11 Dress-Wearing Mistakes You Want To Avoid
Take a moment to peek into your closet and think about how many dresses you've got hanging there. Odds are, you've got a handful of gorgeous dresses you can wear on various occasions. There are some dresses that only make sense at formal events, like weddings, charity galas, and black-tie dinners. Other dresses are reserved for more casual outings, like brunch with your besties or picnic dates with your significant other.
With any of these dress types, it's crucial to avoid dress-wearing mistakes that can destroy the allure of even the trendiest gowns. After all, mistakes when it comes to wearing, styling, and caring for dresses aren't all that uncommon, so it's best to narrow down some of the worst dress-wearing mistakes so you always feel confident in your skin when you leave the house.
An excellent example of a dress-wearing mistake to avoid would be choosing ones covered in outdated prints and patterns. For instance, are you in a camo-avoidant year? Are florals all the rage? Dresses made out of prickly or itchy fabrics don't deserve a place in your closet, either, but this is only the beginning of the dress-wearing mistakes of which we've likely all been guilty.
Unintentional see-through material
With the naked dress trend on the rise in Hollywood, it makes sense that fashionistas would opt for sheer clothing for major events. For instance, stars like Emily Ratajkowski, Rihanna, and Zendaya have rocked their fair share of naked dresses at red-carpet events.
Because these stars impact the greater fashion industry so largely, wearing see-through dresses in 2023 is definitely a vibe — if that's what you're going for. It only becomes a problem when the dress you're wearing is unintentionally see-through. While plenty of dresses are specifically and purposely designed to be see-through, accidentally wearing a dress that reveals more than you're comfortable with may leave you feeling uncomfortable.
One of the ways this happens is by trying on a dress in front of certain lighting without knowing how it will look underneath brighter or more direct lighting. At home, your dress may give you the impression that all your most intimate parts are completely covered up, but getting hit with a direct stream of bright light in a public space could ultimately reveal a lot more. To avoid this, test out the thickness of your dress's material in different lighting before settling on it — if possible, of course.
Or unintentionally too short
There's nothing wrong with wearing minidresses, and they can be incredibly trendy when you style them well. Short dresses only become problematic when you find yourself wearing one that's unintentionally a lot shorter than you originally realized. An example of this would be sliding into a minidress that looks absolutely fabulous while you're standing up on both feet. As soon as you sit down, though, if the dress rides up in a way that doesn't keep your bottom covered, your intimate parts could be revealed to anyone looking your way. Since some short dresses will cover you just enough while you're standing, it may not cross your mind to test the waters of a dress while sitting down in it.
Taking this step is crucial before going somewhere where other people will witness you. Similarly, dresses that are too tight can create a comparable problem. Although your skin-tight dress may look fabulous at first glance in front of the mirror, super-tight dresses don't always stay in place once you're actively walking around, moving your arms, bending over, or making other normal movements — you know, the unavoidable things we do all day long. This is why it's extra important to consider your dress' tightness and length before wearing it, keeping your destination in mind.
Visible undergarments
One of the top dress-wearing mistakes to avoid is wearing a dress that reveals visible undergarments. In fact, dresses are often designed to be worn without visible bra straps poking out underneath, as they can distract from the beauty of your dress. A prime example of this fashion blunder occurred when a contestant from Netflix's "Love is Blind" showed up to her wedding in a white gown with thick bra straps showing along both of her shoulder blades.
Social media users were in an uproar about the situation, questioning why none of her bridesmaids intervened. "Also, she has sh**e friends," one Redditor wrote. There's something incredibly classy about wearing a stunning dress without bra straps distracting from its elegance. There are tons of strapless bras, sticky bras, and boob tape options to utilize in order to steer clear of this fashion faux pas.
In terms of underwear lines, seeing two creases from your panties digging into your bottom underneath your dress never looks appealing. One option for avoiding underwear lines is to opt for thong-style underwear that doesn't create lines at all. You can also wear seamless panties that lay flat against your skin. Some people prefer to ditch their underwear altogether by going commando! A final idea would be to layer a pair of tights or pantyhose over your underwear to keep pesky lines from showing underneath your dress. With so many options, it should thankfully be easy to avoid this one in the future.
Adding the wrong accessories
The accessories you wear with your dress can truly make or break the entire outfit. Wearing the wrong accessories tells the world you aren't exactly up-to-date with the general tenets of styling, or perhaps you simply operate to the beat of your own drum. Still, one basic issue is choosing too many accessories to wear. If you go all out with several necklaces, bracelets, belts, hair clips, gloves, and more, your dress will look chaotic and cluttered. Sometimes, less is more. It's best to choose one or two stunning accessories to complement your overall appearance.
Another issue is forgetting to acknowledge color palettes while making your selections. If you're wearing a black dress, it's easy enough to accessorize with purses, shoes, and jewelry in any color, but if you're wearing a dress in a more complicated color, such as gold or red, you should be a lot more wary about your accessory choices.
Furthermore, don't shy away from unique or out-of-the-box accessories. Sticking to boring pieces of jewelry and forgettable shoes or purses won't add any additional flair to your dress. When it comes to fashion, it's perfectly okay to get creative and have fun with your look. In the same way you wouldn't want to ruin your dress with the wrong accessories, you have to be careful with your makeup and hairstyle choices, too. The wrong makeup or hairstyle can throw off your ensemble's synergy.
Wearing a dress that's way too long
Wearing a dress that's way too long for you is a huge mistake for a handful of reasons. Firstly, too-long dresses can be dangerous. Tripping over the bottom of your dress because it keeps getting caught underneath your feet wouldn't be fun for anyone. Then, holding up the edges of your dress for every step you take would start to feel like an inconvenience — and quickly. Don't even get us started on staircases.
When your dress has been properly hemmed, you don't have to worry about falling down or holding up its edges as you go about your day. Instead, you're left with the freedom to focus on other things that matter to you. Some dresses are intentionally designed to be longer in length because it makes it easier for you to wear a pair of tall high heels with them. If high heels aren't part of your outfit, though, a dress that's too long will end up becoming a problem.
It's incredibly necessary to take your height into consideration when selecting the best possible dress options for yourself. Certain dress lengths look best on tall women, while other dress lengths look great on petite women. Moreover, some petite women often prefer to shop for dress lengths that elongate their legs, while taller women prefer to shop for dresses that elongate their torsos. Ultimately, dresses that stop around your ankles are usually winners.
A dress with loose gemstones or rhinestones
Dresses covered in gemstones and rhinestones can make you feel like a sparkly princess, but you have to be cautious with these dresses by taking note of how secure or loose the gemstones and rhinestones really are. If you plan to dance the night away with someone while wearing one of these dresses, you don't want to deal with patches of crystals falling off. You also don't want to deal with crystals disappearing in areas where you're sitting down or leaning against a chair. This isn't much of an issue to worry about when the gemstones and rhinestones covering your dress are tightly sewn into the fabric.
If you have any inclination that they will easily fall off if they rub against anything, it's in your best interest to skip wearing that particular dress. Fortunately, there are tons of sparkly dresses to wear that don't depend on gemstones and rhinestones being sewn onto the surface material. Some sparkly dresses are simply cut from vibrant and shimmery fabrics. Other dresses are made with flat sequins, metallic material, or sparkling fringe. Any of these options will allow you to continue sparkling all night long without having to worry about loose gemstones and rhinestones falling off in patches.
Dresses unfit for the dress code
In the fashion world, paying attention to dress codes is key. If a certain dress is unfit for the dress code where you're headed, it's up to you to swap the dress out for something that's more sensible. One example would be avoiding dresses that display derogatory or offensive messages. Although a dress with a specific message might fit in well at a fundraiser or political rally, that same dress wouldn't fly in a place where people don't want to discuss controversial subjects.
Wedding dress codes are something else to consider before making your final fashion decisions. Most people know you're not supposed to wear white to someone else's wedding, but wedding dress codes go far beyond that. The invitation may explain that the attire should be black-tie, black-tie optional, cocktail, semi-formal, beachy, or casual. Based on what instructions given, wearing a dress that honors the bride and groom's wishes is the most respectful approach to take.
When it comes to the dress code presented to you at work, honoring the rules in order to stay in good standing with your management team is incredibly important. Wearing dresses that are formal, modest, and professional-looking will get you farther than wearing dresses that should be reserved for nightclubs or rooftop bars.
Faulty zippers or buttons
Wearing a dress with faulty zippers or buttons will undoubtedly lead to an unfortunate wardrobe malfunction. If you already know that one of the zippers or buttons on your dress continually gets stuck or gives you a problem, you might want to change into something else. Dresses that give you warnings before you've even left your front door are trying to save the day for you. If the zipper breaks and sides down or a button breaks and pops off, there's a chance parts of your body will be exposed without your consent. The best thing to do would be to switch to something else as soon as possible.
If your heart is set on wearing a particular dress with a faulty zipper or button, you can always get it repaired or altered in order to comfortably wear it. This same rule applies to dresses that have faulty straps on top. The straps of nearly every dress are meant to hold your dress up over your shoulders. Dealing with straps that are always sliding down or slipping off will potentially cause a nip slip while you're out and about. You can solve this issue by tightening the straps of your dress if they're adjustable or using an elastic strap holder to tighten things up between your shoulder blades.
Unintentionally worn out, tattered, or flimsy
A dress that's been thrown into the washing machine too many times may now be duller in color, to begin with. Weakened fabric from too many washes can also cause it to look worn out and tattered. Once a dress looks old, it's time to give it a rest and move on to other pieces. Of course, some dresses are specifically designed to look worn out, tattered, or flimsy, so those dresses don't count here.
When you think of distressed jeans and ripped-up denim shorts, everyone knows those pieces of clothing are designed to look that way on purpose. There are plenty of dresses that offer that same vibe straight off the department store rack, but overdoing it by wearing a dress that's already been through the wringer for years isn't the best move if you care about making great impressions.
The best thing you can do with a dress that's reached the point of being too worn out, tattered, and flimsy would be to donate it or give it to someone in need. There are plenty of charitable organizations with ongoing clothing drives to explore, and there are loads of people who would be grateful to come across your old dress, even if it's no longer in tip-top shape by your own personal standards. You could also upcycle it into another piece of clothing for yourself.
Visible wrinkles throughout the material
Wearing a dress with visible wrinkles throughout the material is an easy mistake to avoid. All you have to do is grab an iron and ironing board to press out any lines. For an iron-free method, try using your laundry dryer. Just add a couple of ice cubes into the machine with your wrinkled dress for about 20 minutes on a hot setting.
Wrinkle-removing spray is another good call if you have time to mix together equal parts of water and vinegar, adding a handful of drops of essential oils to neutralize the vinegar's odor. Add the combination into a spray bottle and spritz your wrinkled dress until it's damp. After that, let it air dry, and watch the wrinkles disappear.
Then, there's the blow dryer method. Lightly dampening your wrinkled dress before warming it with your blow dryer on the lowest setting can make a difference in the number of wrinkles your dress has. As long as you keep the blow dryer at least 2 inches away from your dress, you won't have to worry about anything accidentally burning, either. Finally, using the steam that floats around the bathroom while taking a hot shower can also help your dress. Hang your dress up in the bathroom with the door closed while the steam works its magic to smooth out those unsightly lines — and voila!
Utilizing dress pockets for bulky items
Dresses with pockets are wonderful simply because of their convenience, though we wish more dresses had them. A huge reason pockets on dresses come in handy is that they serve as a warm place to tuck your hands in cold weather. After all, you never have to awkwardly twiddle your thumbs in tense situations when you have pockets on your dress. Furthermore, instead of carrying a purse everywhere, you can hold a few essential items on your person.
By that same token, purses are typically some of the best accessories for our 'fits. Because of that, skipping a purse altogether simply because of the pockets on your dress might not be the best move. When utilizing dress pockets to hold bulkier items, your overall look can droop, too. Fortunately, small items — like tampons, Chapstick, and credit cards — won't make much of a difference. Whew!