Do you ever buy something and then instantly regret? Like, the moment you walk out the store, you have this feeling in the pit of your stomach that spending your money on it was a mistake and that you’re never actually going to make use of it?

That was me when I initially bought this dress.

This dress was one of those spur-of-the-moment, this-deal-is-way-too-good-to-pass-up buys. Spotting this little number on a clearance rack for only $5 or $6, I thought I had to have it.

Which, for the record, I totally blame it on the deal. Without a doubt, the price tag of a clothing possesses the ability to drastically influence my opinion of said clothing item. If I see  that something I like is too pricey, it suddenly looks a lot less cute. Likewise, if I see something that I’m sort of on-the-fence about that’s being offered for a low price, it becomes a lot more interesting to me. Call it psychology or my (borderline too strong) affinity for a good sale. Nevertheless, I digress.

Anyway, I bought this dress on a nonrefundable clearance rack a couple years back. And I knew it was going to be one of those pieces that I bought and never wore. It wasn’t that I didn’t like the dress or wasn’t excited about the deal; I just didn’t really have a reason to wear it. So, I didn’t.

The dress ended up staying tucked away in my closet for a lot longer than I’m proud to admit. Pushed to the very back of my closet and concealed by pieces that I wore a lot more frequently, the dress was completely forgotten about. Until recently, when I needed a dressier outfit to wear for a nice event. Sorting through my clothes to find the perfect thing to wear, I realized that I might actually be able to make use of this dress. Hence, this OOTD was born.

For this look, I paired this paisley printed olive green dress with a bold statement necklace, tights, and booties. By this point, you’re probably well aware that I love a good statement necklace. When you put a statement necklace with the right outfit, it really ties the whole look together. This one is made up of these pretty, teardrop-style gems. It’s super cute, and it goes well with the black paisley print on the dress.

To round out the look, I added a pair of simple gray tights and black booties. The tights have a subtle downward stripe print that I really like. And the booties are stylish and incredibly comfortable.

OUTFIT DETAILS:

DRESS (similar): Michael Kors

SHOES: Vionic

NECKLACE (similar): Statement Baubles

TIGHTS (similar): Express

I’m really glad to have finally made use of this dress, which I now realize wasn’t the useless thing hanging in my closet that I once thought it was. I’m definitely going to have to go through all my clothes sometime in the near future, and see if there are any other hidden gems that I’ve been neglecting!

Do you have anything sitting in your closet that you haven’t made use of? 

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