Outfit: Unintentionally Retro

You know how some people can wear a brown paper bag and look good?
Maybe it's something in their attitude or poise, but they just look good no matter. They're your best friend who always looked good at the end of gym class in junior high while you looked like a half drowned rat. I don't have that particular "look good in anything" gene, but I do believe I have a different one--the ability to make the most modern pieces look retro. I just received this dress and handbag from Cath Kidston, both are from the newest collection, and yet somehow I look more like I stepped out of the 1940s. Yes of course I did style it with a beret and vintage inspired heels, but still I maintain that no matter how I styled this I would look vintage, quite unintentionally.
When I was younger I often used to "fight" my natural look. After always been told I was cute, I always desired to look edgy. But even at my edgiest with short hair, a scowl, and spiked clothing, my most common compliment was that I looked cute. Over the years I've let myself lean into the cute and retro tendancies--if this is what I was cut out to look like, if these clothes suit me best, so be it. I'll just have to be outwardly cute-sey and secretly edgy...