May 31, 2011

Fairytale Reality

Thank you all for your well wishes on my exams, and your wishes must have done something, because my French exam went by wonderfully.  My exam was on Monday, but I didn't blog at all this past week because grad was on Saturday, and grad prep takes time!  Grad is one of those times that most girls look towards as a time to transform themselves into princesses, and to go all out and release their inner girl.  Two girls from my school did end up looking like princesses with pink ballroom gowns and tiaras, and others surprised me with how they rid of their usual casual attire, and donned floor length dresses

However, I didn't end up getting the full dress shopping experience, as I actually borrowed dresses for both the ceremony and banquet.  I didn't want to spend a lot of money on grad (university itself is expensive enough), and so all in all, I spent a total of $16 on my entire grad look, which went towards a curling iron.

Even though I had a graduation gown overtop my dress for the majority of the ceremony, I still wanted to look put together underneath the gown.  For my ceremony dress, I went with classic black, but in a sexier way with a strapless, lacy, body-con dress.  Nonetheless, to keep it appropriate for the formality of the occasion, I put on a black cardigan and pulled on some black tights.
Dress: Unknown (Borrowed)
Cardigan: Prada (Gift)
Shoes: Tahari
Necklace: Unknown (Gift)
Crystal Earrings: Fifth Avenue Collection (Gift)
Tights: Unknown

My friends too, of course, took the occasion to dress up:
The grad ceremony, while long and drawn out, was a memorable moment of pride.  It was a culmination of three years of hard work into a precious couple of seconds on stage.  It was a celebration of all 704 graduating students, and it marked the beginning of each and every one of our future endeavors.

Despite the importance of the ceremony, all the girls were truly looking forward to the banquet.  The banquet was our chance to live our very own fairytale.  At the beginning of the year, I knew that I did not want the typical satiny, embellished, jewel-toned grad gown.  I had it clear in my mind that I wanted an angelic or ethereal dress.  My morning outfit was black and body-con, but my evening outfit would have to exude quiet, innocent beauty (somewhat of a reversal, is it not?).  So with that in mind, I went with a silver, delicately sequined dress.  The theme of my outfit was subtle sparkle.
Dress: Unknown (Borrowed)
Shoes: Feet First
Shawl: Tricot de Crayon
Clutch: Aldo (Borrowed)
Necklace and Bracelet: Unknown (Gift)
Earrings: Anne Klein
I wanted it so that you wouldn't quite realize the full potential of my outfit until you saw me moving underneath the light.  And it turns out that the idea worked, as I was complimented twice more on my dress as I danced later in the evening.  This idea extended to my nails as well; I decided to forgo coloured nails for simple, clear polish.  Again, it would only be up close before you realize the polish on my nails.  To pump it up and add a bit of colour, I went with purple accessories.  By the way, these are simply home photos, so the quality isn't at its best, and this was my first time curling my hair, so that's not at its best either.
You'll notice that I wasn't wearing heels, and that's because I couldn't find a good pair of heels I was willing to spend money on.  A lot of my friends were telling me to wear heels, but after I spent the evening dancing in my flats and then could still walk briskly back to my car, I was glad I didn't wear too crazy a pair of heels.  Below is a photo of my friend and chief editor of the school newspaper.  She's read all of my fashion articles this year, and when she saw me in flats, exclaimed that she was disappointed, knowing how I am.  Haha!
And then there was my friend who looked fabulous in a dress made by her mom, inspired by Versace's latest Resort collection:
But all my friends looked fantastic that night, with the majority of them actually in full length dresses!
After an entire year of anticipation, grad finally flew by in a day.  In a way, I wish grad could last and last forever, but no amount of time would be sufficient enough to make the last day of school with my classmates any less emotional.

34 comments:

  1. omygosh! so this is the Angelica I was talking all those months and monthsss??...I have'nt seen you from any of your blogs and thanks for sharing your beauty and revealing (atleast to me)your beautiful face..and I am glad that you took off time to do what is necessary, and here you are proud to finish your studies and achieving another level of success!You look gorgeous in all your dresses even in those flats on (which I bet is surprising!)Congratulations!=)

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  2. Congrats dear! I love the gray dress you're wearing.

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  3. though it's my first time here in your blog, i say, congratulations! and you look so pretty and sweet in the gray dress :)

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  4. Hey ! you're really lovely !!!
    http://selenite.weebly.com

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  5. Both of the dresses you selected are just stunning! I can never resist the chance to dress up either!

    Congratulations on graduating, Angelica!! :)

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  6. Congratulations! I love that silver dress, you look gorgeous :)

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  7. GREEEEEEAT thanks to share those important pictures with us :)
    You looked pretty and cute.

    Congrats!

    See you :)

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  8. You are so adorable! Congratulations ... such an exciting time! Love the dresses that you chose, so perfect, but for the Red-Soled Fashionista, would we expect anything less than exquisite taste? ;) Thanks, sweetie, for stopping by Ooh La Frou Frou ... left you a little note in response right here: http://tiny.cc/75v04 .. have a wonderful week! xoxo

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  9. CONGRATULATIONS!!!! I a soo happy for you, and you look fantastic!!!!!

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  10. I'm happy that you passed in a good way your exam and I find your looks beautiful especially because you didn't need to spend a lot of money and you look really cool, so this is only your talent and not the "help" of a "high fashion piece" ;D

    http://fashiondoesntexist.blogspot.com/

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  11. great look !!!

    Have you seen my look of today ?
    http://v-fashionwise.blogspot.com/

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  12. Hi Angelica! I'm so glad to see your pictures and Congratulations on your exams!! The sequin dress is so beautiful on you and I love that it's not too shiny and overwhelming but has the right amount of sparkle! You are a talented writer and I hope to read more of your posts soon! xoxoxoo

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  13. Congratulations on your exams. That 2nd dress is just so beautiful!! :)SarahD

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  14. Congrats lovely, you look stunning in your pretty dress.

    xoxo

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  15. Congratulations again! You look stunning in that gray dress :) I'm so happy for you and glad you french exams went well. Enjoy these moments before heading out into the work force! XOXO

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  16. The big day!! Wow, congratulations! And kudos for creating two stunning looks with just $16. I especially love the evening outfit--it looks exactly like it came just out of a fairytale, and you look fabulous! The shawl is amazing. Your friends look great too, especially the one in the hand-sewn dress (her mom ought to become a designer!) http://thearcenciel.blogspot.com/

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  17. What a great post - congratulations!!! I love the subtle sparkle theme - the dress was fantastic ad I really liked the throw/cardigan you had. Hope you had a fabulous evening!!

    www.styleonthecouch.wordpress.com

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  18. I think you look totally beautiful in both looks!!

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  19. You look awesome on the gray dress. Congrats!
    :D

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  20. haha how nice that you spent so little on your grad but you still look AMAZING! that's the best :D and yea you spent enough in school tuition already why spent more on school huh ;) CONGRATS HUN!

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  21. you and your friends looks pretty lovely pictures

    http://lovmoviee.blogspot.com/

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  22. looking GREAT! xo

    xx.M

    www.bellesandrebelles.blogspot.com

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  23. You're welcome honey!! You and your friends look fantastic!!! :D

    xx

    Have a nice weekend! :)

    www.sickbytrend.com

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  24. Congratulations! you look so great in both those dresses. i especially love that lacy shawl you're wearing over the second one. i think it's really smart to borrow fancy dresses, because you don't get to wear them very often and i usually end up wearing mine only once!

    spinning-threads.blogspot.com

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  25. Congrats on graduating. I love your outfit for both the ceremony and banquet. You look so pretty. The dress for the banquet is gorgeous.

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  26. Congrats on graduating! I really like the sparkly dress and the Versace inspired dress your friend is wearing is gorgeous too. Looks like you had a great time at the party!

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  27. Wow, lovely outfits! Everyone looks so beautiful and it all looks so fun!

    xo
    Rachel

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  28. So much congratulations! I am so happy for you!
    And I love your dresses, especially the 2nd one, you look gorgeous
    Thanks for visiting!

    xoxo Sootjeelina <3

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  29. Congrats, you look lovely. It looks like you had a wonderful day. And thank you for sharing it with all of us in those wonderful pictures.
    -Madeleine
    P.S. I didn't wear heels for my commencement ceremony either. I wore oxfords because I like its scholarly vibe. Plus the ceremony was held outside at a park with a steep incline. I didn't want to fall.

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  30. First, congrats!! You look so lovely in all your dresses. I also think you made an excellent decision in wearing flats! I did the same as well. The last thing you want to worry about is tripping when you go to get your diploma!

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