One dress, from dawn to dusk

I always advocate buying quality over quantity, choosing clothes that can be styled many different ways, and only buying items that truly earn their space in your wardrobe.  As you know, one of my go-to brands that delivers on every single one of these points is Winser London.  I’m going to show you how in one day, I wear the same versatile dress styled three completely different ways.  Looking over the photos in this post, it looks like a sort of love letter to London. It was one of those rare days where life happened to take me to some gorgeously picturesque places in the capital (no vet’s offices, no grocery stores, and no petrol stations!).

So, my days always start early with a school drop-off for my son.  I usually have a few meetings in the afternoon, and on this particular day I had a friend’s jewellery launch to attend in Belgravia in the evening (more on that in a future post).  I wanted to wear something that could take me everywhere– one dress from dawn to dusk.

A perfectly cut little black dress in a good fabric is an easy choice.  This particular one is a new style from Winser London called the ‘Marilyn‘.  It has a perfect neckline to showcase jewellery, it conceals bra straps (a huge pet peeve of mine), and it doesn’t show cleavage.  It also has some asymmetrical ruching detail which gives it added shape.  Before adding anything to it, here is what the dress looks like on its own.

For the school run (directly followed by the in-search-of-more-coffee run), I popped this soft merino wool poncho over the dress, and wore a pair of low heeled boots.  The poncho is something my husband actually chose. I didn’t consider it at first because I just assumed I wasn’t really a poncho person, but within moments of trying it I was fully converted to the poncho party.  They are so cosy and warm! I like how graphic and punchy this one is; it is a total compliment magnet.  I’ve even worn it over yoga leggings and a tank top and it still looks amazing.  There is a stylised ‘W’ for Winser on the poncho, and the blue shade is their signature Winser London blue.  You’d only notice it if you know; now you do!

After the coffees I had a meeting with an editor in my old neighbourhood.  I wanted to look very professional, so I wore the dress with this longline jacket. Let me count the ways I love this jacket– firstly, there are pockets.  Also, the collar can be worn up like I have it here, or turned back like a blazer lapel.  It is reminiscent of my favourite 1960s film-star style with its bracelet-length sleeves and a very slightly cocoon shape.  The icing on the cake for me is the tidy matching hemline length with the dress (I am obsessed with jacket-and-dress hemline coordination).  This is exactly my kind of outfit; it makes a coolly elegant statement on its own and lets your accessories sing when you add them.  Case in point: I always carry a huge bag with all of my extra stuff in it, as well as a small clutch for the essentials.  Below you can see both (one snakeskin and one leopard) with the dress and jacket.

Now for my favourite (and sparkliest) part of the day…evening!  I had a jewellery launch event to attend, so I was in no danger of being overly blingy.  I chose this necklace because it fills all the space above the neckline of the dress, and also because it matches the low comfortable heels I knew I’d need for hours of standing.

You can see the ruching detail on the dress better here and the lapels turned back like a blazer.

Below, I’m on one of my favourite streets in London. It used to be near my local grocery store when I lived in this neighbourhood, and years later, its beauty still knocks me out.  Luckily, this crescent was around the corner from my evening event and the October light was absolutely perfect.

This powerfully elegant dress and jacket with super sparkly silver shoes, clutch, and necklace are exactly how I like to dress for an autumn evening occasion.  I’m pleased with how well these three new pieces slot into my existing wardrobe, which is what thoughtful investment dressing is all about.

Thank you to Winser London for sponsoring this post.  All opinions and love I have for this brand (!) are 100% my own

Outfit Details
Dress: Winser London
Poncho: Winser London
Jacket: Winser London
Crystal Necklace: Sequinist
Tote bag: Fendi (previous season)
Leopard Clutch: Jaeger (current, gifted)
Crystal Clutch: Christian Louboutin (previous season)
Black booties: Isabel Marant (previous season)
Black Mary Jane heels: Rupert Sanderson (previous season)
Silver sequin heels: Boden (previous season, gifted)

linking to:  notdressedaslamb,