Dress: Frankly Basic (old); Sunglasses: Target; Shoes: Franco Sarto (old); Clutch: In Clover (old); Earrings: H&M; Bracelets: Standard Style (old); Belt: Forever 21 (old); Lipstick: MAC Ruby Woo

I don’t know about you, but every time I have an event that calls for a dress, I turn into a crazy person. I spend hours scouring the Internet for the perfect outfit and flitting from store to store in my free time. Sometimes this works, but most often, I end up with something over-budget, not quite right or both.

Luckily, I’ve developed a new system that saves me last minute stress. As I have the money, I’ve started picking up dresses that I like as I find them. It’s been pretty life-changing. See how relaxed I look in my comfortable dress?

This summer I knew we had a few weddings and rehearsal dinners, so I kept my eyes open as I was browsing for other things. This little ikat dress was one of my finds. I bought it at the beginning of summer and nearly forgot about it (one of the few hazards to this approach).

I fell in love with the bright colors and bold ikat print. I chose a bright clutch that a dear friend got for me a few years ago. It is one of my favorite purses, and I’m always pulling it to wear with different outfits. I kept the jewelry really simple, since the dress has a lot going on and went with gold pieces I had in my jewelry box – except for the earrings. Those I bought last weekend.

With a pair of nude wedges and a skinny studded belt, this dress is ready for backyard barbeques, end of the summer concerts and girls’ night out. We only have a few warm days left, so who’s up for some summer adventures?