Pink dresses have been my go-to look for 2020, for both comfort and style. When working from home in the middle of a pandemic, pyjamas did nothing but bring my mood down and make me feel like a total slob. That, and I didn’t want the postman to think less of me, seeing as he was pretty much the only other human I’d see most days. Dresses definitely helped me feel more put-together and ready to go. After months of far fewer social interactions, there was no worrying about if my blouse matched my skirt, or if my top looked weird tucked into my jeans, because chucking on a dress made me look like I had my life together.
Before we begin transitioning into the exciting autumn uniform of chunky knitwear, straight leg jeans and boots, I wanted to share my five favourite pink dresses I’ve worn all summer 2020. I can’t wait to crack them back out again in spring – and I might even fathom a way to layer them in the meantime. Throw out the rest of my wardrobe* – I’m exclusively wearing pink dresses from here on out. Some might wonder how I can own five pink dresses and not get bored of wearing pink dresses – but trust me, they’re all totally different (only two of them are floral…)
*Please don’t throw out the rest of my wardrobe.
So without further ado, here are the five dresses I’ve been wearing, and where each of them was from!
C You Last Tuesday
This floral prairie dress is originally from St Michael, purchased from Staffordshire vintage seller C You Last Tuesday during lockdown. The vintage dress is never going to be out of style, and supports slow styling and ethical fashion choices.
The 70s style dress cost me around £40 and is made of 100% cotton. Ruby – founder of C You Last Tuesday – sells her vintage finds from anywhere between £10-60, depending on style, brands and quality. There’s a real mix of vintage fashion in her collection, which can be purchased on Depop or Instagram.
I wore this dress to go strawberry picking in, and I’m so in love with the floral pattern with bursts of colour, drop neckline and puffed sleeves.
You can read more about C You Last Tuesday here.
Lula Leek
Pink, polka dot, puff sleeves – perfect! The pink sugar and spice dress from indie biz Lula is shorter than I’d usually wear – but it added a little bit of dynamic to my pink dresses collection. It’s probably a bolder shade of pink than I’d usually pick up too – but I love it.
It’s fully lined, with a tiered skirt, which has about two inches of sheer fabric at the bottom to show a little leg. The whole dress is embroidered with polka dots which add texture – as does the vintage-style ruffle neck. Puffed sleeves and elastic at the cuff make it really comfortable to wear, especially on warmer days.
This dress cost me £28, and whilst it’s currently out of stock, you can bag 15% off the Lula website with the code BEFF15.
Neon Rose
What’s not to love about a gingham puff sleeve midi dress with a low V neckline? This 100% cotton dress is giving me all the cute picnic vibes.
When I saw this dress online, I did think it was a midi dress, but it’s actually described as a midaxi – a whole new style of dress between midi and maxi. As I mentioned in this post, that means it may be a little too long on petite babes unless you plan on wearing it with heels.
The deep plunging V neckline is risqué – I tape it in place with body tape to avoid an unfortunate nip slip. You can just about get away without tape, but to prevent panic, I prefer to keep everything firmly secured in the dress.
The edges of the neckline and sleeves have a little crochet edge for added girliness. With the puff sleeve, they’re not too dramatic – the neckline is statement enough – but they do have volume. This is brought back to the bicep with a band of fabric, adding to the more structured feel.
Though from Neon Rose, I got this dress from Nasty Gal for £19.
Oliver Bonas
There are so many reasons I love this dress – I even wrote nine of them here. The ginny dress from Oliver Bonas was a stunning statement summer piece that I couldn’t get enough of.
I love that it can be dressed both up and down, the abstract floral and animal print pattern, the angel sleeves. I’d be happy to only ever buy dresses with angel sleeves from now on. The neckline is to die for and the dress is just so flattering and makes me feel so confident when I’m wearing it.
This was originally £75, but is currently in the sale in limited sizes for £23, with the jumpsuit version at £58.
Marks and Spencer
I first saw this dress on the awesome alt-fashion blogger Alice Tulip, styled with Dr Martens and a chunky belt. When I heard it was from M&S, I raced to my nearest store and bagged it on the sale rail for £15.
This is the third floral pattern pink dress in my collection, but still totally different to the other two. It features muted shades of pink and teal, with black, cream and a purple hue. The pink and teal combination is stunning, and makes it fun to accessorise to.
The Marks and Spencer dress skims the waist, falling into a swishy skirt. It buttons all the way up and has a little collar, offering a smart/casual look that can be dressed up, dressed down, or dressed for work. The angel sleeves are similar to those on the ginny dress above, which are both comfortable and feminine, providing a gorgeous silhouette.
