<p>You can definitely wash that dress, Fireandrain. Use your washer’s gentle or handwash cycle - cold water and make sure the dress is INSIDE OUT. Hang to dry and touch up, again inside out, with a cool iron. </p>
<p>I guarantee it will look perfect for several washings.</p>
<p>^Very cute dress. I would just wash it by hand and hang dry. It will probably be fine.</p>
<p>Just bought black crops at Gap - on sale for $35.</p>
<p>What a nice dress, fireandrain! I completely agree with Gourmetmom and MomLive - this dress should survive many washes. Just don’t put it in a dryer.</p>
<p>I have been using the one product by Tide that is supposed to be particularly good for dark clothing and I do think it helps. Ditto on the inside out, cold water & line dry. I also use very, very little laundry detergent and a large mesh bag for things like knits so they don’t get balled up in the washer. </p>
<p>Just got a new dryer. My old maytag finally conked out at over 30 years. Good dryer, but I also use my dryer sparingly. I think my clothing stays nice much longer because I line dry so many things. I swear by those heavily padded hangers.</p>
<p>I’m bumping this link that I posted a bit back - it is really interesting about a Levi Straus guy recommending against washing jeans at all or at the most every six months:</p>
<p>[Caring</a> for Your Jeans - WSJ.com](<a href=“Caring for Your Jeans - WSJ”>Caring for Your Jeans - WSJ)</p>
<p>Ewww!!! Imagine how stinky those Levi’s are! Ewww!!! My DH thinks pants should last at least a week without washing. I nod in agreement and discretely wash his pants after 2-3 days of wear - he does not even notice! :)</p>
<p>^ LOL, Bunsen - my daughter and I just laughed because her big brother definitely goes at least a semester without washing his jeans. What we don’t understand is how they don’t get too stretched out of shape without EVER washing.</p>
<p>I read the jeans article, sewhappy, and also thought that guy was a little on the strange side. My mom used to make a joke about some item of clothing being so dirty it could stand up by itself in the corner…he could have a whole row of jeans standing up by themselves.</p>
<p>I wear my jeans a good few times before washing, always use only a little detergent, and always line dry. They never fade or get worn. I line dry almost all my clothes.</p>
<p>Woolite makes a detergent for dark clothes. That may help keep the dress nice. Seconding the suggestion to turn it inside out. DO NOT put it in the dryer. Kiss of death for fading.</p>
<p>Cute dress. I would think you could wear it alot.</p>
<p>Yesterday I received a 8 page or so advertisement from Ann Taylor LOFT. I think of this store as a place where my 21 year old daughter might shop, but I might shop as well - not too trendy.</p>
<p>The models in the ad looked not a day over 17!!! Seriously! </p>
<p>Am I off in my frame of mind about this store?</p>
<p>Anyone have any recommendations for flats? I need a couple of pair to wear while my knees are recovering. I found one pair by Report, that are so comfortable, and still look ok to wear to work. They work for me because the material is super soft, so nothing digs into my feet. I have really wide feet, so I find that the softer the material, the better luck I have in being able to wear them. I think I could do a kitten heel, if the material is soft enough.</p>
<p>Hmmm…I have some great stuff from AT and AT Loft. A business suit. Cropped pants. A cropped denim jacket. A few nice tops. So maybe it’s just the catalog that’s edgy? There’s some “young” stuff in their stores but IMO plenty of stuff for middle aged women who are looking to stay away from the “mom jeans” look.</p>
<p>For flat shoes, anything by Born is going to be super comfortable, great quality, and last forever. You can usually find them at DSW. Zappos has them, however I wouldn’t recommend buying them for the first time without trying a pair on. If you are disciplined enough, you can buy two sizes and return one with free shipping…effort needed.</p>
<p>I know Toneranger! That’s what I’m thinking - it just stunned me when I went through each page and the models were BABIES!</p>
<p>Ditto, Born, my favorite brand!</p>
<p>I wear a lot of stuff from Ann Taylor Loft (and I’m 53). My office is “business casual”. I look at the clothes in their ads but have honestly never even noticed the models.</p>
<p>I also shop at Ann Taylor Loft (I’m 48). There are definitely things that look too young in the store but a lot of their stuff is pretty basic and can be worn by any age.</p>
<p>I noticed recently that my Talbots catalog was featuring much younger models. Apparently, a lot of these stores are trying to appeal to a younger demographic. :(</p>
<p>I found some cute and sort of ‘edgy’ flats at Kohl’s recently. they were very comfortable. - the material was very soft and flexible.</p>
<p>[Simply</a> Vera Vera Wang Jahn Ballet Flats](<a href=“http://www.kohls.com/kohlsStore/shoes/brandsforshoes/simplyveraverawang/PRD~651569/Simply+Vera+Vera+Wang+Jahn+Ballet+Flats.jsp]Simply”>http://www.kohls.com/kohlsStore/shoes/brandsforshoes/simplyveraverawang/PRD~651569/Simply+Vera+Vera+Wang+Jahn+Ballet+Flats.jsp)</p>
<p>I have also switched to wearing a lot of kitten heels because of some foot issues. Anything with any height kills my feet (well, one foot in particular). I purchased a couple of pairs of Anne Klein Flex slingback shoes with a kitten heel - very comfortable.</p>
<p>Flats… I had a really hard time finding dressy flats to wear to the office this summer! My troubles began when my DD took off with my Born Adele flats. I naively thought that I could simply buy another pair, but the black ones were sold out in my size pretty much everywhere. In my quest for a comfy pair of dress flats I discovered that I cannot wear “scrunchy” flats (the styles of flats that curl up when not on a foot) that are so popular these days. Finally, it looks like I found what I wanted. Nordstrom had these on the sale rack, and I could not pass them up: [Geox</a> D Bilbao at Zappos.com](<a href=“Geox d bilbao black suede geox + FREE SHIPPING | Zappos.com”>Geox d bilbao black suede + FREE SHIPPING | Zappos.com) Unfortunately, Geox shoes do not come in wide sizes, so if you have wider feet, this may not be the brand for you.</p>
<p>I had last year’s version of those Simply Vera flats above ^^^ - they were SUPER comfortable and looked cute and age appropriate - unfortunately, I had trouble with the chain type thing on top coming unattached after a few months - I did wear them a lot but was disappointed that they “fell apart” so quick.</p>