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Another fan here! I won't be solo cruising as I'm married and my husband likes to travel as much as I do, but if I were single I feel like reading this would definitely be the kind of encouragement I'd need to go it alone and just go and have a blast. And of course as a fellow fashionista, I loved your outfits and that you got put together every night for dinner. Hope to see more reviews from you soon!

There are 2 very different philosophies for packing: Minimalists take neutral shorts/Capris (white, black or khaki) and a couple tops in various colors for daytime/casual. Dinner clothes consist of neutrals also, with different accessories to change the look.

Maximists make a spreadsheet and take a completely different outfit for each activity for each day...nice if flying isn't part of your travel plans.

 

So JediMom, Terryd444, laurspag: If you are cruising from Florida, short sleeves and shorts should be good for daytime. 5-7 days: 3 pairs of shorts/Capris and 5 or 6 tops (sleeves and/or sleeveless) will give you enough changes. It's always a good idea to have a lightweight white cardigan or light jacket. It goes with everything and keeps you warm in air conditioning.

Dining rooms are a little cool for me, so if I wear a sundress or strapless top to dinner, a Bolero-type cardigan keeps me comfortable.

You could take nice neutral ankle pants for dinner and wear them a couple times with different tops. The other people at your table notice what you're wearing from the waist up, but don't see what's on your lower half.

 

wrcjr98: My local Old Navy store closed recently:confused: - too bad. I really like the photo you posted of the anchor-print shirt! It would be a nice addition to any Cruise Closet:cool:. Thanks for sharing!

To add onto these suggestions, if you do bring dresses, remember that many of them can then double as a skirt if you bring shirts within the same color pallete that can be worn on top. One of my tricks is to wear a sundress to dinner one night then use it as a skirt (with a shirt worn over the top) a day or so later.

"Revealing Clothing" is a subjective term. To some, a woman not in a burka is wearing "revealing clothing." Just saying.

Relevant Kate Beaton comic:

Wow that dress is amazing!! The color is fantastic and I love those ruffles!

My husband and I are cruising NCL so we don't have any mandatory formal nights but if we cruise on another line, we look forward to it. We're still planning on gussying up though because we both really enjoy it. As far as being overdressed goes.. I learned to take a page out of the hub's book. If you feel good, there's really only good stuff to come out of being "overdressed" because it makes you look important :D

I don't tsktsk anyone, my point was just that I think us ladies get bombarded a lot as it is with media and such telling us how we should look or be and lots of people judgjng us no matter what we do and it makes me sad to see women do that to eachother. It's unfortunate that impress was used in the titla and that anyone was hurt by that, I just gotta say everyone should do what makes them happy and that's what matters! Style preference is just that afterall, a preference!

Arhillbilly, I love looking through your posts on this sub! You always have such lovely dresses!

Ordered a red dress today and am now on the hunt for cute maxi dresses!

I think it's just as immature and inappropriate to negatively judge women who "dress to impress" as it is to judge people who dress for comfort. I would never, ever look at a person who was dressed for comfort and assume they are a slob or that they have some character flaw. I think judging a person by their looks whether they're gussied up or dressed down says a lot more about the person doing the judging than anything. I am a little taken aback by some of the comments :(

Moving on though.. my normal sense of style is rather "classic" that veers from time to time into retro. I really like wearing dresses because I find them so comfy and they make me feel very feminine. I always make sure I'm put together with hair, makeup, and a coordinated outfit but it's usually simple. I'd say the one way I go "above and beyond" for my husband is that I wear cute nighties to bed, never sweatpants and tshirts. As far as impressing other cruisers, my aim is to keep me and the hubs happy but I love getting inspired by other women's attire or talking shop about styles we like, good deals, etc. My husband is as into fashion as I am so it's always been a feature in our relationship!