Dress Up and Off You Go, or Do You Know Oprah?

This gorgeous mixed prints dress was spotted by me on eShakti back in March,which seems like eons ago. I ordered it without hesitation, thinking that such dresses don't show up often and would be gone in the blink of an eye. I was right because it really disappeared rather fast. I think they came out with quite a few incredible dresses back then, because they seemed to be a little overwhelmed with orders, and delivery from India took a bit longer than usual. To the company's credit, they sent me a gift card as an apology for the delay, which was a very nice thing to do to appreciate a faithful customer, such as myself. You might think I'm reviewing a free product, but I'm not - I as always just share my personal experience with you, at my own expense, so to speak. 

When the dress arrived back in early Spring, I was on cloud nine! It fits me perfectly, it's made beautifully, 100% cotton, fully lined, and of course has pockets too. I didn't alter their original design this time, and I am glad I didn't - it is simply perfect the way it is. Can you imagine how eager I was to wear this dress? Yet, it was last Saturday when I wore it for the very first time. You know how life goes, this and that happens, rain and such, and then I had to wait for the proverbial "special occasion"... Silly me!

Until one day I decided that the special occasion had already arrived, being just a regular day in life, nobody's birthday or anniversary, just the sun out, and my love by my side. Isn't it more than enough to qualify as a special occasion? Indeed it is! So if you have an outfit that's been hanging in the depths of your closet, waiting for a "special occasion", no need to wait around! Just dress up and off you go! 

You've seen the combination of these sandals, basket and floppy hat before (HERE), and you will surely see it again - I really like its free spirited vibe. Only this time, I wore different accessories - my amber bracelet, a gift from my Russian girlfriends many years ago, and a vintage necklace that I bought at an antique mall a couple of years ago. Justin asked his friend jeweler what stone it was, but we both forgot the name, though it was positively a natural semi-precious stone. 

I love the current trend for baskets, but even though there are so many options these days, I haven't bought anything new - I am head over heels in love with my African basket which I bought at a local corner market during our vacation to the Olympic Peninsula last year. It adds a zing to an outfit! I love it and use this basket a lot. 

So what did I do that sunny day wearing my pretty dress? Justin and I went to an antique mall (and found lots of friends, which if you're interested, I can share with you some other time), had late lunch/early dinner at our favorite cafe that makes a pretty mean club sandwich. For local folks: Poverty Bay Cafe in Federal Way, WA that is a part of Poverty Bay Coffee Company, a small local micro-roaster that has been in business for over 25 years and that specializes in shade-grown sustainable coffee beans. Then we went for a walk in the woodlands, and we also stopped by Fantasium, a great comic book and game shop in Federal Way, to collect what I can call my royalty checks. Wahoo!  Since Andrei and I are indie authors (we opted to self-publish), I have to find ways to promote our books, and what is a better way than working with local indie book stores? It's been a pleasure to work with Fantasium! I'll be honest with you, this indie author life is a slow ride which at times is frustrating. I am not a huge fan of sales and promotions, and as any artist, all I really want to do is to focus on my creative process, not on promotion. So at this point, we haven't sold a ton of books yet, and Oprah is yet to call us for an interview. But sometimes good things take time to develop, don't they? 

It's fun for me to think that someone in the city of Federal Way actually decided that our books are worth buying and reading (new authors know how resistant the audience can be to something unheard of), and I am thankful to each and every one of my readers, some of whom are you, my dear blogging friends! Here are lots of hugs to you!!! Andrei and I are working on new stories, and I can't wait to share our new book with you some time later this year! It is different from what we've done before, and it is truly amazing, I just can't help but smiling ear to ear when I receive updates from Andrei. I promise it won't disappoint! If you want to read more about our books (we published three in 2016), read MY BOOKS and find all the links as to where to find our books online and in local book stores. I am open to author events, so if you are organizing a family/cultural event (or you know someone who is a librarian, teacher, book store owner/manager, cultural organizer, etc.), please contact me: inthewriterscloset at gmail dot com. 

So that was one day of last weekend. One day of this indie author life. Oh, what a perfect day!

P.S. If you know Oprah personally, call her! My calendar is open next week!

Dress - eShakti (sold out, but there are tons of pretty options there)

Everything else is gifts from friends, or thrifted (sales, local stores, antique malls, etc.)

Linking with Tina's Pink Friday

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