Maxi Skirt Woes

I know, I know - just because something is $10 doesn't make it right. But I was placing an online order at Old Navy and needed a couple more bucks to bump it into the free shipping range, so I decided to give this skirt a try, since I've been looking for a maxi skirt. My qualifications:

• No broomstick skirts. We are not going for the Earth Mother from Coldwater Creek look.
• No tiers. See previous point for reasons.
• No tight-fitting jersey. I'm not enormous, but no one wants to see my thigh contours.
• No super outlandish colors - I want to find something classic and neutral, especially since with a maxi skirt, you're in essence wearing a huge swath of fabric around your legs.

So the skirt above - it looked slightly broomstick-y and colors were a little iffy, but I thought maybe the pattern would help with that. After trying a few tops with it and hemming and hawing in front of the mirror, I decided to wear it on a visit to my parents house, because I really couldn't decide and I knew my sisters would help me out. The skirt wasn't exactly what I was looking for, but for $10 I was willing to reconsider.

I styled it with a reddish-purple tank top, tucked in, and some gold tribal-looking sandals. My sisters were helpful - they suggested maybe I was wearing it too high, so it made me look short. At 5'5" I knew I was playing with fire by trying a maxi skirt. Maxi dresses, I'm guessing because the fabric continues upward toward my face, usually helps elongate and makes me look taller. The skirt wasn't working the same way. But if I didn't tuck the tank in, I just looked like a hippie with no shape. I asked my mom if I looked too Earth Mother (remember, it did have a slight broomstick quality to the fabric). She said no, but when my older brother saw me, his first question was, "How many children do you have tucked under your skirts? And do you make your own bread?"

The skirt went back. Not because of that one comment, but because I just couldn't get it to look right and I didn't love it. I want to really love the clothes I own.

Any suggestions for what I might have done wrong, or ways I could've made it work? I realize maybe I wasn't working with the ideal skirt...