When it comes to dresses, one of my all time favourite styles has to be the shirt dress. They are super easy to wear and can be dressed up or down to suit the situation.
In this post I’m styling a simple floral shirt dress from Pagani. Sadly this one isn’t available anymore. It’s a chiffon-style fabric so it’s slightly see through, so a slip underneath is a must. This dress has gold buttons right down the front, a collar detail and also a removable matching tie. On me, this dress hits about knee length so it’s a suitable length for office wear.
When it comes to finding the perfect shirt dress, you want something that is fitted, but not too tight. The buttons need to be able to do up easily without gaping. Some shirt dresses can look a little bit boxy and shapeless without something bringing them in at the waist. I especially love shirt dresses that come with a removable tie as this creates a nice shape and means you don’t need to wear a belt. If the tie on your shirt dress is attached, sometimes it can be removed by gently picking away the sewn attachment with an unpicker tool.
Here’s three ways I’m styling this shirt dress….
CASUAL
This look is perfect for a girls shopping trip, day out with the family – you name it! I’m wearing the dress with the attached tie, and have paired it with a light jacket and booties and accessorised with a black fedora and oversized tote bag. It’s super simple and takes only a couple of minutes to throw on, yet looks really cute and put together.
LOOK #2 – DRESSY
For the perfect date night look, pair your shirt dress with an oversized belt, heels, and clutch. I’ve removed the tie and have paired my dress with my Karen Walker Runaway Girl belt, and the gold on the belt works with the gold buttons perfectly! I feel like this look really shows off how beautiful and versatile this dress is and the belt creates a beautiful shape.
LOOK #3 – BOHO
Another fun way to wear a shirt dress is to remove the tie, undo all the buttons and wear it long as a light duster coat (this works best with a lighter style, floaty fabric). This looks super cute paired with jeans, a singlet and a fedora for the ultimate boho chic, or you could also wear it over a fitted dress too. I love how the light chiffon catches the air and creates beautiful movement and adds a whole extra dimension to this outfit, yet is still so simple and easy to wear. I’ve dressed this down somewhat with booties and sunglasses, but you could wear it with heels and a clutch for another cute date night look.
Hi, Iām a new mom and forgo my fashion sense since my baby loves pulling my hair and making a mess on my outfits. How did you manage that while keeping your hair and outfit in tact?
Thanks š
Author
Firstly, congrats on being a new mum! I found when Jack was younger I would wear my hair up in a bun a lot so he couldn’t get to it, and eventually I got it cut a bit shorter so it was harder for him to grab a hold of. As he’s gotten older I’ve just taught him that we don’t pull peoples hair and now he’s pretty good. I’ve also just started wearing jewellery again – it took about 14 months for him to learn just to leave it alone!
The mess is definitely a tricky one! When I’m at home I wear things like jeans and t-shirts that I know I can get any marks out of easily. I also tend to opt for darker colours again to avoid staining. When I’m out and about and I’m wearing my nicer outfits I just keep baby wipes on hand to wipe Jack’s fingers and mouth, and just try to keep him as clean as possible. When he was younger I’d also cover my outfits with burp cloths as Jack had quite bad reflux for a while. I also avoid buying anything that’s linen or silk as it’s super hard to get marks out of and often stains – cotton is a lot easier!
I hope this sort of helps, it’s definitely a tricky one. If there is anything else I can help with, just let me know š