Four Ways To Accessorise A Vintage Summer Dress

There are a great many stunning vintage dresses on our website one of our favourite decades is the fifties.  With summertime bearing down upon us we can get those cotton frocks out of the closet.  A good time then to look at how we can get accessorising down to a fine art. Here are four tips to help you on your way.

Cardigans

If there is a bit of a breeze in the air a vintage or retro cardigan will look great with your 1950s dress. Aside from keeping you protected from a chill, cardigans give your outfit a casual relaxed feel for day time looks.  Layering is also a great way of bringing out your favourite shade from a multicoloured print.  It can help coordinate your other accessories such as handbag, hat, shoes and gloves.

Go for soft wool or Tricel styles with round necklines rather than V fronts and pearl eye buttons to give them a less mass produced feel.

Necklaces

If it is to be worn with an original summer dress I would recommend a necklace of a shorter length. This is because vintage dresses tend to have a higher neckline than most modern types, meaning that a longer necklace would hang over the dress itself. I would suggest either a choker, princess or a matinee length necklace. As for the necklace itself, you can’t go wrong with classic pearls, but any modest set of beads should work perfectly. In the fifties sets of double, triple and even four rows were popular. Here Olivia wears a  plastic fruity Tiki one which also looks great when worn with coordinating colours.

Sunglasses

There’s nothing cooler than a nice pair of shades (or so I keep telling myself). In all seriousness, sunglasses are a great way to add character to your outfit, and a splash of colour to your face. 50s style sunglasses tend to be very curvy and colourful, with a common style being called the “cat’s eye” owing to the resemblance to a cat’s eye and reminiscent of American Car design of the time. If you choose a pair which match your dress you should be good to go, and you won’t have to deal with the sun blinding you all day! Win-win!

Hats

More than something to just stop your thoughts escaping, a hat can literally top off (pun intended) your dress! There are all kinds of different hat styles to choose from. Although it’s not absolutely essential it looks great if your hat, colour matches at least one of the colours you are wearing (cardigan included). Depending upon the occasion, you could go for something simple like a straw hat, or if you’re dressing up you could go for a more flamboyant design like a pillbox style embossed with flowers.

Now you’re prepared! If you stick to this guide you won’t go far wrong. So have fun and wear that summer dress with a little bit more confidence!