How to Mix Dress & Casual Clothes
Head-to-toe dress attire might be too formal for some occasions. Conversely, you don't want to go out for a drink dressed in the same T-shirt and sweatpants you wear to veg out in on your couch. The solution: blend your formal and casual wardrobes to create a polished look that's appropriate for lots of different situations. Does this Spark an idea?
Things You'll Need
- Dress clothes for women:
- Little black dress
- Silk blouse
- Palazzo pants
- Pointed-toe flats
- Black peep-toe stilettos
- Dress clothes for men:
- Suit
- Dress jacket
- Dress shirt
- Brown leather shoes
- Camel trenchcoat
- Casual clothes for women:
- Wool pea coat
- Wool swing coat
- Ballet flats
- Skinny jeans
- Gladiator sandals
- Wrap cardigan
- Brightly colored stilettos
- Black turtleneck
- Grey tights
- Grey booties
- Casual clothes for men:
- Jeans
- Turtleneck
- Motorcycle boots
Instructions
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Day To Evening
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Mix your dress and casual clothes to take a look from day to evening. For daytime, team a ruffled white silk peasant blouse with dark-wash skinny jeans and flat black gladiator sandals.
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Switch out the gladiator sandals for tall black peep-toe stilettos for your evening look. Add a multi-strand necklace to drape over the front of your blouse, and sport some large hoop earrings.
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3
Put on a little black dress for a another daytime-look option. Add an oversized jersey-knit wrap cardigan and brightly colored ballet flats. While the black dress is formal, the cardigan and flats will keep the look more casual.
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Take this look into the evening by putting on high-heeled sandals. To stop the look from being too dressy, choose fun, quirky colors and styles---a stiletto with a big pink ankle bow, for example. Switch the cardigan out and put on a stylish short swing coat in a jewel tone, like amethyst or emerald.
Mixing Pieces
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Mix flowing palazzo pants with a structured wool pea coat. You'll look like you're wearing a formal ball skirt under a casual jacket. Wear black flats, but instead of the more casual round-toe ballet-style flats, go for a pointed toe, which will take the outfit to a dressier level.
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Put on some booties---they're a trend as of 2010 and can make a formal dress more casual, as can patterned tights. Pair a little black dress with some crocheted grey tights and grey suede high-heeled booties. You'll look sharp without looking overdressed.
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Layer thin thermal garments under a black turtleneck and wool wide-leg pants for a more polished---yet still casual---look during the winter. It's easy to look like a bundled-up mess when you have to wear layers of clothing to stay warm. Add a tailored camel-colored wool trench coat. Forgo the dressy shoes for more sensible footwear, like thick-soled boots.
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Mix dress and casual clothes for men by wearing a turtleneck instead of a dress shirt under a well-tailored suit in fall. Add brown leather shoes, which are generally less formal than black leather shoes but still dressy.
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Pair a men's dress jacket and crisply ironed shirt with faded boot-cut jeans and motorcycle boots.
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