What I Wore to an Embassy Gala
Sharing what I wore to a black tie gala at the Italian embassy in DC this December (spoiler alert, I didn’t buy a single thing for this event!).
These outfit posts document real-life personal style on a 5’3″ size 14/16 midlife body. Since 2005, Alison Gary has shared what she actually wears to work, on weekends, while traveling, and during everyday life, offering an honest archive of how style evolves over time.
Unlike curated influencer lookbooks, these outfits reflect real closets, real budgets, and real bodies. You’ll see how pieces are reworn across seasons, how trends are adapted for women over 40, and how fit, proportion, and comfort work together in everyday dressing.
These real-life outfits serve as a visual extension of Wardrobe Oxygen’s fashion advice, showing how capsule wardrobe concepts, denim reviews, footwear recommendations, and layering techniques translate into lived experience.
If you’re searching for outfit inspiration for women over 40, midsize style ideas, curvy petite fashion, or realistic examples of how to style trends in daily life, this archive provides two decades of documented looks to explore.
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Sharing what I wore to a black tie gala at the Italian embassy in DC this December (spoiler alert, I didn’t buy a single thing for this event!).
In 2012, I was working at an office in Washington, D.C. I commuted via the Metro and every day walking to the Farragut North station, I’d pass an Ann Taylor store. That spring, I saw a chiffon maxi skirt in the window that drew me in. I had absolutely no need for such a skirt;…
I share my love for the Universal Standard Next To Naked Bodysuit regularly on Instagram. I find it so comfortable, supportive yet not restrictive, flattering (gosh, that is a loaded term) without being compressive. It’s a favorite for working from home and doing yoga, but as I shared in my Universal Standard Next to Naked…
I always look forward to Talbots in fall and winter; the fashion is so stylish, on trend, yet also classic. I was already eyeing Talbots Stretch Corduroy Pants after a recommendation by a member of the Wardrobe Oxygen Community, and I saw so many additional styles that I’d like to wear this season. I decided…
This job is a weird one, but through it, I have made some amazing friends and have experienced cool things I normally wouldn’t. Last Wednesday evening was an example of both – a great experience with a great friend and a great chance to share what I wore and why I wore this Rebecca Taylor…
As someone who has a job that offers her free clothing, I really examine what stays in my closet year after year, especially in my summer wardrobe. That which I find comfortable yet stylish, breezy and fun to wear. And below I share the dress I wear all summer long. It’s a certain fabric and…
I bought some of the newest Universal Standard linen collection and was pleasantly surprised by this petite-friendly jumpsuit!
I promise I go places other than restaurants, but when dining out, it’s a chance to dress up and have someone take my photo! So when my husband and I had a date night at the recently reopened L’Avant-Garde DC restaurant in Georgetown, I used the opportunity to wear one of the pieces I ordered…
There’s a new restaurant in the Union Market District in Washington, D.C., and the name may sound familiar to some who have dined in the Big Apple (or watched Sex and the City). Pastis, the French Restaurant in New York City’s Meatpacking District, has opened a second Pastis here in DC. I went to dinner…