what to wear to an awards gala

The week before last, I asked for your help to pick an outfit for an upcoming awards gala. Thanks to your votes, I had the perfect one to wear! In addition to the winning look, I thought it would be fun to show all four outfits in real-life. So without further ado, here are my awards gala ensembles. (My apologies for the garage door backdrop, I snapped these right before leaving for the event.)



From least popular, to the winning look, here's a closer look at the outfits.

Look 1: Blush Wrap Dress (least popular)

dress: Boohoo (exact - size up!)  |  shoes: J. Crew Factory (exact)  |  clutch: Clare V. (exact)  |  earrings: Target (exact)  |  bracelet: Amazon (exact)  |  ring: Kendra Scott (cute alternative)

Based on the outfit inspiration, this was my least favorite look, and yours too. But in real-life, I'll be danged if I don't love it! The peach is such a pretty color, and I love how the high-low hem shoes off my gold sandals. I had to deviate a little bit from the original plan (the earrings were sold out, so I substituted them with these fun $4 pom pom ones, and used my leopard print clutch instead the beaded one from the inspiration layout) but I really, really like the way it all came together.

Look 2: Pink Tulle Skirt 

top: J Crew Factory (exact)  |  skirt: eBay (similar)  |  shoes: J. Crew (exact)  clutch: Clare V. (exact)  |  earrings: Target (exact)  | bracelet: Amazon (exact)  |  ring: Kendra Scott (cute alternative)

Next up is this pink tulle maxi skirt. While it is a really fun outfit, I was actually relieved it wasn't the winning look - it would have been too much for this event. But I love it for something else!

Look 3: Little Black Dress (the runner-up)

dress: GAP (exact)  |  shoes: Target (exact)  |  clutch: Rebecca Minkoff (similar)  |  earrings: J. Crew (exact)  |  bracelet: Amazon (exact)  |  ring: Kendra Scott (cute alternative)

I love all the fun pops of pink in this outfit - especially the stud cluster earrings. This dress is super comfortable and I love the ruffle details, but I'm not sold on the cap sleeves. If they had been longer, this dress would have been perfect. 

Look 4: Lace Top and Pleated Midi Skirt (the winner!)

skirt: ASOS (exact in limited sizes)  |  top: Loft (similar)  |  shoes: Old Navy (similar)  |  clutch: J. Crew Factory (similar)  |  earrings: Baublebar (exact)  | bracelet: Amazon (exact)  |  ring: Kendra Scott (cute alternative) 

And the winning look by a landslide (see it in action here). Ya'll have some great taste, I loved wearing this outfit! It *almost* didn't work out when the skirt I ordered from Amazon turned out to be an epic fail, but thankfully I found this skirt from ASOS and it worked perfectly. I received tons of compliments on my outfit and I felt great in it. Truly, it was the perfect choice.

Thank you so much for you advice and input! Now that you've seen the looks in real-life, did your favorite change? I had a blast putting all the looks together, now I need more excuses to get dressed up!

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