Dressember 2021

Dressember begins tomorrow and this is your annual reminder that it’s bigger than a dress!

Yes, Dressember is a style challenge, and I participate in Dressemberbound, which combines the challenge of wearing a dress (or tie) every day for the month of December with Disneybound prompts.

Last year I wore the same five or six dresses all month long, primarily wearing my white dress and a red dress. This year I wanted to further challenge myself – and to inspire more conversation around why I’m wearing a dress every day – so I decided to wear just one dress for the whole month!

In all fairness, I’m a stay at home mom and don’t go very many places so my presence is mainly online (follow my Instagram here).

I’m also making this commitment because of the impact fast fashion on the human trafficking network. Many of the people making the garments we buy for inexpensive and wear only once or twice are underpaid and in poor working conditions or worse. Last year I was committed to not buying anything new, this year I am going to style the same dress 31 ways to show that anyone can do this challenge – even with a smaller wardrobe.

So follow along, and if you’d like to donate, participate, or learn more, click here!

Dressember – Days 13-16

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For the month of December I committed to wearing a dress each day for Dressember, a fundraiser to support the elimiation of human trafficking world-wide (you can read my post about Dressember here if you’d like to learn more: Dressember).

I joined a group of Disneybounders and we followed prompts to dress for the month. Here are the prompts:

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Today I’m looking back at days 13-16 to talk about my outfit choices.

Day 13 – Freebie

I was lucky that freebie day fell on the day of my  work Holiday Lunch as we were planning to wear our “ugly sweaters” that day. I ended up getting this adorable “ugly sweater” dress to wear (even though unforeseen circumstances prevented me from wearing it all day).

Day 14 – Winnie the Pooh Characters

This was a real exciting day for me because I had wanted to do a Kanga and Roo Disneybound since before my daughter was born! I wore my tan dress and put my daughter in her blue outfit and held her in my soft carrier. It was probably one of my favorite ‘bounds of the month!

Day 15 – The Emperor’s New Groove

I decided to Disneybound as Kronk for day 15 because I had the best purple dress and only had to pair my blue cardigan and yellow scarf to complete the look. It was both simple and effective and a lot of fun 🙂

Day 16 – Tarzan characters

I was seriously torn when trying to decide on my choice of Tarzan character. I initially thought I’d choose Jane and wear my yellow dress, but when the day arrived I decided I would feel much more comfortable in my black dress and decided to go with Terk. I then added grey leggings for her grey fur and my black boots to finish it off.

Thanks for following along!

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Dressember – Days 9-12

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For the month of December I committed to wearing a dress each day for Dressember, a fundraiser to support the elimiation of human trafficking world-wide (you can read my post about Dressember here if you’d like to learn more: Dressember).

I joined a group of Disneybounders and we followed prompts to dress for the month. Here are the prompts:

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Today I’m looking back at days 9-12 to talk about my outfit choices.

Day 9 – Star Wars

I’m not really into Star Wars so I was low on ideas for this day. Additionally, it was my cousin’s wedding so I needed a pretty fancy dress. I actually was inspired by a dress @gryffmintdor made for a C3PO Disneybound and though I’m definitely not as talented as she is, I realized I had a gold dress that I could turn into a low-key C3PO Disneybound. The gold dress was from @reenie112‘s Masquerade birthday party last year and I basically wore the exact same outfit but without the mask.

Day 10 – Rulebreaker

I took the day after my cousin’s wedding off of work so I figured something low-key for rulebreaker day would be nice. It felt like a bit of a cop-out because I’ve done quite a few Hufflepuff closet cosplays at this point and they tend to be pretty similar, but it was comfy, easy, and good for being home with my daughter. I used a black dress that is actually a nursing dress and my favorite yellow sweater again. I added my Hufflepuff bracelets and golden snitch necklace and was good to go.

Day 11 – The Princess and the Frog

I love frogs. There are so many characters in The Princess and the Frog that I could have chosen but I just had to pull out my frog accessories (in this case, frog ring) and Disneybound as Prince Naveen. I wore a dress that I had used previously in both a Mulan and a Wilderness Explorer Disneybound, paired with a green sweater and, of course, my frog ring.

Day 12 – Fab Five

I love the Fab Five and since I hadn’t done a Goofy Disneybound recently, I decided to pull out my orange dress and bring back my black sweater to represent the big goof! I wore my hair in pony tails for his ears and added my green headband to represent his hat. I then wore my brown boots and took some very Goofy photos 🙂

Thanks for following along!

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Dressember – Days 5-8

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For the month of December I committed to wearing a dress each day for Dressember, a fundraiser to support the elimiation of human trafficking world-wide (you can read my post about Dressember here if you’d like to learn more: Dressember).

I joined a group of Disneybounders and followed prompts to dress for the month. Here are the prompts:

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Today I’m looking back at days 5-8 to talk about my outfit choices.

Day 5 – Animal Character

The animal character I chose for day 5 was Maid Marian because I love Robin Hood and had what was basically the perfect outfit for her. I bought this light purple dress two years ago for a Rapunzel ‘bound and after doing said ‘bound, thought how much it actually reminded me of Maid Marian. I have no idea what happened to my pink sweater that I wore for it but had the idea of wearing a long sleeved pink shirt under the dress. Well, I couldn’t find the pink shirt I wanted to wear either but I found this one in my drawer and realized it was so much better than either of the other two options! The necklace I wore was I think bought for a Pocahontas Disneybound a few years ago as well. Put together, these items formed a Maid Marian Disneybound I am very proud of.

Day 6 – The Little Mermaid

For The Little Mermaid day I wanted to do something different. I thought it would be fun to Disneybound as one of Ariel’s sisters so I looked at images and then chose Aquata. Aquata has a blue tail and top and wears pearls in her hair. I have a blue nursing dress and even though it’s striped, I still felt it worked well enough for her. I then paired that with a blue sweater and some costume pearls.

Day 7 – Any Princess

For me, this was one of the most difficult categories because I’ve done almost every princess in my Disneybound Princess series about two years ago and just didn’t feel like repeating them. I also wanted a new look with a dress I already owned. Pretty last minute (like, I woke up that morning and made the decision) I remembered Jasmine’s market look and so I tried my take on her. I used my really cozy brown sweater dress and a scarf that I got for my cousin’s bachelorette party (we all wore matching scarves, it was really cute) and braided my hair. I threw it together quickly but I really wanted to go for comfort and think it still came out great.

Day 8 – The Lion King 

This was one of my favorites and I thought of it pretty quickly. The colors were pretty much perfect for Scar and I had this long black sweater and a necklace that went wonderfully with it from years ago so I was so happy to be able to use it.

Thanks for following along!

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Dressember – Days 1-4

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For the month of December I committed to wearing a dress each day for Dressember, a fundraiser to support the elimiation of human trafficking world-wide (you can read my post about Dressember here if you’d like to learn more: Dressember).

I joined a group of Disneybounders and we followed prompts to dress for the month. Here are the prompts:

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Today I’m looking back at days 1-4 to talk about my outfit choices.

Day 1 – Marvel

I chose Marvel Girl/Jean Grey because (1) I love the X-Men and Marvel Girl is part of the OG crew and (2) I really wanted to wear this green dress because we were going to the Annual Christmas Parade in my town. The only thing I added was my X-Men belt from @thebrothersyeecosplay that I bought for a Con over a year ago (this is not an ad but their belt buckles are awesome and can be customized so I was able to pick what colors I wanted where and it came out exactly how I wanted it).

Day 2 – Beauty and the Beast

I love Beauty and the Beast so I have done many Belle Disneybounds in the past. This time I decided to shake things up (even though I have two perfect dresses for Belle) and selected Babette (I think she’s also called Plumette in the new movie). I always liked Babette even though she has only a small part in the movie. I also love her because my mom’s maiden name is Plumeau which literally means “feather-duster” so this could have been one of my long-lost relatives (LOL). On 12/2 we were attending my cousin’s son’s first birthday party so I wanted to wear my favorite sweater-dress and it fit perfectly as a Babette ‘bound. I added a black and white statement necklace I got for my birthday to bring all the colors together.

Day 3 – Brave

I decided to Disneybound as Merida for the Brave prompt since I had the perfect outfit already. I had a dress in just the right blue-green shade and a plaid that looked perfect with it which I wore around my waist. I added my arrow necklace and arrow bracelet to bring it all together.

Day 4 – Your Favorite Character

My favorite character has always been Peter Pan so I absolutely had to Disneybound as him for day 4. I wore one of my (many) green dresses and my Cakeworthy Never Grow Up flannel shirt. I also wore my red feather and stars earrings that I put together specifically for Peter Pan Disneybounds a few years ago. I always love the way my Peter Pan Disneybounds turn out and this was no exception!

Thanks for following along!

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Dressember – Days 28-31

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For the month of December I have committed to wearing a dress each day for Dressember, a fundraiser to support the elimiation of human trafficking world-wide (you can read my post about Dressember here if you’d like to learn more: Dressember).

I joined a group of Disneybounders and we are following prompts to dress for the month. Here are the prompts:

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Today I’m looking back at days 28-31 to talk about my outfit choices.

Day 28 – Pixar Characters

I was really torn for Pixar day. I initially thought about Disneybounding as the Pixar ball, but then I figured it wasn’t necessarily a character (and I wore my yellow dress the day prior). Instead, I decided to look back on my Pixar Disneybounds from the summer for inspiration. When I did, I realized that one of my favorite Disneybounds was WALL-E and it included my black and white striped dress – perfect for Dressember! I, again, used my favorite yellow cardigan ( the true hero of my closest) and the Earth necklace that I got doing a scavenger hunt on Earth Day! This is an outfit I’m sure to repeat over and over because it’s both cute and comfortable.

Day 29 – Park Attraction

Park Attraction is a difficult one. I’ve Disneybounded a few so far – Rocking Rollercoaster, Living with the Land, “It’s a small world”, and even the Country Bears Jamboree – but none of those involved a dress. I also wanted an attraction that is meaningful to me, does not stem from a Disney movie, and is not similar to anything else I’ve done this month. That led me to Figment. My friend Reenie put together an awesome Disneybound of Figment for Dapper Day last spring ( that you can check out here) and I knew I had the perfect purple dress to wear for it. The only thing I didn’t have was orange accessories. I was at a loss. I started thinking about how I bought my daughter every color headband there is and how I wish they fit me so we could share. I then realized that I didn’t have to wear her headband as a headband to accessorize, I could use it more like a scrunchie! So yes, I borrowed an accessory from my almost 6-month old daughter.

Day 30 – Finding Nemo/Dory

I absolutely love both Finding Nemo and Finding Dory and I actually chose this theme for my birthday back in April so I knew immediately what I was going to wear! I bought my orange dress, black and white necklace, and black and white belt for my birthday and wore it all again, with my black and white circle earrings (because they reminded me of bubles) and my black and white striped headband for a Nemo Disneybound. Since this was basically a repeat of a good one I did a few months ago, I didn’t have much to think through but it is comfortable and perfect for a relaxing Sunday at home!

Day 31 – Cinderella Characters

I thought this prompt was sort of ironic because I had Disneybounded as Cinderella on New Year’s Eve two years ago as well. I cleaned in her “rags” look and then I went out in her “ball” look. I obviously didn’t want to do exactly the same thing again, but I still wanted to Disneybound as Cinderella. I remembered I have a denim dress (technically it’s maternity) that would go great with my black choker necklace and some blue leggings and, of course, my Cinderella Toms. I used my daughter’s trick-or-treat bag as a pumpkin purse and I was ready for midnight! We spent New Year’s at a friend’s house for a quiet, child-friendly time.

Thanks for following along!

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Dressember – Days 24-27

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For the month of December I have committed to wearing a dress each day for Dressember, a fundraiser to support the elimiation of human trafficking world-wide (you can read my post about Dressember here if you’d like to learn more: Dressember).

I joined a group of Disneybounders and we are following prompts to dress for the month. Here are the prompts:

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Today I’m looking back at days 24-27 to talk about my outfit choices.

Day 24 – The Aristocats

I knew I wanted to Disneybound as either Marie or Duchess for The Aristocats day because I have a great white sweater dress that I wanted to wear for Christmas Eve. In the morning we were relaxing and my daughter was in a white onesie so I put her pink bow on her so she could be the Marie to my Duchess. I added a gold headband to my outfit to symbolize Duchess’s collar.

Day 25 – The Sword in the Stone

I’ve never seen The Sword in the Stone so I didn’t really know what character I would want to Disneybound as for this day but then I saw Madam Mim. With her purple top and pink bottom she reminded me so much of my Dapper Day Disneybound of the Cheshire Cat. I knew I had just the outfit for her. Since I needed to incorporate a dress into this outfit, I used my purple nursing dress (the same one I wore as the Evil Queen) and then layered my pink skirt from Dapper Day last year over it.

Day 26 – Peter Pan Characters

Peter Pan is my favorite Disney movie and I have done numerous Disneybounds from the movie already so this is both difficult and easy. I wanted to be comfortable for the day after Christmas since I was planning on relaxing all day. I decided on a Tiger Lily Disneybound with my tan dress and fringed vest. I used a pink necklace for the top of her dress and wore my hair in pigtails. It was both comfortable and warm!

Day 27 – Big Hero 6

I still haven’t seen Big Hero Six, but I decided to Disneybound as Honey Lemon because I always love a yellow dress. I put my favorite yellow cardigan over it and my white tights under it and was good to go! The only thing that would have made this better would have been if I had pulled out my old red framed glasses (from like 5 years ago).

Thanks for following along!

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Dressember – Days 21-23

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For the month of December I have committed to wearing a dress each day for Dressember, a fundraiser to support the elimiation of human trafficking world-wide (you can read my post about Dressember here if you’d like to learn more: Dressember).

I joined a group of Disneybounders and we are following prompts to dress for the month. Here are the prompts:

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Today I’m looking back at days 21-23 to talk about my outfit choices.

Day 21 – Snow White Characters

Since I was the Evil Queen for Villains day, for Snow White day I decided to be the princess herself. I chose the yellow dress I wore for my baby shower back in May and my blue cardigan. I then layered my red scarf on top and added my red headband.

Day 22 – The Three Caballeros

The Three Caballeros, for anyone unfamiliar with them, consist of Donald Duck, José Carioca, and Panchito Pistoles. José Carioca is a friend of Donald’s from Brazil and Panchito Pistoles is a friend of Donald’s from Mexico. Since we were going to my aunt’s for a holiday party, I had planned on wearing my green dress and Disneybounding as José Carioca. I pulled my yellow cardigan over it and black scarf to represent his bow tie. That morning I realized my daughter had a red dress and could Disneybound with me as Panchito Pistoles and my husband happened to be wearing a blue shirt so I pulled him in as Donald Duck. Together we could all be The Three Caballeros!

Day 23 – Disney Holiday Style

My initial idea for Disney Holiday Style was to Disneybound as Minnie Mouse during the parade at Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party. I have the best holiday dress that is cream on top and red lacy on the bottom. I also wore my green holiday bow necklace to draw in the green bow Minnie is wearing. I was so excited at how great this came out but because we were having sort of a casual night, I decided to change into something more comfortable.

My daughter has this pretty red buffalo plaid dress and I had bought a red buffalo plaid sweater to wear with her. I wore the sweater over my black dress and we turned it into a Disneybound of Donald Duck during Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party. It was pretty simple, but I loved how they both turned out!

Thanks for following along!

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Dressember – Days 17-20

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For the month of December I have committed to wearing a dress each day for Dressember, a fundraiser to support the elimiation of human trafficking world-wide (you can read my post about Dressember here if you’d like to learn more: Dressember).

I joined a group of Disneybounders organized by Courtney at @libraryladylife and we are following prompts to dress for the month. Here are the prompts:

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Today I’m looking back at days 17-20 to talk about my outfit choices.

Day 17 – Fantasia

Fantasia is one of my favorite movies from when I was a child because it always reminds me of my grandparents. It was one of the only kids movies they owned so we would watch it a lot at their house. I’ve always wanted to Disneybound as Sorcerer Mickey, but I never had the right outfit. When I woke up the day before this prompt I remembered this red dress that I had – it was a little fancy but it worked well for Sorcerer Mickey. I then paired it with my trusty blue cardigan and blue leggings and topped it all off with my star necklace.

Day 18 – Inside Out

Inside Out day was sort of a no-brainer for me because I Disneybounded as Disgust last year for Dapper Day. This meant I already had the perfect dress and pink neck scarf for the look. I also pulled out a pair of green leggings and my pink sweater (because it’s colder in PA/NJ than FL). I added a throwback photo from last year because I am still so proud of how great Reenie, Dom, and I looked on Dapper Day last year as Fear, Anger, and Disgust meeting Joy and Sadness at Epcot.

Day 19 – Mary Poppins Returns Characters

I have not yet seen Mary Poppins Returns so this made Disneybounding a little difficult for 12/19. At the beginning of the month I tried to plan out most of my outfits and so I tried to google image search anything from the new movie. In some of the movie posters Mary was wearing a blue coat and in some a red coat. Since I have an amazing red dress coat, I chose to wear my blue dress with my red dress coat over it. I also added my blue polka dot scarf since she is wearing a lot of polka dots in the movie posters. I was happy with how it came out – now I just have to watch the movie!

Day 20 – Disney Villains

I chose the Evil Queen for 12/20 because I had dressed up as her for Halloween this year and could easily transform my costume into a Disneybound. Instead of a black cape, I layered my long black sweater over the same purple dress I wore on Halloween. I then pinned the apple brooch to my sweater, traded my crown for a gold headband, and added some black leggings (because it’s COLD!).

Thanks for following along!

For more:

Dressember

I was introduced to Dressember by a fellow Disneybounder [in 2018] when she invited me to participate and be a part of her team. Dressember is an organization that’s purpose is to put an end to Human Trafficking / Modern Day Slavery.

When I first checked out their website, I thought “wow, that’s a really difficult thing to accomplish”, but I was interested in learning more. In college I did a lot more outreach and social justice work and to me, this felt like a pull back to my roots. There are many causes that have caught my attention before, one being hunger and homelessness, and this seemed to go hand-in-hand with outreach I had previously done. Not saying that hunger and homelessness directly correlates to human trafficking, but it can be a cause or effect of someone being trafficked. For example, many traffickers attract their targets by advertising that they provide meals and/or shelter for a job performed. This is usually misrepresentation and is one of the many ways people are lured into the human trafficking rings. Additionally, victims who finally get out, can find themselves in a dire situation, having no one to turn to. What the organizations partnering with Dressember do is provide outreach to victims such as after-care kits as well as bigger benefits like funding rescue missions. In this way, I felt it aligned to my values and would enable me to help others – even in a small way.

The concept of Dressember is to wear a dress or tie every day for the month of December to raise awareness and fund-raise for these organizations that are helping victims of human trafficking. The idea of adding fashion also promotes staying away from “fast fashion” (where workers could be overworked and underpaid) and leaning towards reusing what we have, thrifting what we don’t, and if necessary to buy, buying fair trade. So, in addition to wearing a dress every day this month, I am also only using clothing I already own.


Give me a follow to see my new posts and follow me on Instagram to see all of my Dressember ‘bounds this month: @rogue_princess_

If you have an interest in donating to Dressember, please visit my fundraiser site here: https://dressember2022.funraise.org/fundraiser/julianne-bavaro