The right dress can be transformative. Slip it on and voila! A magic overlay of self-confidence perfectly surrounds your body. Flaunting all your best curvatures and concealing those you wish to change. Suddenly you’ve gone from feeling frumpy and mundane as you stressed about finding the right outfit to a now pulsating presence, ready to conquer your engagement and the world at large. Surely you’ve experienced the feeling before? Though it’s a rarity to find just the right dress, but when it does make its way into your life, there’s no denying the pleasure it brings as your inner beauty illuminates outward upon being draped in the glorious fabric.

Whatever the type — casual, cocktail, sleek and sexy, sophisticated professional, a gown fit for a queen —, a dress can make a woman (or curious man). It can allow her to see herself in all her glory. The beautiful face and body she constantly questions, picks, and prods at, often times even imagining flaws which don’t actually exist — with the right dress, everything looks as it should. Each time she slips it on, it is as though she transforms into the woman she truly is, beautiful in every light. She is seeing herself for the first time. Aha! There I am. Damn, I look incredible! A surpassing feeling every woman deserves to feel. Because oh, what women can do when they experience such a rush. 

The right dress can be transformative. Slip it on and voila! A magic overlay of self-confidence perfectly surrounds your body. Flaunting all your best curvatures and concealing those you wish to change. Suddenly you’ve gone from feeling frumpy and mundane as you stressed about finding the right outfit to a now pulsating presence, ready to conquer your engagement and the world at large. Surely you’ve experienced the feeling before? Though it’s a rarity to find just the right dress, but when it does make its way into your life, there’s no denying the pleasure it brings as your inner beauty illuminates outward upon being draped in the glorious fabric.

Whatever the type — casual, cocktail, sleek and sexy, sophisticated professional, a gown fit for a queen —, a dress can make a woman (or curious man). It can allow her to see herself in all her glory. The beautiful face and body she constantly questions, picks, and prods at, often times even imagining flaws which don’t actually exist — with the right dress, everything looks as it should. Each time she slips it on, it is as though she transforms into the woman she truly is, beautiful in every light. She is seeing herself for the first time. Aha! There I am. Damn, I look incredible! A surpassing feeling every woman deserves to feel. Because oh, what women can do when they experience such a rush.

That’s the thing about the right dress, it’s not really for the outside world. We search high and low for the perfect one with the reason being that we must look our absolute best for some big event, maybe a launch party for our new work venture, gala dinner, an engagement party where you’ll spot an old flame with his new girlfriend, a long overdue girls night out. Whatever it may be, the ultimate reason we long for the perfect dress is really just to remind ourselves that we can look and feel very special, because we are. For us to be the best version of ourselves under the armor of a dress. (Note: the perfect dress can be worn to most of the aforementioned outings.)

Once we have acquired such an exquisite piece, we hold onto it for as long as we can because we love the memory of how we felt in it. So unstoppable! Invincible! It hangs in our closet, and we smile each time we catch a glimpse, snippets of special memories flashing through our minds. When (if) given the chance, we do wear it again, perhaps years later. Some of us may outgrow the dress for periods of time yet keep it around as “motivation” to lose those dreaded extra pounds.

Personally, I can think of several dresses in my own closet fitting similar patterns, but one in particular stands out — this great winter dress. Ahh, I remember the day I bought it, who I was with when I bought it, and for what reason. I recall all three times I wore it and how stunning I felt each time. I had (still have) red shoes and a red belt to match with it, although it came with a matching belt, so I could diversify that single dress. It also has removable straps, though I never wore it with the straps. Im sure it still fits. Yes, its so special to me….10 years later. In reality though, are we honoring our special dresses by just letting them hang there without purpose? Dresses, especially ones that have the power of making a woman really feel like a woman, are meant to be worn, hugging beautiful bodies, and parading them through the streets proudly and fearlessly. So what favor are we doing to our prized possessions by only wearing them every few years and letting them hang to merely serve as memories of good times? 

Can we have our dress and wear it too?

Absolutely! SHAP was designed exactly for this reason — to breathe in a second life to our things. By renting out your special dress(es), you can still keep your memories alive in fabric AND make a couple extra bucks letting someone else within your community wear it. Hear us out further…. On one hand, this benefits the woman who owns a lovely dress she simply cannot part with but unfortunately can’t wear more than a few times in a decade. While on the other hand, it’s advantageous to the woman in search of a lovely piece but who doesn’t want to shell out big bucks to buy it. Also, the latter woman is a minimalist satisfied with photos as memories rather than a physical reminder taking up her closet space. It’s a win-win. More than this, it’s sustainable, and the future could use a lot more sustainability, so don’t shop — SHAP. Have your dress and wear it too.

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