All White, All White, All White & First Friendship Friday Link-up

Sorry, I couldn’t resist – Matthew McConaughey was filming in Cleveland recently.  But seriously, who doesn’t love all white in the summertime! It’s so clean…so fresh…so South of France, expensive looking.

On a recent trip to Mexico my friend and I stopped at the Blanc du Nil shop with it’s beautifully displayed, all white clothing.  My friend immediately found several pieces that looked fantastic on her!  In a moment of FOMO, I tried on and ended up buying the dress pictured below.

Wearing it to dinner while still on vacation, I quickly realized it was a mistake purchase.  The woven cotton fabric in this body skimming sheath shape shows every wrinkle!  And unlike a loose dress of cotton or linen, it doesn’t look like it’s meant to be creased.  You really can’t do much in it but stand.  So, my hunt for a white dress that’s more lifestyle-friendly continues.

Below are a few pieces I found during my search for the perfect whites!

Note: This post contains affiliate links.  For full disclosure policy, click here.

Tips for Purchasing, Maintaining & Styling Whites

1. Be mindful of the fabric you choose, per the story above!  Stiffer fabrics like linen and poplin will show wrinkles more and work better with an unstructured fit.  Knits and pontes will work better with body-con profiles.  Also, really give some thought as to whether you want the overhead of a dry clean only fabric.
2. Wash frequently so very light surface dirt doesn’t get embedded in the fabric.
3. Wash only with other whites using detergent and an optical whitener like OxyClean or Out White Bright. Mrs. Stewart’s Bluing is also popular for diminishing grey-ish tints in whites. Baking soda, borax and vinegar are more natural alternatives.
4. For spots stains, try my mom’s old technique of sprinkling the stain with kosher salt then soaking with fresh lemon juice and letting it sit in the sun.  Sometimes it takes a few applications but it usually gets out even the toughest spots.  Peroxide mixed with cream of tartar to form a paste is another good pantry-based stain remover.
5. My two favorites techniques for styling whites in the summer are to go natural by pairing with creams, tans, bronze or gold metallics, wood and straw accents OR to pair with brights (see samples below).
6. Use nude/skin tone undergarments with white and even then, be mindful of see-through fabrics.
7. Personally, I’m not a fan of white shoes other than in sneaker or espadrille form.  It just seems very hard to find leather pairs that are expensive looking.  My favorite shoe pairing for whites is the neutral, flesh toned shoe.  (see my favorite, the 9 West Leisa below or the deluxe version, Stuart Weitzman’s NuNaked)

Welcome to the Friendship Friday blog hop!

We are open to all blogging niches and would love to have you join us. This blog hop will run through Sunday, July 2, 2017 at 11:59 PM.

To participate:

1. Please follow your host NattyGal on at least ONE of the following social outlets (Bloglovin’, Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook or Twitter)
2. Link up to 3 of your own posts where it says “Click here to enter” (linkup to your blog post and not your main page).
3. Copy the code that comes up where it says “Get Code Here” and add that to the end of your post in the text (not visual) section. You will then see the blog hop on your own site too!
4. Please comment on at least the same number of other bloggers as posts that you link up (i.e., link 1 of your posts, comment on at least 1 other blogger’s post).
5. By adding your links, you are stating that you have the proper licensing/rights to the images in your blog posts.
6. Enjoy the linkup and meeting some new blogger friends!

NOTE: Blogs that violate the comment policy listed here will be removed.