The Shopping Secret That Saved Summer.

I don't want to be the mom in gym clothes all day. But I also don't want to sit at my desk and run around town in the silky mini dresses that used to be my NYC uniform.  Finding a middle ground has proved more challenging than I anticipated- much due to the fact that I refuse to spend $100+ dollars on a cotton dress that I know I will be sick of by the time next summer rolls around.

Enter my savvy Westport friend, who I will just refer to as A. She may want her identity protected since she happens to hold an important, serious job that, I am guessing means she has important, serious colleagues who would scoff at this kind of fluffy stuff. (And I realize said colleagues most certainly in that case would not be readers of my blog, but...)

A. buys dresses from the kid's lines of summer style staples like Splendid and Ella Moss. The prices are significantly less, and you don't need to alter hemlines.

Never one to pride myself on an ability to enjoy anything- be it rosé or clothing- in moderation, I promptly scouted out the entire selection on Amazon and ordered one of each. Not lying. And guess what? I don't feel guilty at all because the prices on Amazon are borderline outrageous- in a good way. No clue why but almost every item was like sixty percent off. 

I buy a size 14. And while the maxi skirts were a tad short on my 5'2" frame, this mini dresses is perfect, as is this and this.

This particular tank top is one of the best things in my closet.

Return shipping is free, so you really have nothing to lose. Except your excuse to wear gym clothes all day.

NOTE: Upon my last perusal, pickings are quite slim (hence I should have been home writing this blog post last week instead of kicking back cocktails on the beach, but that is a whole other post.) But if you poke around diligently, you will find some gems. I even ordered dresses from a couple random brands I stumbled upon while in the "Girls" section and so far, have been quite impressed. Especially with this one.