Chickdowntown.com emailed me a couple weeks ago to see if I’d be interested in offering a fantastic item from their website for a giveaway. Of course, knowing that you all love winning things as much as I do (and spotting a few dresses that I loved!), I jumped at the chance! Chickdowntown.com is an online fashion retailer that carries lines from 12th Street by Cynthia Vincent to Mink Pink. They also have a Facebook and Twitter to keep everyone abreast of their latest additions!
Isn’t that dress so, so cute?! It’s from the BB Dakota line, and I love the fact that it’s a knit (so it packs easily–perfect for summer travel!), but it’s still very sweet and pretty. I can see this dress down with some flats and a big-brimmed hat for the daytime. For nighttime, wouldn’t it look so gorgeous with a vintage fascinator and a big charm bracelet?! So if you’d like to enter the giveaway for this utterly adorable and summer dress, here’s the deal:
- You must be a US resident to enter*.
- To enter, leave a comment with an answer to the question below.
- Be sure to fill out your name and email address in the comment form (the email won’t be public), so I can contact the winner.
- The contest closes Sunday, July 5, 2009 at 12am (EST).
- A winner will be randomly drawn on Monday, July 6 and announced shortly thereafter!
Here’s the contest question: To enter, all I ask is that you leave a comment in this post and tell me your favorite summer fashion memory. It can be recent or long past, about something you wore or spent the entire season dreaming about… What your favorite summer outfit (past or present)? Or perhaps you took a trip that had a bit of a fantastic fashion twist? Tell me!
*I also wanted to let my international readers know that although this contest has been restricted by geography (per chickdowntown.com’s request), I have another giveaway coming up that will be open to everyone!
Good luck, dears!
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I’ve got some great vintage summer dresses that used to be my mom’s — makes me always look forward to summer because I know I will be able to break them out.
I love that website…fun!
When I was about 15, JNCO jeans were like *so* rad!
I babysat all summer so I could get a pair in time for the next school year. My sister was in love with the movie Clueless, though…and instead of using my money to buy jeans, I bought my sister a pleated, plaid skirt with a shirt & sweater vest (which are featured throughout the movie). She was thrilled…and I never got my JNCOs…but I did steal a pair from a mean boy shortly after & tossed them out of a moving car.
I’ve always dreaded summer because I hate wearing shorts – my legs just won’t allow it. But a few weeks ago I found 2 of the sweetest dresses I’ve ever seen, and I am so excited to wear them all summer! They make me feel so feminine and pretty, and they are so light and cool, even in the bright sun and hot hot heat!
Dang! This Canadian gal will be pining from afar…
My favorite summer fashion memory? Definitely my yellow and white seersucker trapeze dress with rick-rack flowers, sewn for me by my mom when I was 4. Oooh, and maybe my olive green and hot pink “ladybug” dress; the fabric was mostly green with little hot pink flowers and ladybugs crawling up the stems. That one had hot pink rick-rack around the neckline and on the patch pockets. Mom made a lot of cute summer dresses when I was little.
So very cute!!
Hmmm, I would have to say that my favorite summer item is an old sweatshirt that I wore on a summer family vacation when I was three. The sweatshirt was navy blue with a white sailboat and the white lettering “Crystal Lake” on it. It evokes such a wonderful memory of being so young and so in love with nature and spending time with my family. Though it’s not very fashionable, it’s something I will always treasure and my mom still has it!!
Love the dress. My favorite fashion memory is the summer when I was 17 and wore a variety of gathered skirts that I made. I spent HOURS hemming each one by hand.
I think the simplicity of playsuits when I was young with matching jellyshoes would have to top my summer fashion memories.
My favorite summer fashion memory would have to be from when I was 13 and I bought my first really fashionable summer dress. It was this cotton baby blue drop waist dress that I LOVED. It was only one week after I got it that I fell off my bike and tore a huge hole in the side of the dress. I was so upset because it was the first dress I owned that really made me enjoy being feminine. The reason this is my favorite summer memory is because one morning a few days later I woke up to see the blue dress fixed on my door. My mother had ripped a few seams and replaced the sections that I ripped with this cream colored cotton with flowers on it.
my favorite summer fashion memory must be last year when i was 16. i saw this high wasted white with yellow flowers skirt in a vintage shop. it was so adorable and i couldn’t stop thinking and talking about it, but i couldn’t afford it,103$
i was so obsessed with it. a day before my birthday, my boyfriend got me a present……and it was the skirt, i was so happy. i wore everyday for the whole summer
The summer I was seven I refused to wear anything but dresses, which drove my mother crazy.
I would even play outside in the dirt in my dresses. Even today dresses are still my favorite thing about summer. I would wear one every day of the week if I could!
What a cute dress!
I remember when I was a kid and summer would come, this meant that my parents would finally stop saying “it’s too cold!” and let me get the shorts out and wear them! lol
i remember having this totally awesome pair of white slip on shoes when i was about 19. i think i wore them til the soles were completely worn out. i still miss them!
That is a dang cute dress! Total bubblegum wear. What’s coming to mind right now for a fave fashion memory is hanging out at a cabin for a few days last summer with my best friends that I’ve known forever, everyone wearing funny rompers (we brought enough for all the ladies) and doing “costume changes” and busting out the funniest, weirdest outfits multiple times per day. I laughed so much and it was hilarious to come out of the cabin in something totally unexpected and hear everyone flip out!
My favorite summer fashion memory would definitely have to be saltwater sandals. I remember my mom taking my siblings and I to the store to try them on once the weather got nice. I have memories of multiple summers, each year with a different colored pair. Now I find myself wanting a pair for my grownup feet.
Last year, this very weekend, I had finished a brand new, dark red, crossover bodice/midriff band dress. It was airy, light, and a gorgeous color of dark red. Sleeveless. I absolutely love it.
It was a hot, hot, hot day. We were outside, all day long, at a festival celebration Swedish Midsummer. We preformed…sat in the hot sun . . . and had an amaaaazing time.
But, as soon as I changed out of my folk costume, and into that dress, and began flying around the dance floor in the arms of various young men (ha!) it was like…synergy. The dress, the evening, the cool breeze that began to flow through. I was in heaven.
Good memories.
Oooh! I have so many silly little fashion memories, all the way back from when I was five, to now. Hmmm..
Well, just last year I went to visit my grandma in Germany. It was the first time I had been there during the summer (I normally go there around fall or Christmas seasons). Every time I am at her house, I love looking through her closets. She made every single piece of her clothing by hand! Anyways, the last time I was there I discovered a basket FULL of scarves from the war era. Every day I wore a different scarf around my head, paired with my fifties glasses, and a dress of some sort. They were all so cute!
red halter top, when I was 18. I felt strong and sexy.
I don’t think I have a real summer fashion memory, but really I’ve been thinking of 60′s sufers and sufer girls, all that sun and great music. It strikes me as ideal
Oh, it is cute!
…My goal is to some day win a giveaway, 
My favorite summer fashion memory would probably have to be my recent photo-set (entitled Clover Meadow)! Because not only did I feel pretty and attractive before my photographer, but also free and romantic running through the field together with him! lol corny, I know
My newest dress I got at a local vintage shop, its a vintage 40s cotton swing dress, and I literally wear it 2 times a week, at least!
Its such a light weight and airy dress perfect for summer paired with some 40s white wedges. I love it!
thanks for hosting a cool giveaway!
Hmm, I’m not quite sure, but right now my favorite summer outfit is my navy button down, navy shorts and skinny red belt. It almost looks like a romper, but I can break it apart!
My favorite memory is when I first started working and saved up all summer for a cute dress from Nordstroms. It was $58 and was a blue baby doll dress and I got matching shoes. I wore it so much it became a sort of uniform, but it was the first thing I bought myself. This summer it’s all about dresses, cotton dresses, all the time, I don’t have to worry about matching separates, it’s a whole outfit in and of itself.
My favorite summer fashion memory is when my friends and I went down to 4th Street Long Beach (AKA Retro Row!) and I wore high-waisted denim shorts with a cute gingham halter top! Definitely the cutest outfit I wore to go vintage thrift shopping.
My favorite summer outfit is a sundress. I have been wearing them constantly in the summertime since I was very little….they are so breezy and inspire me when I wear them. My favorite one is white with green flowers, sleeveless with a full skirt and a white vintage style belt/buckle.
My favorite summer fashion memory was when I went to a thrift shop with some friends and found the perfect pair of high-waisted sailor pants for $10. Not only were they a bargain, but they have lasted me an entire year without a single tear.
Thanks for the lovely giveaway. The dress is so pretty!
I can remember one summer I went to boutiques in Canada and shopped for stylish clothes-this was the 80′s now and Madonna was hot. I can remember wearing lots of fishnet, lace gloves, black granny boots, and the typical early Madonna wardrobe type stuff. Living in Maine, I got some strange looks walking around town like that, but the guys liked it
I also got lots of fuschia and turquoise clothing, that seemed to be the color that year. And though it doesn’t fit, I still kept alot of it-if my 7 yr old ever has an 80′s retro event she will be all set, lol!
micaela6955 at msn dot com
My Favorite summer fashion memory comes actually from this summer where I found a wonderful red empire wasted dress for only $14 on clearance.
It does fit me, but a little snug, so time to hit the gym!
My Favorite summer fashion memory is when my mom bought me this prefect blue with stripes sundress
silverhartgirl at gmail.com
Recently my three best friends and I found ourselves with the lovely opportunity of having a convertible to drive for the day. We took vintage scarves, tied up our hair, threw on sunglasses and flew down the Pacific Coast Highway to Malibu. It was the best feeling of freedom, from both the wind rushing in our faces and the taste of the coming summer days.
My favorite summer fashion memory is of the summers I would spend with my grandmother in the country. I’m talking the WHOLE summer. At some point I would get bored and go through all the old patterns she had and fall in love with one of them. She was and still is an amazing seamstress so I would beg her to hurry and get in the car because we had to go find fabric NOW. Once the fabric was located we would return home and she would sew up my dresses. I loved watching her cut the pattern and listening to her tell me how to do it step by step. Then, because the patterns were always big on me, she would do fitting after fitting on me until they fit just how I liked them. Although the dresses are long gone and I rarely get to spend even a weekend end up at her house I wouldn’t trade those memories for anything.
i feel like this is a predictable and boring answer but i love my built by wendy dress that i made – in fact, i’m wearing it right now! it’s really important to me to be comfortable when it’s hot as well as look stylish (hopefully).
when i was little my favorite summer dresses had skinny straps that tied at the shoulders; i still love that look, actually.
Mine is discovering vintage dresses my mother wore.
They don’t fit, because she sure was tiny, but they were beautifully, handcrafted dresses. They are my little treasures.
Hm, I think this entire summer tying to find the perfect summer swimsuit… but they are all so revealing or so expensive! I really liked the Hayden Harnett Blue ruffle bikini with a high-cut bottom, but it’s sadly out of my budget. I did finally find a lovely vintage one-piece that I am still waiting to try out hopefully soon.
cute dress! I had a great opportunity to go to Ireland with my parents last summer, as a sort of college graduation present.. I was thrilled because, well, it’s Ireland, but fashion-wise, it is a beautiful sort of cool in the summertime.. mostly 60s all summer long. I love to dress for that temperature because of tights and light jackets and layering!
so, my favorite fashion memory of the summer is riding a rickety boat along the Cliffs of Moher, wearing bright red tights and tan cutout oxfords and getting absolutely soaked up to my waist due to the splashing around of the boat. I got to wear a cute red hat and matching scarf, and a long blue coat with big buttons and a high collar. what a blast. it made for interesting pictures!
jelly shoes! i still wear them nowadays but they were less of a fashion decision back then. they were always glittery pink ones and i love how they remind me of candy!
My favorite summer fashion memory is of several summers ago when it was very fashionable to wear large flowers pinned to a shirt or in the hair – Carrie wore them oh so often in Sex and the City. I loved wearing them pinned in my hair – so romantic! I think I may go back to wearing them again this summer for a fresh and romantic look.
Hi Casey! I’d like to enter the contest for the dress!
My favorite summer fashion memory was the first time I ever wore a bikini. Two of my friends and I decided to take a spring break vacation to the Bahamas. It was the first time my stomach ever saw the sun!
My favorite summer fashion memory happened just yesterday. I wore an emerald green strapless eyelet dress, threw off my heeled sandals, and scampered down to the river with a group of my favorite boys. I proceeded to pick some berries on the way and hoist up my dress just enough to wade in the river. Afterward I spent some good time twirling. There’s nothing like a good twirlin’ dress on a summer day by the river.
I’ve been a tomboy all my life and the first dress I bought that I ever really *wore* with any sort of conviction was a navy blue halter dress with white detailing and a big white anchor on the skirt. A real thrift find! I love love love nautical themed things (as is probably evident from my blog) and even though it was a dress, I wore the heck out of it!
Several years ago, a friend and I spent a week during the summer in Vegas. We spent a lot of time putting together fabulous outfits for our fabulous week. My favorite was the 50′s inspired bathing suit that I wore in order to be “poolside fabulous.” I felt so glamorous lounging by the pool all day!
My favorite Summer thing to wear is flowers in my hair. I love Summer because I am a teacher and when it’s Summer I have some extra time (hopefully) to practice my vintage hair styling skills and I love to add flowers or feathers to my hair. On a more practical note my favorite piece of clothing for the Summer is a jean pencil skirt that my mom gave me.
When I was about 5 years old I had this hot pink swim suit with shape cutouts on the stomach and back and a frilly little skirt to go with it. I loved that. Nothing says summer like a hot pink swimsuit!
Two summers ago I was in Vegas for a destination wedding. I was wandering around the “mall” inside Caesar’s Palace with my fiance and we wandered into a store with totally FIERCE wiggle dresses. The one I tried on was a great chocolate brown and fit me like a glove. Unfortunately, it was $600 so I didn’t get it, but I felt like a siren for the rest of the trip. I still think about it and what could’ve been…
I have an older sister and as a result, I often got her “hand-me-downs,” which was honestly fine by me. In fact, I was usually just as excited when mom bought her something new as if she’d bought it for me because, well, I knew I’d get eventually.
One summer, Jessica(my sister) got this amazing pink shirt, with button down the front and the sleeves sat on the outside of the top of her arms, so he shoulders were bare. I was prob 10 and she was 15 years old. This shirt was so painfully cool. I wanted it so bad.
Well for some reason, she arbitrarily decided she didn’t want it and it came to me sooner than expected. My mother wasn’t happy about it, but her 10 year old was now prancing around with bare shoulders…it was terribly scandalous to her, but I was so happy about it, she said she couldn’t bare to take it away. I was only allow to wear it to the pool, but man I wore that thing out!
My perfect summer fashion memory is from my childhood. Classic 1980′s- yellow and cream polka dot rah-rah skirt with a pink tshirt with a kohala on it and white shoes. I had 4 different coloured laces in my shoes too- all neon.
The dress is so cute- thanks for the giveaway
My favorite summer fashion memory would have to be when I was about six or seven. I have a picture of the outfit. It was a sleeveless, pink gingham, button down top. With jean shorts, bare foot because nobody could ever get shoes on me. Perfect for hot California summer day’s.
Thanks for the giveaway!
I’m all about jeans and a t-shirt with some flip flops during the day… the bust out the fun summer dresses for night! I love the dress! awesome giveaway!
Last time I went to visit my parents, I ended spending a good chunk of my time helping re-shingle my grandma’s roof. I had no idea what I was getting into and DEFINITELY hadn’t packed accordingly. One evening, I thought we had finished up for the day and so I was all dressed up to go out with my friends, but ended up having to help out a bit more.
At this point, the neighbors across the street were throwing a truly midwestern graduation party with a garage full of people in folding lawn chairs — watching me stylishly balanced on my grandma’s roof in my Frye booties, 1970′s vintage high-waisted basketball shorts, a bright purple camisole, and a floral scarf. My mom said that is something they will never, ever, see again, and she was probably right.
I love summer because it makes me feel so playful and happy. I especially love to create totally unconventional combinations (floral scarves and vintage basketball shorts).
My greatest memory (well not so great, lol) happened just last week. I just posted about it on my blog today. I was taking pics with my wonderful new BB Dakota dress and I got two huge bug bites which are driving me crazy today!!!
Why is this my favorite fashion memory? Because, I find it incredibly funny.
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