Midi Skirt Week! Day 4, the midi pencil dress

If pairing skirts and tops sounds like too much work for you, a midi-dress is a great option.  There are a lot out there right now, including structured pencil dresses and flowy fit and flares.  I will admit that this dress is just barely "midi" on me, but it gives you an idea for what a midi pencil dress can look like.  You've seen me wear this before, once without a belt, and once with a belt, both paired with black shoes.  These taupe (my version of a "nude" given my darker skin tone) pumps are much more leg-lengthening, and I felt the lighter-colored belt and shoes helped to make the dress feel more spring-appropriate. 

There are also a lot of great dresses out there that look like a skirt and top, but which are one piece.  These are ideal for a time- and energy-strapped working mom.  See this post for a knee-length example: A made for me work dress.

(Dress: Roland Mouret for Banana Republic. They have a great black pencil skirt (on sale for $44.50) made out of the same fabric which was clearly inspired by their Roland Mouret collaboration. Shoes: Christian Louboutin from Neiman Marcus - yes, I splurged on these.  Belt: part of my fabulous hand-me-down belt collection from my mom - purchased by my dad in Argentina and made of butter-soft leather.)

ALSO, the easiest midi pencil skirt to pair is a black midi pencil skirt.  In addition to that one from Banana Republic above, I found a super-sale black midi skirt from white house black market for $19.99, and you can use extra coupon codes for more of a discount!  It's a crazy good deal and probably won't last long, but they usually restock from returns every once in a while, so it's worth checking again if they're out of your size at the moment.