How To Style a Shirt Dress
The shirt dress is a casual shirt that is made into a dress by making it longer. With this trend, you can choose between different lengths, sleeve lengths, and hemlines, so you can make a lot of different outfits out of one simple dress.
5 Ways to Wear a Shirtdress During the Day
There are many ways to wear a shirtdress during the day, from a casual lunch with friends to a day at the office.
1. Wear tights or leggings in the winter
In colder weather, wear leggings or tights under a long-sleeve shirtdress to keep warm. If your shirtdress has patterns or stripes, wear solid black tights or leggings. If your shirtdress is a solid colour, you can play around with colours and patterns for your tights or leggings.
2. Wear white tennis shoes.
For a casual daytime outfit, pair a chambray denim shirtdress with white sneakers. You could roll up your sleeves to add to the casual look. This casual shirtdress outfit can be worn to run errands or meet friends for lunch.
3. Style as a way to hide.
Wear a shirtdress over a swimsuit as a cover-up for a breezy summer outfit. A classic beach cover-up is a simple white shirt dress, but you can also play with colours and patterns. Think about wearing a floral print or pastel-coloured shirtdress for a lively summer look. Lightweight fabrics like linen, cotton voile, and chiffon are best for letting air flow through.
4. Put on a jacket.
Since shirtdresses look like traditional button-down shirts, they can also be worn to work. You can wear a blazer with a knee-length or midi shirtdress and finish the look with wedges or ankle boots. In the winter, you can wear knee-high boots with your midi dress to keep your legs warm and covered.
5. Put on as a loose layer.
You could wear this like a long cardigan. Unbutton your shirtdress and wear it over a white T-shirt, skinny jeans, and booties. This outfit idea works well with a soft and comfortable cotton shirtdress, like a sweater.
How to Wear a Shirtdress at Night: 4 Outfit Suggestions
With these outfit ideas, you can turn a simple shirtdress into four stylish evening looks:
1. Wear jewellery that makes a statement.
A simple black shirtdress is easy to make more glamorous by adding a unique piece of jewellery. Leave the top button of your shirtdress undone to make the neckline more open, and add a thick necklace to take your look to the next level. You can also dress up a simple shirtdress by adding a bracelet or a pair of earrings.
2. Add heels and a belt.
Put heels on a shirtdress to make it a dressy outfit. You could add a pop of colour to your outfit by putting on a pair of bright heels. This loose-fitting dress style can look boxy, so add a belt to cinch your waist. In the fall and winter, add a denim jacket to finish off the outfit.
3. Add a shawl for warmth.
Put a shawl over your shoulders to dress up a shirtdress without sleeves. Wrapping a shawl around your upper body is a classy way to dress up an outfit. If you want to make a statement, try a colourful or patterned scarf or shawl.
4. Grab a leather jacket and go.
Add a leather jacket to your outfit to make it look fancier. Wear a black leather jacket over a white shirtdress to make a contrast, or put a leather jacket over a black maxi dress for a classic evening look.
BELT IT
Adding a belt is the easiest way to make a shirt dress look better on your waist. But putting on a belt is a great way to change the style of the dress. Many of them already have a waist tie. But most of the time, they just match the dress’s fabric. Not as interesting as adding, say, a cool, edgy belt or something interesting and woven for summer. Use the belt to change the look of the shirt dress with just one small piece of clothing. One of my favourite ways to finish off an outfit and make it more interesting is to add a belt.
PUTTING ON A SHIRT DRESS ALONE
The shirt dress looks great by itself, of course. A mini denim skirt with a scooped hemline looks great with tanned legs, while a looser style with a thin belt at the waist looks great on a fuller figure. A plaid dress that comes to the knee is very girly and looks great with Converse sneakers. Pretty pinstripes, a floral print jacket, and sandals with no colour capture the spirit of summer, while a rainbow-coloured cummerbund adds colour to a white model with tiny pintucks.
PUTTING ON LEGGINGS WITH A SHIRT DRESS
People here love to wear black leggings, like full-length leggings with a white shirt dress and heeled lace-ups. Long black leggings and black ankle boots also look good with a shaped shirt dress. Black three-quarter leggings look great with a loose pink shirt dress with a waist tie and ballet pumps, or with a scooped-hem version of the same dress in nautical stripes and converse sneakers. Try a bold red shirt dress with black leggings, a patent waist belt, and long black boots, or wear a denim dress over polka-dot leggings with ankle boots.
PUTTING ON A SHIRT DRESS OVER JEANS
As well as jeans, you can also wear a shirt dress with skin-tight jeans. A looser style of dress looks better here, like a denim dress over ripped skinny jeans with pointed sandals or a sleeveless striped dress with a narrow belt over skinny jeans and stilettos. A pale pink shirt dress with a frilly hem looks great with jeans, and a colourfully printed dress looks great with black stretch jeans and heeled lace-ups. You can wear a white dress that’s too big with faded skinny jeans and heels, or you can wear a dress with a black-and-white print with faded skinny jeans and mules.
EQUIP YOURSELF FOR THE SEASON
For spring and summer, add belts or bags made of rattan or woven materials. Put on a denim jacket to keep warm at night. And wear sandals or espadrilles, which are good summer shoes.
For fall and winter, wear thicker layers like chunky boyfriend sweaters over your dress and knee-high boots or ankle booties. If you’re going to belt it, always choose leather or suede.
KEEP THE HEMLINE IN MIND
Depending on where you’re going, you should think about the length of your skirt. If you’re going to the office and working in a more traditional setting, a knee-length or even midi-length dress would be best. A shorter hem is perfect for wearing a shirt dress casually, especially in the spring and summer.
STYLING A SHIRT DRESS FOR SUMMER AND WARM WEATHER VACATIONS
Add your favourite summer accessories to a white shirt dress to wear in the summer or on a warm-weather vacation. Espadrilles, rattan belts, and clutches made of bamboo. This outfit is easy to put together and feels great for summer. I would wear this to a nice dinner out while on vacation or to a date night in the summer.
TYLING A SHIRT DRESS FOR A NIGHT OUT
A little leather is all you need to dress up a white shirt dress for a night out with friends or a date at a hot restaurant or lounge. I like to add a black leather jacket, which is my favourite closet staple. This feels much more cool and cutting-edge right away. But don’t stop there. Add a black leather belt or even a cool chain belt to make things even more interesting. And lastly, a pair of sexy heels is the perfect look for a date night.
WEAR A SHIRT AND DRESS TO WORK
If you ask me, the shirt dress is made for the office. By adding a blazer or long cardigan, there are so many easy ways to style this. But really, you don’t have to do anything to it to wear it. I kept the dress’s tie-waist belt to use with this look so that it doesn’t look too flashy or different. I matched my tote bag with a pretty bandana and a blue suede pump. This outfit is great for meetings, the office, or any time you want to feel a little more put together. I’d wear this to a meeting or to give a speech.
CASUAL SHIRTDRESS STYLING FOR EVERYDAY
It’s hard to pick a favourite look here, but I was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked this dress without the belt. Just letting it hang loose and wearing it with chunky platform shoes. Would also look cute with Dr Marten sandals or a really chunky, platform shoe. This outfit is great for running errands or meeting a friend for lunch. I would even wear this out while travelling to a new place. Without the belt, it looks and feels a little cool and edgy. I also like how the puffy sleeves on this dress make it feel a little less boring without a belt, which is another plus for this outfit.