How to work a lace dress - all year round all gorgeous from Self Portrait to DvF

Lace dresses are a perennial favourite.  There’s a style for everyone, they can be incredibly flattering and you can buy a new lace dress with impunity at any time during the year. Summery versions can work on through autumn with the simple addition of a wrap or cashmere cardi.  And it's worth splashing out because a lace dress that fits and flatters will last for years and never date.


There’s a reason why Diane von Furstenberg has a lace dress in every style, from sleeveless and cami dresses to her best selling Zarita dress and on to a lace wrap dress.  And all come in a choice of colours.  No these are not inexpensive, but having bought a black Zarita lace dress about four years ago, worn it over and over again and even had it ‘borrowed’ by the daughter, the value from a high quality lace dress, if you take into account the number of times you wear it, pays back in spades.

Be warned that if you opt for inexpensive your dress may not last as long, however there are some very good high street options similar to much more expensive styles and definitely worth looking at. 

Because the little lace dress is so popular there’s one in every style, and at every price level. With or without linings, sleeves and as feminine and sexy as you want them to be. My favourites here are by Badgley Mischka who specialises in form flattering shapes in stretch lace and is relatively new to the UK.  And no, I haven’t yet…….