shared how several items came from Trader Joe’s. 

And, as always, it was a beautiful display and setting.

Right down to the couple’s love of their golden doodle!

I chose to wear another of the Italian designed washable silk tops from my favorite local boutique, Elizabeth’s Boutique in San Antonio.

I am such a fan…perhaps there is a little Italian inside of me somewhere.

The fit of these tops is so flattering, and they are cool and comfortable…heat is beginning to set in.

I also love this vibrant color and that is why I asked Mr. B to take this photo by a neighbor’s beautiful display of flowers.

This mother-of-the-groom felt great in this outfit.  A bold print not for everyone, but definitely for me.

I also wore my JCP a.n.a. jeggings in white…the cost per wear for me on these are so low because I wear them often…such a great deal.

And I am wearing the Jack Rogers Collins Casual Sandals.

For me, this outfit was a hit for a nice, comfortable, casual evening with new family members to be.  I felt very comfortable an appropriate.

The mother-of-the-bride looked perfect in a black, tiered, cotton casual dress…which brings me to my next topic…dresses!

MOTHER-OF-THE-GROOM JOURNEY: MY MISS

I told you I would share with you what I wore to the lovely spring bridal shower…but I am not going to show you.

What we do here more than anything is discuss clothing and I feel an obligation to have the good and the bad as part of the discussion.

First, allow me to emphasize that these events really are all about the bride.

If you did not see what she wore in Spring Bridal Shower: All About the Bride, you really need to see her dress…she was the star…again, as it should be.

Also, sometimes I stress over it too much and once I was at the shower and got over my epic fail, I relaxed and had a wonderful time visiting with her friends and family members.

Here is the background.

In the post titled Mother-of-the-Groom journey: A Texas ranch luncheon, you saw me in another Italian design….a dress I love.

My original intention was to wear to the ranch some beautiful Eileen Fisher pants and a brown top, and wear this dress to the bridal shower.

That would have been a hit….appropriate choices for each event.

But, my beautiful daughter showed up in town for the shower and wore a wonderful green dress, so for some reason, I grabbed this dress and wore it to the ranch.

(I know you are saying…she really is overthinking this)

Perhaps…but, when I went to get dressed for the spring bridal shower, I was out of dresses to select from…a couple are being saved for wedding weekend festivities.

So, I put on the Eileen Fisher pant outfit and headed off to the shower.

Where I was the only one in pants and the only one NOT in spring colors.

At first, it really, really bothered me, but as I got into the events of the day….I let it go.

For those of you who originally wrote that the mother-of-the-groom should be in the background, well, I was.

The reason I am not showing you this look, is because I do not want anyone to think I recommend It for a Spring Bridal Shower.

Dresses are the preferred attire…or pants in spring colors…put not really what I ended up wearing.  Everyone there was in a dress.

It is not as bad as wearing a huge hat to the coronation and blocking the view of others behind you…(sorry Katy Perry)…but never-the-less, to me it was a failed decision.

MOTHER-OF-THE-GROOM JOURNEY: DRESSES

As I looked around at the many lovely dresses, the women were wearing, it occurred to me that there was perhaps only one design that I would actually wear.

Dresses remain difficult for me…though, as I am in process of losing some of my middle, it is getting a tad bit easier.

But the Italian dresses that I have discovered at the boutique check all of the boxes for me.  I just cannot wear them to everything.

I wrote recently about the importance of dressing current to help us feel youthful and confident.

I do try my best to do that, but there are many, many trends that do not work for me and will actually make me feel older.…especially with current dress trends.

The mother-of-the-bride is tiny and she looked perfect in the tiered dress last weekend, but a tiered dress on me, adds weight.

I have tried on so many dresses of this style and they just do not flatter me or build confidence.

I also must be careful with florals…some work but few…a bolder, artistic floral looks better on me than a smaller print.

Then, there are many many designs with belts or ties in the middle….again adds weight to me.

I do not want to the “eye of the beholder” drawn immediately to my middle.

The Italian tiered dresses are sleek, and slimming.  My only challenge with them is to cover my arms and as the heat is on that becomes a little problem.

I like the other designs which are called shirt dresses, but many of those are too casual.

Headlines of blogs that really frustrate me include….5 SPRING DESIGNS EVERY WOMAN MUST OWN….something like that.

Every woman will not look her best in every design or trend…just the facts.

Alas, such is the plight of a woman desiring to wear more dresses in a youthful, flattering, confident way with little selection.

I hope you do not think I am whining…I do not want to appear so…just to acknowledge for some of us, shopping for dresses is a stressful activity. 

Any comments you have on my mother-of-the-groom journey: hits & misses are welcome. 

Sometime in the near future, I will wear this pant outfit for a different occasion and picture it here…the pants are lovely…despite, it all, I hope you will join me as I……

KEEP SMILING!!

By Pamela Lutrell

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