Swimwear & A Multi-Tasking Maxi Dress

Adding a few inches to my last blog post about midi's and talking about a maxi dress today. I have a post scheduled for next week (have I mentioned I'm going on a kid-free wedding anniversary/significant birthday mini-break next Tuesday?!). Anyway, this scheduled post will be all about my pick of the high-street maxi dresses. 

But then I found another fabulous one in Tesco while on a swimwear mission.

Well, in actual fact, I was out on a milk-buying trip again. I am deadly serious...milk. If this third milk-related shopping spree doesn't have hubby booking a milk delivery, I'll be amazed.

So en-route to the dairy department, I firstly spotted swimwear. Tummy control swimwear. GET. IN. MY. TROLLY. NOW.

Tummy Control Tankini - £16

I have a long torso and my cleavage is high so I need a lot of material to get up and over the norks. That means swimsuits are out for me (wedgie city) and as the twin pregnancy has made bikini days a distant memory, it had to be a tankini - another awful fashion mix-up word. Up there with skort.

I wanted black but they only had purple in my size and I'm leaving in 3 days so purple it had to be. On the plus side, it fits like a dream. Well done Tesco - £16 the lot. But then I spotted that there's £5 off a £25 clothes shop at the moment. Of course, I had to buy something else to avail of the discount.

Meet my new maxi, though as you'll see below, mine has a purple flower 

(not showing online):

Floral Maxi - £16

I had other reasons for choosing this dress beyond holiday plans and £5's off. You see, I actually wanted a maxi skirt - not a dress. But the stretchy jersey and wide neckline got me thinking that maybe I could wear this dress as both. That led to a few other ideas. 

Firstly, here it is on me as it's meant to be worn..

I wondered if it could work as a one shoulder dress - more suitable to a night out. Some tucking required but the material is light and stretchy enough to work well this way.

Then I thought about strapless midi...with the top half of the dress tucked down and the belt around the waist. Perfect for the beach.

and finally - the look I really wanted. The maxi skirt. My legs are going through the neckline of the dress. But it's wide enough to accommodate them. 

It's a steal - all those looks for £16. Again - well done Tesco, especially as this dress is designed and made in the UK. And well done for putting this en-route to the milk aisle.

So I'm off for a busy weekend of list-making, cleaning & cooking to prepare the house for Aunty Sharon arriving to look after the kids. Oh and there's the small matter of packing, outfit planning, blog post writing & beauty treatments to get me mini-break ready. 

Have a super weekend whatever you're up to. I might have one more post before I head off but then again, I might not. But never worry, you have a week of my 5 Summer Essentials to keep you entertained in my absence and if that's not enough, you can follow me on Twitter & Instagram for holiday updates as they happen!

xx