Date night dress code.
When date night rolls around in our house, it’s time to make a conscious effort to ditch my boyfriend jeans (even though I might be going out with my ‘boyfriend’) and add a touch of something sexier to upgrade my everyday outfit. Being a bit long in the tooth these days that doesn’t involve wearing less, quite the opposite occurs where I end up wearing more to cover up the lardy bits. But that doesn’t mean I can’t make the outfit feel glamorous, and over the years I’ve figured out that there are always 3 things I tend to include in my date night outfit to ensure I’m hitting the right style note.
First up I add a little luxe to the game. I always find luxe fabrics like chiffon, satin, silk or velvet are an easy way to perk up an outfit from run of the mill to special. If you’re comfy flashing a little flesh then opt for a cold-shoulder or off the shoulder top, but otherwise, stick to something conservative and within your comfort zone and let the fabric do the talking. These days you can pick up an inexpensive top in an opulent fabric in most high street stores, or otherwise check out permanent sale site like The Outnet or Yoox.com to find a designer piece for less.
Secondly, trust in the power of embellishment, it never fails to add the right note to an outfit. Think detailing on sleeves and collars or buy into some new season embellished accessories for good measure. Coming up to the festive season we will see more sparkle landing in stores so keep a weather eye out for pieces which you could add to your date night armoury.
Lastly, throw on a sumptuous coat for the final luxurious touch which will have you feeling like a million dollars before you’ve even walked out the door. If cashmere is beyond your budget then look for some of the new season wool mix coats. Single breasted or belted are the most flattering out there when it comes to enhancing body shape and keeping it simple. I was lucky enough to be gifted this The White Company coat after my recent guest blog post for them all about styling their coats – you can read up on that post here.
With thanks to Clare Walpole for the photography for this post.