What to Wear For Special Occasions This Spring
Spring has officially sprung and festive occasions are on the horizon for many of you. I’ve had several requests for what to wear over 50 for special occasions this season so today I’m sharing a few looks with varying levels of formality.
A big thank you to Nordstrom and ShopStyle Collective for sponsoring this post.
What to Wear Over 50 For Special Occasions – Formal
The venue and time of day will help determine how formal your outfit should be but in general, I suggest kicking everything up a notch for a wedding. It’s not fun to feel underdressed at dressy events and sometimes it’s just fun to pull out all the stops.
This Karen Kane Scalloped Lace Cocktail Dress would work for a retirement dinner, wedding, party, or any dressy occasion where you want to add a wow factor. This one would be hard to dress down, but why would you want to? I just wish I had an occasion to wear this beauty.
This dress comes in 3 colors, both regular and petite. The lace is very stretchy and it’s partially lined so nothing shows through and nude bra straps are invisible. The regular is 38″ long and the petite is 25 1/2″ long. I’m wearing the navy in a regular S. I skipped a necklace and allowed attention to go to the pretty scalloping around the neck.
This Alex Evenings cocktail dress is selling out fast in all colors, for good reason. It’s perfect for so many occasions. Mother of the bride or groom, wedding guest, retirement party, New Year’s Eve parties, and the list goes on. The bodice is stretch lace with sequins and the skirt section is floaty chiffon. It looks like a two-piece outfit but this is one dress with a hidden back zipper.
The scalloping around the neck is a nice frame for whatever jewelry you want to wear or looks beautiful unadorned. It has 3/4 sleeves, is fully lined, and is very bra-friendly. This dress comes in regular and petite, sizes 4/6-16/18. I’m wearing a regular 4/6.
more special occasion dresses
This Naturalizer Slingback Sandal is very comfortable and a great neutral to wear with any color dress. It has a flexible, supportive footbed that’s cushioned to absorb shock. Since we don’t wear dressy shoes that often, it’s smart to buy them in a timeless style like this almond-shaped toe. These come in 3 colors, in narrow, medium, and wide sizes 4-12. I’m wearing a 9 1/2 medium and it’s plenty wide so they’re built to be comfortable. This sandal is a beautiful option if you prefer satin fabric in a great neutral.
What to Wear Over 50 For Special Occasions – Less Formal
For less formal occasions, a minimalistic dress is often a smart choice. I wore this A-Line Jersey dress for a Seder dinner last week. When you’re unsure of the dress code, this type of dress is the perfect solution.
This simple scoop neck dress is a great canvas to dress up or down. The A-line silhouette skims your body but doesn’t cling so it’s pretty forgiving. I wore this one-piece slip underneath to keep everything smooth. It comes in navy or black in sizes XS-XL. I’m wearing navy in size 8. For more casual days I will wear this with flat sandals and a straw hat.
This Flutter Sleeve Faux Wrap Maxi Dress is perfect for a more casual event. A baby or wedding shower, graduation, even a mother’s day dinner. The flutter sleeves are a nice feminine touch and long enough that you wouldn’t need a wrap on a spring day. It comes in 4 colors, I am wearing navy in a medium which is loose on me so a small would have been a better fit. It’s a forgiving faux wrap style with snap closure in the front to ensure your modesty.
These Naturalizer Pointed Toe Pumps have a 2″ stable block heel and pointed toe that is sleek and comfortable. They come in black or this warm silver in narrow, medium, or wide, sizes 4-11. I’m wearing a 9 M which is plenty wide so they are roomy.
MORE NATURALIZER SHOES FOR SPECIAL OCCASIONS
Nordstrom is my favorite department store for so many reasons, not the least of which is their incredible customer service with free shipping and returns, always. I recommend joining the Nordy club here (free to join) which allows you to earn points towards notes you can use to shop plus you get free basic alterations. They also offer BOPUS, ROTUS (reserve online, try on in-store), and curbside pickup.
Do you have any special occasions coming up this spring or summer?
Thanks for reading ladies and remember to wear what makes you feel confident.
I really like the faux wrap navy dress. What is the brand!
There is a red link under the image of the dress that will take you right to it.
Love the Alex evening cocktail dress. It’s so classy and feminine. But then, they all look gorgeous on you.
You look fabulous in the Alex evening cocktail dress, blue is wonderful on you, what a stunner!
Black is not your color, but I get you want to show the LBD to others as an option too
What a great idea for a post, to focus on special occasions, expand it to include cruise wear, travel abroad, and varying outfits would be nice
Every dress I’m wearing is blue, so the lighting must have made something appear darker
You look good in all of them! I think I prefer the A-line jersey dress because it would be more versatile. You could dress it up or down for different occasions by changing shoes, jewelry, bags, wraps. Regarding an Instagram reel you made the other day, I was unable to find the link to buy the flat white belt you used to hide the pants button under your shirt. Is the belt adjustable and does it come in different sizes? Would you please supply the link? The other day you asked for input about doing more Instagram reels and I like them when they provide good info such as the belt trick. Another I enjoyed was quite a while ago when you were showing how you did your hair. Thank you.