What I love most about summer fashion is…ok, so I don’t love much about summer fashion. I’m a curvy girl; I have thick thighs and big arms. I avoid shorts like the plague. It’s, admittedly, a tough season for me.
But, I’ve been on my beauty acceptance journey for over a year now, and a big part of that is making myself embrace clothing that I wouldn’t normally feel comfortable in. Teaching myself new ways to dress my body, new ways to play with shapes, and new ways to discover and define myself in fashion, something plus size women didn’t previously have the opportunity or options to do.
Whether it’s an afternoon shower or a night out, summer dresses are a great warm weather option that allow me to stay cool, but also fit and flatter all my favorite curvy parts.
Dress: Chambray Shirt Dress, c/o Lands’ End
Shoes: Floral Wedge, Target
Belt: Black Braided Leather, Gap
Dress: White Smocked Dress, c/o Lands’ End
Shoes: Brown Leather Wedge, Payless
Belt: Brown Braided Leather, Lane Bryant
Dress: Green Cotton Flare Dress, c/o Lands’ End
Shoes: Black Leather Wedge, Target
Belt: Black Braided Leather, Gap
Dress: Tan Linen Skirt, c/o Lands’ End
Shirt: White Cami, Target
Shoes: Mustard Wooden Heel, Payless
Jewelry: Long Beaded Necklaces, CATO
Dresses were provided courtesy Lands’ End, however all opinions are my own.
image credit Brittany Gibbons
Love the green dress and the tan skirt, though both are lengths I, being petite, cannot pull off. Rock on, lover!
Agreed! Those are my two favorite looks. Kelli, the great thing about a skirt that’s too long is that you can always whack off a few inches. If you don’t sew, take to facebook. I guarantee you, you have at least one friend who can put in a hem for you. It only takes a few minutes.
Brittany, I think the green dress with the brown belt and the floral wedges would be fabulous. The platform wedge seems to be the trend this summer, and I’ve seen a lot of them that I’d love to have, but as high as they are, I’d be 6’4″!!
I have bought 5 dresses this summer but they all have shrugs. I need to just let my arms swing free because this summer is going to be HOT! Thanks for the style tips. Definitely looking at belts soon.
I have a wedding to go to in a couple of weeks and I think I’m going to search out that green dress for it! Thanks for the tips, you look gorgeous!
Huge fan of a belted dress! Love love love the shirt dress!
Loving these dresses. You look fabulous. Your confidence and acceptance of you shines through and YOU really wear these clothes. Very pretty, very feminine.
Look at your rocking that white dress! Love it. I also love the brown skirt and mustard shoe combination. I’ve always hated my legs and don’t wear shorts. I need to buy more skirts and dresses this summer. Thanks for the inspiration!
I love the green dress and I’m totally stealing the cami & linen skirt idea. Love.
Steph
Thanks! You know, I stopped wearing skirts because I had this mommy tummy flap type thing, but I thought if I pulled the skirt up, it would totally hide all of that. Totally did. The skirt is the perfect length and it felt very Mad Men.
Looking GORGEOUS, girlie! But, you always do… go ahead and rock the hard jam in those slammin’ outfits, lady – YAY!! xox
Do you wear something under your dresses? I hate shorts with a passion and summertime in Texas doesn’t really play nice w/ bluejeans so I have been trying to do more dresses/skirts. But when I inevitably sweat I become terrified that my skirt/dress will look wet or transparent (and obv the world will point, stare, and laugh). Any advice?
I wear men’s boxer briefs (the tight ones). They help with the rubbing together of the thighs/sweating. Preferably the micro fiber feeling ones– the cotton ones tend to stretch out.
I bought the slimming short things from
Target and I’m in love with them! Great for wearing under dresses, shorts, jeans really help to stop theigh rubbing.
Awesome! You look amazing! I stay away from shorts too, but I’ve been too afraid to look at dresses…I think I’m going to try it! Thanks Brittany!
Love all of them. The green dress looks really comfortable too.
I just bought the flare dress in both green and black and it should be here this week! I love Lands End dresses and they all look great on you!
My favorites are actually all of the dresses with your arms showing. You look gorgeous and it doesn’t hurt that you have killer hair.
I’m with Fadra! I LoVe all of the outfits of you, where your arms are showing. Not a fan of the shirt-dress. It looks too HOT for summer….you could save it by having someone refurbish it into a halter style and lose the sleaves
lol
These are great! And you look Fabulous!
LOVE ALL THE LOOKS! One question….as a full chested woman, how do you rock the strapless bra and/or thin strap bra?
Strapless bras are a no-go for me. I honestly just get thin strapped bras from Cacique (Lane Bryant). I buy white, nude and black and wear them with thin strapped tops and dresses and no one ever notices.
Beautiful. I love the green dress. I finally bought a maxi skirt from Lane Bryant and actually wore it out of the house this weekend. It was so comfortable and cool. I need to get more and just stop worrying so much about how it looks. I mean, no one pointed and laughed so it must have been fine.
You look stunning in all of these. I have such a hard time finding dresses that fit right with my giant boobs, small-ish waist and the third boob in my armpit, so I like sleeves but they are hard to find in the summer. I am totally in love with that green dress. I need to find something similar.
Love summer dresses I have a ton of them, but what do you do about the thigh rubbing issue? I’ve tried various lengths of bike shorts to avoid that but then you have to deal with the “crawling up” or “rolling down” issue when I wear them. Which drives me crazy and I give up on dresses again. Any good suggestions to avoid summer chaffing? I live in Florida so summer chaffing lasts till like the 3 weeks in January we get a ‘semi-winter’.
I wear men’s boxer briefs. True story:)
A stick of Body Glide gets me through the summer without chafing- thighs, sports bras, new shoes- you name it, it prevents problems from rubbing. You can grab it at REI, Amazon, general sporting goods stores.
I love the idea of wearing boxers to help chafing. But, if they are showing for whatever reason, I use a cream from Massengil, I think, that helps prevent chafing too…I got it at Target. Or BodyGlide is a good option too. The only issue I’ve had is that when it stops working (have only had this happen after a really long day at Disneyland), it does so rather suddenly…and you sort of screech to a stop!
I wear boxer briefs too! See comment above, in response to Miranda
De gorgeous… I love the belts – so afraid to throw one on myself. Looks like I need to add some things to my LandsEnd shopping cart!
You look beautiful. I especially love the last look on you. I would live in dresses all summer if I had enough of them. I hate shorts too and dresses keep me nice and cool and comfortable. This summer I’ll be trying to stay cool while pregnant so it’s be a bigger challenge. Thanks for all the great outfit links and keep embracing your figure. You’re gorgeous!
Brittany! You look damn good!! I love the white smock dress and the brown linen skirt outfits. Fabulous!
These were my favorite too. I got to the last picture, and I was all, OMG!
ok I love wearing summer dresses, but my biggest problem is the bra! What kind of bra do you wear? My straps are too wide to hide and a strapless bra is torture with these 34G boobs.
Oh no no no noooo. I can’t do strapless bras AT ALL, so yeah, not an option for me.
I have to wear bras all the time, so the biggest hunt for me is finding bras with the thinnest strap as possible. They aren’t my every day bras, but if I need a bra for a thin strapped dress or top, I have one.
I have had good luck finding them at Lane Bryant. I buy them in nude, white and black, and they get me through all my thin strapped outfits!
You look beautiful. I am loving the clothes from Land’s End. I always thought they were too mature for me, but it looks like they have changed their audience.
It’s all in the styling. They make amazing foundation pieces, and their lines are getting hipper and hipper, but adding fun accessories and finding ways to pull shapes out of outfits is what I always try and focus on:)
Luvees for the thigh rubbing situation. Bought to wear under my giant wedding dress, but wear it with my sundresses too. It’s a must! luvees.com
I am DYING for a white dress this summer. I’ve never found one I like enough to buy but that one is cute…
What I love the MOST about that white dress? It was lined to perfection. I had on black underwear…you can’t even tell!
All four are super cute! But I love the last look best. Also, not being mean, but at first glance I thought you had on white tights and was all like WTF? Then I realized you didn’t have on tights and I was like…..awkward. And then I made it even more awkward by posting it here.
So on that note, let me end with….you REALLY do look fabulous! Such an inspiration to us curvy girls!
Dude, I’m pale to a fault. You can see the platelets moving about under my skin. I’m basically a less sparkly vampire.
Great suggestions! Thanks for being awesome Brittany and sharing with the rest of us!
Love the brown/white combo!
I love the green dress and the last outfit, the one with the brown skirt and white top!
love love love the white one and the very last one. i never wear dresses… just don’t even think about it. but those are super cute
I love the white one- it’s so romantic and summery. I’m also a fan of the last one- is that a skirt or a dress? I can’t tell. You look fab!
Honestly I like them all! (except the blue dress, just looks… not my style.) But all the others I could totally see myself wearing and loving! All of them would be appropriate for just about anything you’d want to do on a summer day. Super cute! Well done.
Brittany, first I want to say that you look great in all these dresses. I especially love the green dress.
However, I can’t help but feeeling like this is a Lands End advertisement in not so subtle disguise. Usually, sponsored posts say that they’re sponsored. Maybe, in reality you just wear all Lands End summer dresses. Usually, I love reading Curvy Girl Guide because it has never made me feel like it was so much obvious sponsorship. I’d love to see summer dresses from other sources as well.
Thanks Melissa, I loved the green dress, also. It was stretchy which works for me and my need to be comfortable and not overheated and irritated.
As noted under each photo, the dresses were care of Lands’ End, but in order to avoid confusion, I will add further disclaimer, and I am eagerly anticipating trying out other dresses (as well as jeans, bras, tank tops, work wear, alllll the things), from other brands to see if I can make them work on my body as well.
Thanks again!
Ooo those last two dresses are HEAVEN! Want, Want, Want!
xoxo
I love love love the green dress on you. I have a wedding in July, and I think that dress needs to come with me.
July + New Hampshire + BUGSOMG = Need Green Dress.
See, I even did the math. My husband can’t refuse.
You look beautiful! I love the brown skirt with the white shirt!! Fabulous!
Cute dresses, I really love the brown skirt and white top though! Absolutely lovely!
First of all, your arms look great in the sleeveless dresses, so don’t be so hard on yourself as we women tend to be. I bought the green dress from Lands End before I saw your post, it fits great and now I’m going to go through my closet and look for a wide belt. Any suggestions on where to buy wide belts. I was eyeing the white dress on Lands End and now that I’ve seen it on you, I’m going to order that one too.
Thank you! I am a wide belt hoarder. I pick most of mine up at Old Navy, Target and at a Gap outlet if there is one near you. I always recommend buying them in store because sizing can be off, especially since I wear mine up under my chest, it’s smaller than my waist, so I have to size down in my wide belts to get them to stay up.
I recently discovered Soma Intimates as a great source for fun maxi dresses that work for us bustier girls. It is not just a bra store! I bought a couple last year on clearance and just this week splurged on another one, and I love it! They can be a little pricey, but really work for me. Like you, Brittany, I have to wear a bra, and a lot of these had adjustable bra-like straps (in the back only – totally camouflaged my own bra straps) but had straps in the front that were thick enough that my bra wasn’t showing. LOVE!
The big boob thing…love and hate. I love having the boobs. I hate not being able to go bra-less. Give and take, I guess.
You look gorgeous in these, by the way!
Seriously, I hate HATE HATE seeing girls with belts around their middle. It only draws attraction to the worst part on you!!! CURVY GIRLS DO NOT MAKE THIS Mistake! Your looks are quite slimming and cute, but my eye is drawn to the horrible belt around your middle esp. on the green and white dress. LOSE THEM ASAP bc they are not attractive. Style is all aboit proportions and if you cannot get them right, then you should not be BLOGGING ABOUT FASHION.
I bought the chambray dress for this summer, I pair it with a wide brown braided belt and white sandals. I love the way it looks on me. I plan to take it into fall with opaque brown tights and boots, and maybe a sweater or wrap of some kind.
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