Australia’s beloved casual dress
There are many words to describe Australian women, and one that would likely come up first would be ‘practical’. Maybe it’s our climate, or our ability to live amongst some of the most treacherous critters in the world, but we’re experts at dressing appropriately for the elements, and only suffering for fashion by choice. Sure, we might wear a tight mini with heels as treacherous as a red back spider on occasion, but for the most part, we prefer to be comfortable. And that’s why we hold casual dresses so dear in Australia.
Their name says it all—casual. A casual dress doesn’t scream out ‘look at me’, nor does it hug tight to our body, constricting our breathing. No, a casual dress offers an unfussy design, minimal embellishments, and practical additions like pockets at times. They allow for ease of movement, and are made with breathable materials like linen, cotton, viscose, or blends. Especially popular in spring and summer, casual dresses can be worn to a range of occasions, and are simple to style.
Let’s look at some of the most popular casual dress styles you’ll encounter in Australia, and why these styles are so sought after by women wanting comfortable dresses they can wear on repeat. Let’s start with midi dresses!
Midi Dresses
Easily one of the most popular dresses for Australian women, the midi dress offers a range of appealing features. For a start, its length works on most people. With a hem between knee and ankle length, the midi dress is a modest option that allows airflow to the legs, without the need for showing lots of flesh. Midi length dresses come in a range of styles, from shift style midis, to wrap styles that accentuate the waist. Their length also allows for plenty of skirt, and midi dresses available with flared, tiered, and straight skirts.
Midi dresses are available in plenty of fabrics, including linen, cotton, jersey, and cotton/viscose blends, so take your pick of your preferred cloth. And the colours and prints are seemingly endless, with floral, boho, polka dot, abstract prints and more.
Casual midi dresses are perfectly suited to a range of occasions, including brunches with your buddies, picnics, shopping outings, parties, and even to work (depending on your workplace dress policy). Simply wear them with some strappy sandals or espadrilles, a casual handbag, and your look is complete.
Shirt dresses
Shirt dresses are basically any dress with a shirt collar and button-down front. They often also have cuffed sleeves. Shirt dresses offer a neat and smart look, with the added comfort of not needing to tuck them into trousers or a skirt, like you would with an actual shirt. Instead, they either fall straight down, appearing more like an oversize shirt (super comfy), or they draw in at the waist, often with a waist tie or drawstring. They usually have a relaxed skirt, offering a light and feminine vibe alongside the formality of the shirt collar.
Whilst being a casual dress, a shirt dress is a great option for the office—just dress it with work-appropriate shoes and a light blazer or cardigan. A shirt dress is also a stylish choice for casual outings. For a day venture to the market or gallery, wear with flat sandals or white sneakers and a slouchy shoulder bag or satchel.
Look out in particular for linen shirt dresses, which are super soft and comfortable, and a breathable option for Australian summers.
Shift dresses
When you want to throw on something with plenty of space to move in, and that offers heaps of airflow on a hot Australian day, then a shift dress is ideal. Shift dresses have a straight cut that hangs loosely from the shoulders. There’s not really any waist definition with a shift dress, so if you love to show off your hourglass figure, then a shift dress might not be your pick. A shift dress has a little more of a boxy, relaxed look, making them ultra chic, and versatile for a range of occasions.
You’ll encounter shift dresses in many fabrics, including 100% cotton shift dresses, viscose shift dresses, cotton/viscose combos, denim and linen shift dresses. There are also ample prints out there, including boho, abstract, floral, leaf, paisley prints, as well as straight monochrome dresses.
Casual shift dresses look great with chunky sandals, ballet flats, wedges, heels, and even with sneakers. A crossbody, tote or shoulder bag will all work well with a shift dress.
Linen dresses
Arguably the perfect summer dress, linen dresses look eternally chic, and offer a range of qualities when it comes to comfort. Linen is inherently breathable, plus it wicks moisture away from the body, which is exactly what you need in summer. Linen is also durable, so a casual linen dress should last you years! Finally, (and you choose whether you want to buy into this science), but pure linen was found in a study to have an extremely high vibrational frequency (5000 hz) compared with synthetic fabrics, with frequencies under 100 hz. High frequency fabrics are said to enhance health, energy and clarity! Anyway, you look that up, but it does sound good!
Aside from good vibes, linen is also sustainably sourced from the flax plant, so additional points there.
Linen dresses come in a range of styles, including linen shirt dresses, linen layer dresses, linen midi dresses, and straight linen dresses with practical pockets. They also come in a wide array of prints.
Like with the other casual dresses, styling is pretty simple with a linen dress. Let the linen’s simplicity speak for itself. Add sandals or wedges in a colour that works with the dress print, or else white or tan are effortless choices that mostly go with all linens (keep it light, and avoid black shoes unless your dress has black elements). Casual shoulder bags in cream, tan and brown will work well with a linen dress. In particular, look out for woven bags or basket-style handbags. The natural materials in these bags look just perfect with natural linen.
Maxi dresses
Typically reaching the ankles, and sometimes beyond, a maxi dress is a great casual dress option at any time of year. Many styles come with an empire waistline, which positions the waist just beneath the bust, and hence, gives the appearance of an elongated body and makes you look taller. An empire waist also means you don’t feel constricted around the middle, so these dresses are very comfortable, and especially so, as maternity wear.
Other maxi dress styles taper in at the waist, with either an inbuilt elasticised waist, a belt, or a drawstring. Some come with a tiered skirt, others with a flared skirt, and some hang pretty straight.
In terms of their design, some come with embellishments like cute bands of lace or broderie anglaise on the skirt or neckline, and others are plain and simple. In terms of their sleeves, you can get your pick of any style, with off-shoulder, halterneck, spaghetti straps, short sleeved and long sleeved maxi dresses being popular. There are also a myriad of print choices, like boho, botanical and abstract prints, or plain and simple solid-coloured maxi dresses.
Casual maxi dresses need little in the way of accessories, but feel free to add light jewellery, and if you’ve got a boho print maxi dress, then play around with jewellery made with natural materials, like feathers, shells, seeds or clay beads.
Shoes? Strappy heels or sandals, wedge sandals, or even boots can all look great with a maxi dress. Add a wide brimmed hat in summer!
Casual dresses at Femme Connection
The casual dress is an essential staple in Australia, and Femme Connection is here to cater to your needs! Whether it’s a shirt dress or shift, a midi or a maxi, or something else altogether, we have a huge range of gorgeous casual dresses perfectly suited to Australian fashion trends and to our varied climate. See our casual dress range, with dresses available in plenty of prints and styles.