What is a Midi Dress & How To Style Them

If you have been thinking about what is a midi dress looks like, you will find your answers here. We all know that the hemline of a midi-dress is somewhere between the knee and ankle. The length of a midi-dress is more than a knee-long dress, but less than the ankle-length dress.

Does that mean every dress that stretches below the knee and stops above the ankle is a midi-dress? Yes, but each type is different from the others, because they look different when they fall on your calf area.

Midi-dresses are very comfortable.  Many fabrics are used to design them, which makes them a great choice to wear across all seasons. You can pair them with stylish accessories to make them look stylish, or you can wear them as standalone pieces to sport a simple look. Unfortunately, not many women wear them, because they are under the misconception that midi-dresses make them look stout and fat.

This is not true at all, unless you choose the wrong style of midi-dress for your body. We like to insist that any  piece of elegant clothing would look disastrous on you if you don’t spend enough time choosing its style and pattern.

If you are looking for some of the best midi-dress styles, shopping tips for buying them, styling tips and things you can pair with your midi-dresses, keep reading the following sections. Even if you already got some sexy dress and want to learn how you can organize them, the Konmari file folding method is for you.

Also Read: Types of Lingerie & How to Choose Best Lingerie According to Body Type

What are the different types of midi-dresses?

Bodycon Midi-dresses

Wrapped tightly around your figure, bodycon midi-dresses accentuate your curves beautifully. They make for great dresses for parties because of their short length; however, that’s not the only place where you can wear these dresses to. Try midi-length bodycon midi dresses with ribs, buttons and ruffles to exude a warm, cute and innocent look. These dresses would go extremely well for your casual afternoon lunches.

Midi Wrap Dresses

If you are looking for an outfit that you can wear from morning to night without any discomfort, you can try different midi wrap dresses. While you can wear them to the office every day, you can also opt for the satin midi wrap dresses for special occasions. We recommend you try the midi wrap dresses with V-necks for office.

Long Sleeves Midi-Dresses

A midi-dress with long sleeves is a great choice for any occasion. They are comfortable and flexible to be styled in any way based on the place you are going to. Long-sleeved midi-dresses with floral prints is great choices for the summer and spring season. You can wear them for your casual outings, office and other places.

You can choose V-necked or high-necked dresses with a flared pattern, drawstring belt at the waist and puffed sleeves to the office. However, for parties, you can choose bodycon bandage-patterned midi-dresses with high necks and long sleeves, made from satin fabric. For a sexy look, you can opt for a short midi-dress with long sleeves but with a plunging neckline.

Lace Midi-Dresses

Laced midi-dresses give you umpteen opportunities to style your look the way you want. You can opt for the cute laced midi-dresses with long sleeves for casual get-togethers and other outings, while you can choose the sleeveless lace midi dress for special nights. The asymmetrical hemmed, sleeveless, laced midi dresses are a huge hit during the spring and summer seasons.

For professional meetings, you can opt for the high-necked, sequined laced midi dresses with cap sleeves. A simple set of pearl earrings is the best choice to make your look elegant and sophisticated. These laced dresses come in different fabric styles, and you can choose the best one for your occasion.

Read Also: Best Nursing & Pumping Bras of 2021

What are some of the best midi dresses you can try?

Thanks to their length, midi-dresses make for all-season wear. The type of midi dress you choose will depend on the occasion and the season in your particular country. Here we have given you some ideas of great midi dress styles you can try for various seasons and occasions.

Stylish midi length dresses for spring

Dresses arrive in their full glory during spring. This is the season when polka dots, floral prints, paisley prints, gingham and windowpane styles are in vogue. So, while shopping for midi-dresses for the spring, you need to opt for pastels (if they look great on you), bold printed, and bright-colored dresses.

You can be as flexible as you want when choosing the necklines and length of side slits. Sleeveless, capped sleeves, off-shoulder, long sleeves and spaghetti straps are some options you can consider when choosing the pattern of sleeves.

Be prepared for the slight, chilly breeze that blows during the initial days of the spring season. We recommend you to keep a cotton or jean jacket with you always, so that you can wear it over your midi-dress, when the weather gets chilly.

Here are some of the styles of spring midi-dresses that I absolutely loved. I hope they inspire you, as well.

Stylish midi length dresses for summer

For the summer season, we recommend you to wear midi dresses that come in warm tones and thin fabric. While white and cream are the universal color choices for summer, you can also experiment with shades like yellow, orange, brown, or green. You can wear outfits that do reveal some of your skin during this season.

Also read: Best Korean Face Masks For Every Skin Type Women

As far as sleeves are concerned, you can opt for sleeveless, off-shoulder, or spaghetti styles. I usually wear a midi length slip dress, when I plan to go to the beach, or for casual dinners.

Here are some essentials that make a great combination with your summer midi dress – a hat, a scarf that ties your hair tightly in a bun, sunglasses, summer sandals and a handbag worn across your body.

Stylish midi length dresses for formal occasions

Are you planning to attend a formal occasion or party? Don’t worry; midi-dresses can come to your rescue there as well. However, formal midi-dresses are of different styles, fabrics, shapes and patterns than those mentioned above. Black is the color you must have in your wardrobe, when you choose a formal midi dress. You can also opt for other dark colors. When it comes to patterns, you can choose the ones that come with sequins, sheer and shiny patterns. They can look good for formal occasions.

Make sure you wear black, metallic gold, or silver shoes with high heels along with formal midi dresses for fancy occasions. Don’t forget to wear accessories whose color and pattern match those of your heels. If you can see my outfit, I have chosen to wear silver accessories, because I am wearing black heels with silver accents.

Read Also: Best Shoes to Wear With Leggings in 2021

What type of midi dresses should tall and petite women wear?

It may be quite a tough challenge for you to find dresses for petite women (those shorter than 5’4”) and tall women (those taller than 5’9”). However, you won’t face that problem with midi dresses. For petite women, a midi dress may end up falling just around the ankles. However, these come with a belt, with which the dress can be adjusted up by a few inches.

On the other hand, for tall women, midi dresses may end up falling slightly below the knees. However, the good thing is that a midi dress doesn’t need to be stitched up to suit your length like maxis. It also doesn’t need any adjustment like minis that don’t even cover your bums if you are tall.

Some styling tips for midi dresses

You can style your midi-dress in any way that you want; however, there are certain fundamental rules you have to follow when it comes to styling tips while wearing midi-dresses.

Image Credit : silkfred

I never forget to follow these rules when I wear midi-dresses to any occasion:

• Wear a dress that falls just above or just below the mid-calf region

Wearing a dress that ends just a little above or below your mid-calf region will make it look longer than it actually is. I like this metallic dress very much, because as you can see, while the dress itself stops right above the mid-calf, its mesh fabric extends slightly below the mid-calf. Look for similar, evenly-distributed midi-dresses to suit your style. Always remember to choose dresses that end a little above or below your mid-calf. The ones that end exactly at your mid-calf may make your legs look thick and fat.

• Don’t forget wearing sexy heels with your midi-dress

A midi-dress can make you look stout and stumpy. To compensate for that, you should wear strapped footwear with high heels to make your legs look longer. You don’t have to go overboard while choosing heels; a simple but sophisticated design like the one I am wearing with my midi-dress, will help you get the height you want, without the use of uncomfortable shoes.

Do you want to know about the best choices of footwear to wear with midi-dresses? Opt for anything other than heavy or clunky footwear. Some options you should avoid are sneakers, boots and platform sandals. Usually, clunky footwear with midi-dresses is not a good combination for petite women.

• Wear midi-dresses in light shades, tones and fabrics

If you don’t want to wear a midi-dress to add up to your weight, please choose a lighter fabric dress. You can refer to my metallic dress in this post to shop for layered dresses. Though my dress is metallic, it comes with a windowpane layering pattern, which makes the dress very comfortable. Its open style doesn’t make me look stout or stumpy.

• Use a belt for your midi dress to clinch at your waist

A midi-dress without a belt looks like a block of fabric without any shape. Ensure that you define your waist with a belt whenever you wear such a dress. If your midi-dress doesn’t come with a belt, buy one separately to accentuate your waist. A midi-dress with a belt works great for formal events and dinners. However, you can pull off a midi-dress without a belt for warm and breezy events during summer.

• Ensure that the color and pattern of the midi dress is consistent from head to toe

You shouldn’t experiment with color blocks when you wear a midi-dress. The patterns and colors should be consistent for this dress from head to toe. Do you love minimalistic patterns on your dress? All you need to do is choose a midi-dress with small patterns. It could be tiny polka dots, floral prints, or anything of your choice. I have given the links to some of the midi-dresses that I loved at the end, for your reference.

Some occasions where you can wear midi style dresses to

Weddings

You can pull of summer midi dresses perfectly for weddings, because they are of the right length. They don’t look too overboard like ball gowns, nor do they look too simple and minimalistic.

Also read: Wedding Decoration with Eucalyptus

Work

Midi-dresses, with their professional cuts and lengths, are great choices to wear to work every day. They cater to corporate dress codes, if any, and they can also hide any coffee spills on a busy Monday morning. So you are covered!

Beach Holidays

Can you see this midi-dress from Charlie Holiday? These floral midi-dresses are great for beach vacations. They make you gel with the weather in Santorini, and they also make you comfortable when you get back to the climate in your home country.

Weekend Outings

Are you looking for the right outfits to go for sudden weekend outings or picnics with your friends and family? Look no further than a midi-dress. Take a look at this wonderful red midi dress from Angeleye. This can inspire you to style your midi-dress the way you want, depending on the place you want to go.

Conclusion

After reading this, I hope you have some clarity on what a midi-dress is, how to shop for it, styling tips for the same and things to wear with a midi-dress.

I sincerely hope that petite women get the confidence and inspiration to try out midi-dresses more confidently after reading this article. Look for a style you liked and wear it without any second thoughts. If you loved it, you could rock it in style. If you didn’t like it, you could be glad that you tried it at least.

Did you like my style of wearing the midi-dress? Also, I am curious to know what you wore with your midi-dress to complete your looks. Drop your comments below.