The Perfect Summer Bandana Dress with Tobi
There is nothing in the world to me that screams “summer” more than the smell of freshly cut grass, barbecues, and a flirty bandana dresses. Growing up, all the cool kids would tie bandanas around their chests as a sort of makeshift tube top. As I got older, I realized that the bandana-as-a-shirt look may not be so great, but wearing a bandana print in less 90s inspired way is still totally cool! Hence, this bandana dress!
Location: LACMA, Los Angeles, California – Outfit Details:
Let me just jump right in by saying this photoshoot was one of the most fun shoots I’ve done to date. When I moved to LA, I always wanted to get a set of those “iconic blogger photos next to those cool, tall, grey lamps that all the successful bloggers have”. While I know that’s kind of a silly thought, it was a shoot that was always on my bucket list, and how it happened was completely unexpected!
The very first time I tried to go to LACMA, my boyfriend and I strolled up on a Wednesday and the man standing outside told us it was closed on Wednesdays, which is SO random, but true! We ended up grabbing food at a food truck parked outside and then going to the Petersen Automotive Museum (across the street) instead. It was really awesome if you’re into cars (which, spoiler alert – I most definitely am). Anyways, we couldn’t go to LACMA that trip, and didn’t take any photos, so just made a mental note to come back at another time. 
A few weeks ago, I was taking photos with Mickey of The Boho Socialite for a couple of posts including my last post, Date Night Little Black Dress With Tobi. After we shot that post and moved on to our secondary location we realized the lighting was HORRIBLE. I mean, like, shooting in darkness, grainy images, no matter what we did it wouldn’t work. We were sort of close to LACMA and when she suggested that in her list of alternate locations and I jumped on it. 
I mean, I had always wanted to play around near those lamp poles after all. The sun was setting and we weren’t even sure the photos would turn out, but they’re some of my favorites to date. Not only are the photos some of my favorites, but the dress is too! This Bandit Bandana Print Shift Dress I’m wearing was given to me by Tobi. It’s super comfortable and PERFECT for summer. I wore it to a surprise birthday party after the shoot and got so many compliments on it. It’s one of those dresses that’s just eye-catching and fun!
I also love that this dress is red. Red always makes me feel sexy and flirty even if it’s a more causal piece like this dress. Plus you can pair it with a dramatic red lip, which I find myself doing any time I can. I love Ecco Bella’s Lipgloss in Passion, because it is stays on for a long time and is also not sticky. I have gotten rid of so many cute lip glosses because they’re sticky, and this one is not at all, which is awesome. It’s under $20, and definitely worth the money. 
I kept the styling pretty simple with this dress since the print is so bold. I paired it with some red dangle earrings, and a blue and red striped watch. It’s actually a men’s watch, but I love big faces on watches, so I made this one unisex. ? Plus, it just matches so well with the dress that I couldn’t NOT wear it!
One of the things I love most about this Bandit Bandana Print Shift Dress is that it’s so cute as a causal dress. I find that most of my dresses are more fancy, and since they are I normally wear heels with them. This dress – I get to be more causal. Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE wearing heels, and embracing my inner amazon woman. I’m 5’8″, so with my normal 4-5 inch heels it makes me over six feet tall! I love being tall, but sometimes I just wanna wear flats, ya know? This dress lets me wear my Toms, #1 because they match perfectly, and #2 because it’s casual enough to wear flats with. YAAASSSS.
Since this dress is such a great casual option it’s perfect to wear for exploring LACMA. Since we were out so late taking photos we actually missed the museum being open. One day, I swear, I’ll make it inside the museum, but today was not the day. ??
To avoid missing the museum being open I’ve researched the times so that next time I go I won’t be left standing outside per usual. If you wanna check it out, LACMA is open Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday from 11am–5pm. It’s also open Friday from 11am–8pm and Saturday & Sunday from 10am–7pm. 
It must have been fate all of the times I missed seeing LACMA because I recently found out there’s some great ways you can get in for free like showing your Los Angeles drivers license any weekday after 3pm. Check out all the ways to see LACMA for free.
And if you wanna be twinsies with me, you can always grab yourself your own Bandit Bandana Print Shift Dress! I seriously love this dress. I’ve worn it so much since Tobi sent it to me – to LACMA, to a birthday cookout, to a job interview, around the house/running errands and I’m actually doing laundry right now so I can wear it this week. Let me just say, I hate doing laundry. I know that sounds like such a bizarre thing to say, but in LA, laundry is such a struggle. No one (unless you’re fancy AF) has laundry in their actual apartments, and some don’t even have laundry in the whole building. 
I have laundry in my building but I still have to go get quarters every time (normally half way through the loads). Then I have to walk down the super creepy basement steps (it probably doesn’t help that I watch way too much Criminal Minds and do my laundry late at night), and set timers so that I’ll be the first one back down there when my loads end. Plus doing all my laundry normally ends up costing a whole roll of quarters AND takes hours because we only have two machines for the building and one of them is usually broken. All of that is to say, the fact that I do laundry MORE OFTEN specifically so I can wear this dress really shows how much I’m obsessed with it. 
I think the reason I love it so much is because It’s great for a casual day running errands or something a little more dressy if you so desire! It’s also the perfect all around summer dress because it’s so lightweight. I foresee many days full of wearing this summer bandana dress, cookouts, beach bonfires and hopefully a successful trip to LACMA in my future! 
That’s all for now, and I hope if you’re in LA, you can make your way to LACMA and take your own photos near these cool lamps. Do you have any favorite photoshoot locations? Let me know below in the comments!
Thank you Tobi, for this fun summer bandana dress.
Shop The Summer Bandana Dress Look:
Tobi Bandana Dress (c/o) // Toms Shoes // SKMEI Watch (similar) // VJL Earrings (similar under $20) // Ecco Bella Lipgloss in Passion // Discontinued Mac Nail Lacquer (similar)
Kathrine Eldridge
July 5, 2017 at 9:30 pmWhat a chic dress! I love the watch and shoes you paired with it. Amazing look!
admin
July 5, 2017 at 9:55 pmThank you so much, styling the outfits is the most fun part of the shoot for me!
Kris
July 5, 2017 at 9:38 pmI love your outfit, especially the DW watch!
Have an awesome day!
xx, Kris
admin
July 5, 2017 at 9:55 pmThank you so much! It’s actually not DW, but it looks super similar. I love their watches too!
Fatou
July 5, 2017 at 11:07 pmthis look is so cute!
xx
admin
July 6, 2017 at 12:04 amThank you so much!
Violette
July 6, 2017 at 7:30 amYou look so pretty in this dress! I love the color and prints!
admin
July 7, 2017 at 5:47 pmThank you so much, it’s such a fun print!
Kendall
July 6, 2017 at 9:53 amWhat a fun story! Glad you finally got to shoot at the LACMA 🙂
Kendall
admin
July 7, 2017 at 5:47 pmThank you! It was such a long time coming. 🙂
Rach
July 6, 2017 at 12:29 pmThat dress is so cute! Not only do I love the color but the patterns are so cute!
admin
July 7, 2017 at 5:48 pmThank you so much! It’s one of my favorite dresses!
Carol
July 6, 2017 at 12:49 pmLove the look. The photo shoot looks so great near those lamps!
admin
July 7, 2017 at 5:48 pmIt was such a fun spot to shoot, thank you!
Sabina
July 6, 2017 at 12:53 pmThis is such a pretty summer dress! I love how you styled it and I agree, that location is absolutely stunning! <3
Sabina | I’ve Got Sunshine
admin
July 7, 2017 at 5:48 pmThanks so much Sabina!
SVETOBEZCI
July 6, 2017 at 1:30 pmWOW! I really like it. 🙂
admin
July 7, 2017 at 5:48 pmThank you! 🙂
Denise
July 6, 2017 at 2:12 pmThis dress is so pretty! I love the color of it and the print is so fabulous! Red is such a lovely color on you!
Denise | Fashion Love Letters
admin
July 7, 2017 at 5:49 pmThank you Denise! I just love wearing red!
SwissTwins
July 6, 2017 at 2:16 pmWow you look such amazing
have a nice day
admin
July 7, 2017 at 5:49 pmThank you, have a great day as well!
Masha
July 6, 2017 at 5:00 pmGreat dress! And the location is fabulous! I also have to say that your makeup is absolutely stunning. You should definitely do a tutorial sometime.
White Silk, Black Leather
admin
July 7, 2017 at 5:50 pmThank you so much! I’d never thought of doing a makeup tutorial before!
Simone
July 6, 2017 at 7:14 pmYour dress is super cute and a real eyecatcher! Love it!
xx Simone
admin
July 7, 2017 at 5:51 pmThank you Simone, the pattern is one of my favorites!
Rachel
July 7, 2017 at 2:44 amDress is amazing and you look gorgeous !
admin
July 7, 2017 at 5:51 pmThank you Rachel, that’s so sweet!
Nathalie
July 7, 2017 at 10:46 amLove the print of your dress.
Nathalie
admin
July 7, 2017 at 5:51 pmThanks! It’s such a fun summer print!
Vanessa
July 7, 2017 at 3:01 pmYou look amazing! I love the dress on you!
Happy Wednesday, babe!
xoxo, Vanessa
admin
July 7, 2017 at 5:52 pmThank you Vanessa, hope you’re having a great day!
Daniel
July 7, 2017 at 3:43 pmSo lovely in red! The red dress is so perfect for summer!! xo
Daniel x
admin
July 7, 2017 at 5:52 pmThank you so much Daniel!
Annie lewis
July 8, 2017 at 1:56 amPretty look!! The dress is sooooo gorgeous!!
admin
July 8, 2017 at 9:20 pmThank you so much!
Britt
July 8, 2017 at 6:41 amLove the pattern on that dress!
admin
July 8, 2017 at 9:21 pmThank you Britt! It’s such a fun summer pattern. 😀
Lizzie
July 8, 2017 at 2:58 pmI am loving the dress, especially the colour!
admin
July 8, 2017 at 9:21 pmThank you Lizzie – red is one of my favorite colors to wear!
handry
July 8, 2017 at 8:29 pmYou look so sweet, dear!
admin
July 8, 2017 at 9:22 pmThank you!!! 🙂
Kara Aragon
July 8, 2017 at 11:05 pmGreat photo location for that pop of red! I especially love your lip color!
admin
July 10, 2017 at 9:39 pmThank you so much!
Rosa
July 9, 2017 at 6:50 pmI love this dress – I’ve never seen anything like it before, I deffo need one in my life.
admin
July 10, 2017 at 9:40 pmIt’s wonderful! So cute and comfortable too!
Paula
July 9, 2017 at 7:36 pmI never considered the perils of doing the laundry in a communal area! I have my own washer and I still hate doing the laundry! Especially if it shrinks/changes your clothing.
Anyway! Loving the cute dress and the location. I wanna take a picture of macarons in front of the Eiffel Tower and be an ironic douche.
admin
July 10, 2017 at 9:41 pmhaha I would love to take pictures in front of the Eiffel Tower too – one day, I’m sure we both will!
Daria
July 10, 2017 at 6:26 pmSuch a great look! The dress s gorgeous!
XO
Daria
admin
July 10, 2017 at 9:41 pmThank you so much Daria!
Jaime
July 10, 2017 at 9:56 pmYou’re so pretty and I love that dress! The perfect print for summer!
♡ Jaime
admin
July 11, 2017 at 3:28 pmYou’re so sweet Jaime! Thank you!!
Nicole
July 20, 2017 at 1:09 amSuch a pretty dress! Love the color!
xx Nicole
Blessing
July 26, 2017 at 9:33 amYou are beautiful and I really like your dress!
Layla Rosita
August 15, 2017 at 7:26 pmI know exactly what you mean by wanting to shoot some ‘blogger’ photos by those iconic lamps! They’re def on my photo bucket list when I’m ever in the neighborhood of LA. I think you look amazing babe, red looks great on you! Oh and the smell of freshly cut grass = delicious!
Love, Layla Rosita