How to style dresses for spring 21
Boots and dresses = Spring 21
Move over joggers - it’s the post-lockdown dress show!
The check list for clothes over the last year has been something like: comfort, warmth and ease with a dash of top half professional garb.
Personally, I love a jogger and won’t be packing my trusty best friends away; but I’m so ready to embrace the dress and a new way of dressing. The dress says: joy, celebration, fun and freedom - yet, it can also be comfortable, warm and easy too.
So, here are some tips to get the most out of your dresses - how to layer them up for British spring weather and how to style them for the easing of lockdown and those first social events.
Footwear
A dress with boots is the cool-set’s formula for spring 21. It winterises a dress and can be smart or casual depending on the boot choice.
An ankle boot will work with most dresses but I’d go for at least a small block or kitten heel to avoid a slightly dumpy appearance, especially if the boot hides the smallest part of your leg - the ankle.
Be careful with the length and shape of the dress versus that of a mid length boot (e.g. the chunky boot). You want the dress to either fall longer than the top of the boot, above the knee or around the same point as the boot top edge. Too many horizontal lines, without enough leg showing in between, will break the flow and widen and shorten the frame.
Knee high boots (flat or high) look fabulous worn under midi dresses. A loose fitting, pull-on knee high, or a cowboy boot will slim and show case great legs when worn with a shorter dress.
And of course… The white trainer works with all dresses, giving comfort and effortless style.
Blazer or shacket with dress and trainers
Top tips:
Try on a few different dress styles that previously you may not have considered. Life happens and our shape changes and what used to work, might not now and what didn’t used to work could now be fabulous!
A good pair of boots will take you from city to countryside. Look for something comfortable but also feminine to get maximum wear and versatility from your boots.
Down size on an oversized dress to get the loose flowing look but still retain that shaping element on the shoulders, waist and/or bust.
A 1 hour body mapping session will help you find your best length, shape and style of dress. Get in touch here.
Outerwear
Worn open or fastened, a blazer over any dress will nip in, create and/or flatter a waist.
A fitted leather or denim jacket looks great worn over a voluminous dress, creating a corsetry effect and conversely an over-sized biker or 80’s denim jacket will work well with a more fitted or body-con dress beneath.
The currently on-trend (but also a classic) trench or mac is the perfect lengthening piece to throw on over a dress. It pulls an outfit together and lends a casual confidence.
An over-shirt or shacket (also trending) is the comfy laid back option and looks great over midi and mini styles alike. Try belting the dress or wearing a fitted dress beneath if the double loose styling doesn’t flatter your shape.
Knitwear/Sweatshirts
A chunky jumper or over-sized sweatshirt is an ingenious layering piece; converting a dress not only to a skirt, but to a comfortable, warm and super stylish outfit. Add a belt to half tuck the jumper into, to give waist shaping or if you’ve a neat lower half; allow the sweatshirt band to hug you at the hip for a trendy, youth look.
Try a fitted jumper or a neat cropped cardigan for a more elegant, bourgeois narrative. If the dress sleeves are long enough, let them and any collar detail poke out from beneath.
A long cardigan acts much like that of a lengthening trench; opt for a chunkier style for warmth and a - I’ve just popped out to feed the chickens - country feel (wellies optional😉).
Layer up further (if the weather dictates) and pop a trench, blazer or leather over a knit and transport yourself to end April, sitting outside a pub with a chilled glass of something delicious!
Top tips:
An oversized blazer/leather/denim jacket will balance out a sexy dress (whether short,figure hugging, low cut or all 3!) giving a feminine but also strong, stylish statement.
Keep your investment outerwear (mac, leather, blazer) to your neutrals (camel, black, ivory etc) and then you can wear them over everything, getting maximum wear from those pieces and always having something to wear over any outfit.
Find out out YOUR neutrals and how to create your own, ultimate, capsule wardrobe (where everything mixes and matches effortlessly). Get in touch here.
Knitwear over dresses
Accessories
Use accessories to show case your personality, to pull your outfit together and to dress an outfit up or down.
Statement earrings are hugely on trend and give the illusion that you’re suitably ‘on it’ (whilst dressed in comfort) during those video calls that have become the norm.
A cross body bag will give shape definition to your dress and a clutch will add a glamorous note.
Add a belt to cinch in a flowing dress for a evening look, to showcase a small waist and/or to half tuck a knit into. Be mindful of the width of belt versus your body shape and height.
Top Tips:
Everyone needs a friend! - The easiest (and often cheapest) way of looking stylish and well put together is to tie together 2 pieces from the same colour palette in an outfit. Accessories, including nail polish are a super way of doing this. For example; pick out a colour in your dress and match it to an accessory such as a belt, earrings or bag. Or tie together two accessories in the same colour family (blush scarf & nail polish) (tan belt & boot)
Mix n’ match 2 prints together by ensuring the same colour is strongly present in each print. Black is the ground colour of the floral dress pictured below and prominent in the leopard belt.
Mix n’ match prints (leopard & floral)
The trend for dresses this spring/summer is feminine, floaty and floral. This includes: the bright abstract bursts of colour standing out against dark backgrounds and the soft, pastel, pretty frocks with edwardian ruffles and prairie vibes. Additionally, on the back of the 90’s trend, there is a return to minimalism - therefore, the LBD and (even more so) the LWD will be key players.
Style up the dresses that flatter your shape and get ready for the post-lockdown dress show. Whether that is your first outing to a garden pub, going back into the office, celebrating St Georges’s day or just on the school run; the dress will have you covered and feeling - oh so good!