STYLE: Made For Me - The Minimal-ish Mama

I describe my style as classic, with a touch of romantic. Case in point, this chambray dress, that I wore to church last Sunday. E-shakti, a company that specializes in custom made clothes sent this frock to me to try out and share my thoughts. I picked this one, in part, because it bears a resemblance to one worn by my style icon Audrey Hepburn in “Roman Holiday.”

There are several things I love about this dress:

The skirt. It’s so twirly! And it has amazing pockets!
The fabric is a lovely dark navy with a beautiful sheen.
The collar and buttons add nautical flair, which I love.
It arrived crazy fast after I ordered it!

But most of all, I love that this dress really fit me.

As a big chested, small waisted woman, finding dresses and tops that fit well and flatter can be a challenge.

I think for the average woman, buying clothes that are made to fit all body types, lumped into general categories of small, medium, and large, is frustrating. Since most clothes are made to fit such a wide range of figures, they end up not fitting anyone perfectly. I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve loved almost everything about a blouse or dress. Except for those cap sleeves, or an awkward ruffle, or the skirt was too long, or too short.

I customized this dress by changing the cap sleeves to elbow length, and the skirt from below the knee, to right at the knee. It absolutely made the difference between an “ok” dress and a dress that I can’t wait to wear again and again.

e-skakti allows you to customize skirt length, sleeve style, and even the neckline on most garments. And the extra cost? $7.50, for any number of changes to a single garment!

Another one of my favorite things about this dress is that I know that the people who made it were fairly paid. Initially when e-shakti contacted me, I was concerned by the fact that they manufactured their dresses in India. But I discovered some helpful information on their website that put my mind at ease:

“No one who is not eligible to be employed under the Indian Government’s minimum age policy is ever employed by our manufacturing units. The Indian government has been progressive, and with India’s increasing affluence, they have been raising the minimum wage stipulation over time. And wages paid by eShakti are typically 50% to 100% over the Indian government’s minimum stipulation.
The people who work to make eShakti’s clothes are typically the main wage-earners of their families, and provide for them, including education for their children. eShakti is proud that hundreds of families enjoy the advantages of such employment provided by it. Indeed, it is a part of our organizational ethos and goal to contribute to the welfare of society in India as a responsible corporate citizen and employer, just as we contribute in the USA by creating new jobs as we grow.
eShakti’s covenant with its customers is this: we will never allow anything that is opposed to human dignity or the laws of the land where we operate.”

For more information, visit their about us page.

Whether or not you’re going on a Roman holiday anytime soon, you’ll find beautiful, high quality dresses, tops, and skirts to fit your style. Here’s a few of my other favorites:

Knit Colorblock Dress

Silver Fox Embellished Dress

And this one makes me laugh:

Lips Print Piped Skirt

Right now, new customers get a $25 gift coupon, so go check them out! Let me know what your favorites are. Who’s your style icon? Share your inspiration in the comments below!

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