I spent about three summers thinking a black printed dress was a cop out for garden parties. Too safe, I thought, like turning up to a christening in your work clothes because you couldn’t be bothered to think. Then I wore one to a friend’s engagement do in a marquee that had clearly been erected by someone’s uncle at 6am, stood next to a woman in head to toe coral, and watched half the photos from that day end up being of my dress instead of hers. So I was wrong. Genuinely, formally, apologise to the black printed dress. You were right, I was being difficult.
The trick is the print doing the work while the black does the behaving.
A ditsy floral or a small abstract print in black reads as considered rather than costume, it has enough going on to feel like you dressed for the occasion without looking like you raided a florist’s curtain. Look for something with a bit of movement in the skirt, nothing that clings, because garden parties involve standing on grass in heels, balancing a glass of something warm, and occasionally being ambushed by a toddler. You need to be able to crouch down for that photo without your dress having opinions about it.
Styling wise, I keep it simple on top, a good pair of block heeled sandals rather than anything that’ll sink into a lawn, and gold jewellery rather than silver because it warms the black up. A structured straw bag does more for the look than any clutch ever will, it just says you know where you are. If there’s a chill, a tailored blazer thrown over the top works better than a cardigan, which always tips it back into funeral territory.
This is the dress for the christening, the fortieth in a garden, the wedding reception that starts at 3pm and doesn’t end till midnight, any event where the invitation says “smart” and you’re not entirely sure what that means. It photographs well in bright light, it doesn’t crease if you’re sat on a hay bale for two hours, and it never once looks like you tried too hard, even when you absolutely did.
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