April 15, 2019
WARNING: This idea may very well NOT appeal to you. And this is as it should be – nobody should love EVERYTHING that they see; that would be ruinous for one’s budget, and be completely the antithesis of developing a personal style!
That said, I know a couple of women who do this and it works quite nicely for them…
First, we start with a dress that is roomy – some space around the (preferably v-neck) neckline, armholes that aren’t tight, and an overall silhouette that’s got some flow:
dress – Jil Sander
This is a magnificent dress – simple, but beautifully well-made. And it could hang in your closet most of the time. That would be a sad waste of a lovely dress, and an eye-popping investment…
But do you own any of these tops, or anything similar?
plaid turtleneck – Lands’ End; floral shirt – Lands’ End; green tee shirt – Lands’ End; fuchsia silk blouse – Sophie Cameron Davies
You suddenly realize that you have options! These won’t suit every woman, but some of us can dress like this will great success…
scarf – Max Mara; earrings – Anna Beck; bag – Miu Miu; ballet flats – Taryn Rose
scarf – Nordstrom; earrings – Jane Basch Designs; boots – Aquatalia; opaque tights – J.Crew
earrings – Victor Williams; rose bracelet – Marina Guzman; bag – Miu Miu; pumps – Caslon
earrings – Natasha Schweitzer; bracelet – Bhavesh; bag – Judith Leiber; pumps – 1901
Similarly, so many of us own these simple sheath dresses in a solid neutral. It hangs in our closets like the reliable wardrobe basic that it is, but we sort of feel like we’d like to wear it just a little more often…
dress – BOSS
This is easier to picture, for many of us… Do you have any of these kinds of things in your closet?
short-sleeved sweater – Eileen Fisher; rose sweater – L.L.Bean; cardigan – Eileen Fisher; hot pink turtleneck – Chelsea28
Depending on your climate, layering a sweater over a dress makes excellent sense for cold weather, or you get unimaginably overheated just thinking about the idea!
earrings – Christabelle; bracelet – Achara; bag – Clare V.; sandals – Frye
scarf – Givenchy; earrings – Argento Vivo; bag – Nordstrom; boots – Seychelles
earrings – Vince Camuto; necklace – Panacea; bag – Vince Camuto; flats – Linea Paolo
scarf – Etro; boots – Sam Edelman; tote – Antik Kraft
I’m sure that most of us who wear dresses have layered a cardigan or blazer over them – probably frequently. But putting a pull-over sweater over a dress might be… a new idea?
For me, this is something I want to try, in order to wear my dresses more frequently; for travel, especially, this might obviate the need to pack a skirt!
Would you try any of these, or are they a bridge too far?
love,
Janice
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I would wear both in a heartbeat, if I had them! I’m a separates wearer myself, but are seriously considering getting an over dress, but suddenly the under dress looks so nice.
Have done this quite a bit especially with drapey fabrics —wear with a sweater over in the daytime then for evening swap out shoes and sweater for fancier footwear and an elegant jacket or shawl-/ I used to (in the 60s) do this with a more structured jumper dress made packing so much simpler
Yes! I had a denim sleeveless (jumper style) dress that I wore like this overdress. I would wear a pullover over a sheath dress in a heartbeat. Great idea Janice.
Anything to get more wears out of my nice clothes….
The underdress is easier for me to imagine because I would do some version of a coverup with a sleeveless dress regardless. I have a beautiful black silk sleeveless flare EF dress that I thrifted and I need to get a move on and find the right top to go with it! I could get a lot more wears out of it if I could get that part sorted!
I worry about extra bulk in already (*ahem*) bulky places and everything laying smooth with the overdress, but that’s me. I love the look of a jumper (Ponte dress over a blouse or thin sweater) on other people –
Thanks for throwing the options out there! Something to think about…
Great idea and lovely. I once had a navy A-line simple v-neck button down dress I loved and wore as much as possible. I wore the turtlenecks and silky blouses UNDER the dress. So the dress was treated like a vest. I did wear cardigans and heavy sweaters over the dress but I preferred the look of this dress as a vest. Got lots of complements.
Janice Collins – Coyle, Washington Washington. DC
I will wear a solid pencil skirt over a too-short print dress sometimes. Then I don’t even need a slip.
Yes, I’ve turned a dress into a top by adding a skirt as well!
Oh wow, great idea! You don’t even have to fuss with your shirt coming untucked. I love this!
I think a dress masquerading as a skirt needs a substantial fabric, structure and a fitted bodice (like the Boss) so it does not lump under a top. The beauty of the Sander dress is its softly-draped grace, which I am not convinced wouldn’t look stuffed under a turtleneck. Maybe if I saw it on someone I’d change my mind!
I would be interested in finding a very fine long-sleeved top (I can see it in a fine mesh) to wear under the Sander dress to extend its wearability to cooler weather.
I love the look of the overdress, and always try to coordinate my blouses and dresses for such a look. For some reason I just can’t bring myself to do the underdress, possibly because I like my blouses flowey and my sweaters fitted, so nothing fits right over a dress. I have however flipped the underdress concept and worn a skirt over a dress, thereby turning a dress into a top.
That Jil Sander dress is pretty, and I’m sure artisanly made. Pretty sure I’ve seen similar at about 1/10 the price, though! Why are your heroines never on a budget, Janice? Does a rich lady need to find 4+ different ways to wear a $700 dress to get her money’s worth out of it? Just fantasizing, as we all do! Very beautiful outfits, of course!
My heroines are committed to wearing clothes that are available with photographs of the garment NOT on a model – sometimes, I have to get a bit extravagant in order to find something that conveys my thoughts. I’m sure a deft seamstress could whip up a simple dress that would be idea over things for a fraction of the price…
hugs,
Janice
Makes sense! Thank you for explaining your thought process!
Hug,
Dee
I love layering, so I have worn many similar outfits. A look that is new to me this spring, but that I am embracing, is the dress over pants trend. I have a knee length linen shift that I have been weary over widish legged linen pants with a short cardigan. I’m loving it.
I have a black Eileen Fisher tank dress that I often wear underneath pullovers, cardigans, shirts, kimonos … you name it. With a beautiful kimono, gold jewelry, and heels it is evening appropriate, and with a chambray shirt knotted at the waist and a pair of white Keds it is picnic ready. Worn on its own with sandals it is comfortable in hot weather, and underneath a pullover it is cozy in winter. This aspect makes it great for mixed climate trips. It was one of my better purchases :)
Do you remember when this specific type of dress existed and we used to call them pinafores? I was 12 at the time and it was my favourite dress. A wouldn’t mind if this type of dress returned as it would suit my more rectangular body type.
I do both – generally with loosely structured frocks, as I have fibromyalgia and ME/CFS, so ease of putting on can be vital. Summer in Australia means linen, very light rayon or cotton (and hiding inside with the dogs in the air conditioning). All of which translate well into the cold weather with extra layers. And heavier weight dresses (which also layer well) come out for the colder months, which stops me getting bored!
I enjoyed this post very much – I find it really helpful when asked if I have an item similar to the ones shown so I can see if any of the outfits are doable using my own wardrobe. I tend not to wear anything under dresses as there is barely enough room for me let alone a jumper or similar. However, in the mid 00s I did wear a patterned fully lined knee length slip dress with a plain long sleeved floaty silk top. Similarly, with a pair of skinny jeans and a slouchy cardigan. I don’t see this trend much anymore and my Google search didn’t bring up much either apart from one or two transitional looks featuring very young skinny girls with oversized baggy jumpers and ankle boots and extremely short flouncy bottomed dresses.
I really don’t care for the Jil Sander dress. IMO, drawstring waists only work on women with tiny, well defined waistlines. I can’t imagine wearing anything under it that would not look bulky
I think that the over dress look works better if the dress is slightly fitted with a defined or slightly high waist. I have a tan suede sleeveless dress that looks great with a thin black turtleneck underneath. We called them jumpers years ago.
I wear the under dress look in the form of sleeveless sheath dresses topped by cardigans. I wouldn’t wear a pullover top with a dress-too bulky and uncomfortable.
This morning my four year old came up with a new overdress concept. I had originally dressed her in a skirt and t-shirt. As I was getting ready, she ran to her room and replaced the t-shirt with a dress. The hem of the skirt was a couple inches longer than the hem of the dress, and I had to admit it was a cute look.
Love the post.
My daughter wear both “over” and “under” dresses.
I do it primarily to add more variety to my wardrobe.
My daughter currently has stomach trouble and a large number of skirts press on her stomach too much so she wears mostly dresses. She loves when we find her a dress that serves the “over” or “under” function and that goes with one of the tops she already owns.
The “over” dress concept appeals to me very much and is my staple in winter. I have two versatile dresses, one grey with a round collar and one black with a more open collar which I wear in that fashion. My pairings are the Uniqlo undershirts that exist in plenty of colours, some of them even match with a cardigan, v-neck or round neck. Easiest packing concept for traveling, with black tights and shoes or boots.
I have done the “under” dress only very occasionally, as I do not have many bulky sweaters that can go on top – but cardigans would be normal as a layering mode.
I love the look of some of the tops here, as I will find a great item in most posts, Janice!
I have a denim shirtwaister dress I often wear as a long jacket/light coat over a pair of jeans and top … or buttoned up under a long woolen jumper (sweater, you call them). I love the dress over trousers look …
I’m late to this one, but this is exactly what I just did when I put together my travel capsule for Milan/Paris/Normandy/Edinburgh and the Scottish coast. I’ve just discovered this amazing blog and I’ve been reading everything. You’ve focused me back on sticking with basics and color families. So I found 2 Tees and a seersucker shirt that layer over a tank dress eliminating the need to pack skirts. I’m quite pleased with myself! The combinations of a “skirt” and top looks nice and sporty, but well-dressed with a pair of sneakers in the style of Vans or Keds. A pair of beautiful Naot brown sandals, a necklace and a shawl with the dress takes me to dinner! I’m so enjoying your blog and recommending it to friends now.
It’s incredibly important to consider proportions when planning to do this. The dress over ‘trousers’ concept is case in point. IMO footless leggings work the best under a flow-y dress. Wide legged pants need to be considered carefully and may work with linen or silk. I think the under dress concept is more modern looking and would flatter more bodies. The first dress is ( for me) utterly awful at any price…the whole concept is frumpy. As another writer commented that drawstring waist flatters very few.
Well one person’s miss is another’s hit. Can’t stand the over dress but would embrace the under in a heartbeat.