Dressing Up For Comfort Lovers

I'm back today with the last of my photos from my trip to Corfu, which I'm feeling happy about because, to be totally honest, I'm getting a bit sick of them, so I'm sure you are too! But I do love this outfit and this dress, which you might have also seen on my post about dressing for yourself. Here, it's styled a little bit (read, a lot) differently in a much more feminine, formal way. It's probably the most 'dressed up' outfit I wore in Corfu and editing and looking through these photos made me think about dressing up and why I've perhaps done it less over the years. I came to the conclusion that the reason this is the case is because I am, in fact, most comfortable when my clothes feel comfortable (makes sense right?). But sometimes dressing up is necessary and I do really enjoy it when I've got the right outfit. So in today's post, I'm going to give you some tips on formal dressing if, like me, your clothes being physically comfortable is something you're rarely willing to give up, based on how I've styled this outfit.

1. Ditch the High Heels

It honestly baffles me how and why people still wear high heels. I mean, no disrespect, in fact I have a lot of respect for people who were high heels regularly because HOW? For about a 2-3 year period, I would wear high heels every single weekend (and when I say high, I mean anything ranging from 4-6 inches) but I feel like I've well and truly got that out my system because now I avoid them like the plague. I have very wide and blister-prone feet so high heels and I just don't go together and whenever I did used to wear them, my nights would often be ruined by ridiculous amounts of pain and, if they weren't, the next day 100% would be.

So, my tip is to simply ditch the high heels. I don't think I've worn any in well over a year and I can vouch for the fact that nights out, and any occasion where I would otherwise wear them, are much better now. You don't have to be tall to wear flats (I'm 5"4) and people care about whats on your feet a lot less than you think. Alternatively, try a pretty flat shoe, maybe something pointed to make it a little bit formal or something with a slingback. Those types of shoes are appropriate for most occasions and all-year round. If you would feel better wearing a little bit of a heel, go for a heeled boot with a platform in the winter for less formal occasions- these are much comfier than any type of court shoe. In the summer, sandals with a small chunky heel (just like the ones I'm wearing in this photo) are formal, comfy and season-appropriate so you can't really ask for more! I'm also a fan of (controversial opinion ahead) the Mary-Jane and my patent, slightly heeled pair have been a great, comfortable replacement for heels (I wore them in this post here).

Here are some examples of the shoes that are available to buy:

The Pointed Slingback:

This Red Mango Pair (£15)

This Gold ASOS Pair (£14)

This Simple Black ModCloth Pair (£22)

The Heeled Boot:

This Black Velvet MissGuided Pair That I Already Own (£17)

This Red Faith Pair (£41.30)

This Boohoo Thigh High Pair (£38)

The Heeled Sandal:

My Topshop Sandals (£29)

The Mary-Jane:

This Office Pair That Are Very Similar To My Old ASOS Pair (£32)

2. The Humble Slip Dress

I truly believe that the slip dress is a comfort lover's ultimate wardrobe piece, it's certainly mine! Not only are they so versatile and can be dressed up and down for so many different occasions and seasons but they're just about the comfiest style of dress ever. They usually don't require a bra, even for bigger boobs because the style of dress isn't figure hugging whatsoever and you can eat as much as you want in them without having to undo any buttons and without anyone seeing your lovely full belly- they honestly feel like wearing a socially acceptable nightie. Have I sold you on them? I hope so!

I usually go for a mini slip dress worn with any of the aforementioned shoes, which always makes a great and simple outfit for a night out. But here I'm obviously wearing one with more of a midi length, a first for me! I think the midi length makes the outfit even more formal and I think this polka dot number might even be wedding-appropriate. I can't recommend slip dresses to you enough if you're all about being comfortable at more formal events, and especially if you're number-one wedding/event activity is raiding the buffet table!

Here are some of my favourites:

This Sequin Mini For All Of Your Partying Needs (£36)

This Sexy Satin Midi For Your More Formal Events (£32)

For some reason the dress I'm wearing in these photos isn't and never has been on the Zara website but for other polka dot midi slip dresses see here, here and here.

3. It's All In The Accessories

I wear gold jewellery with pretty much all of my outfits. Namely, I'm always wearing gold layered necklaces. I think they add something interesting to every outfit but they're especially great for making an outfit more formal. By co-ordinating my gold necklaces with the gold hardware on my shoes in this outfit, it just looks like I've put that little bit more effort in and ties the outfit together. I also think hoop earrings are a great way to dress up an outfit although my lobe piercings are still recovering from having them pierced in March (yes that was 3 months ago and no I'm not happy about how slow my ears are recovering) so I couldn't wear mine with this outfit although I do have a beautiful Anthropolige pair waiting for me.

A bag can also make an outfit more formal and interesting but, due to limited space in my suitcase and a comparatively poor bag collection, I just stuck with this plain black over the shoulder bag. Although worn as a clutch it probably would have looked much more formal. Clutches aren't really my thing though as they're endlessly impractical and so instead, maybe try a bag that co-ordinates with your jewellery (i.e. a gold or silver one) or a beaded bag.

Some Gold Jewellery I Have My Eye On/Own*:

This Lucy Williams X Missoma Fang Choker (£95)

This Lucy Williams X Missoma Beaded Coin Necklace (£145)

This Alex Monroe Bunny Necklace (£135)

These Anthropologie Gold Hoop Earrings (£38)

Some Formal Bags That Aren't Clutches:

This Zara Black Beaded Bag (£29.99)

This Anthropologie Sparkly Metallic Bag (£48.95)

I hope you've enjoyed this post and that it's been helpful! Formal dressing can be one of the most difficult styling tasks so I hope I've provided you with some ways to make it easier and, most importantly, more comfortable. I'll see you on Sunday with a new post with some photos that aren't from Corfu (can you believe it?) but until then, you can find me on Instagram where I'm active on a daily basis @aliceporter16.

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