15 house dresses to wear when you want to feel dressed up in isolation

By Erin Lindsay
14th Apr 2020

15 house dresses to wear when you want to feel dressed up in isolation

The humble house dress is making a comeback, but its roots go further than you may think

When I say the words ‘house dress’, you may picture the equivalent of a house coat or house shoes — cosy, probably in some sort of fleece material, and with absolutely no semblance of style whatsoever. But the humble house dress does not have to be so beige — when it’s all you can wear, there are plenty of ways to jazz it up.

Some of you may not even be familiar with the idea of a house dress, so let me enlighten you. A house dress is a type of simple, easy-to-wear dress that is to be worn around the house or to do quick errands (does what it says on the tin, you might say). The idea of a house dress originated in the 19th century, designed for housewives who needed maximum accessibility and practicality in their wardrobes, but were still expected to maintain a certain standard of style.

Nowadays, there are no expectations on your personal style except the ones you enforce yourself — and when you’re just dressing for you, anything and everything goes. However, in the current Covid-19 climate, house dresses are enjoying a revival — daily tracksuit bottoms and the same t-shirt can drag your mood down surprisingly quickly, and making the (very slight) effort to put on a dress (large, billowing and comfortable, preferably) can bring it back up equally fast.

Interested in updating your wardrobe for your new normal schedule? House dresses await.