I don’t consider myself a fountain of knowledge or an expert in any field, however, people occasionally come to me for fashion advice, in real life as well as online. And they say things along the lines of wanting to know how to dress a bit more adventurously. I’ve even had a request from a couple of people in a marketing facebook group I’m in, to write a mini ebook on the subject! I may well do that, but for now, I thought I’d start a series where I point out some of the details I like in garments that are just a bit different from your usual standard clothing…
A guide for how to dress more creatively – I currently have a poll going on Facebook and on Instagram between ‘creatively’ and ‘adventurously’! – which do you prefer? Or if you can think of a more catchy title, please let me know in the comments below!
A pixie hem
Today we’re looking at the pixie hem; which is basically a hem with any sort of points to it. This red tunic dress I’d say has a pixie hem, rather than the more commonly used ‘hanky hem’, because I think of a hanky hem having four corners, much like a hanky! But definitely look out for anything described as hanky hem or pixie hem, just because it’s so much more interesting! Who wants an ordinary straight hem? Everyone has straight hems – we’re after clothing that’s a little bit different!
How to wear a red tunic dress
This red tunic dress was one of the three red dresses Chris bought for me a couple of years ago for his levitating photography experiment! It’s by a brand called Arrowhunt and was bought from Amazon, but doesn’t seem to be available any more so I’ll link some similar at the end of this post. I was glad to find a comfy cotton dress, however it is a bit too short at the front to be wearing without something underneath! I wore it with my Tesco’s F&F black jeggings for warmth. The colour red is just dark enough for it to be worn with black without looking cheap. If I owned dark grey jeggings, I probably would have gone with that colour combination instead to be a bit more classy!
I really like the pointed sides of the tunic dress and the different heights of the hem – it’s things like that that make an item of clothing a bit quirky; a bit different. There’s a couple of other design details too – there are thumbholes so you can wear the sleeves long with your thumbs poking through; and the neckline is so wide, you can expose a sexy shoulder if you want to!
I’ll be honest, I would have preferred the tunic dress not to have had such a wide neckline – I don’t like bra straps showing, and it would have to be a very special dress for a very special occasion for me to consider the uncomfortableness of a strapless bra! So when I’m wearing this dress, I just push my bra straps a little further off my shoulders and hope for the best! – I shouldn’t have worn a black bra here, I should’ve gone for skin-coloured. Hey-ho.
This was the first outing for my new New Look black ankle boots (shame they got muddy already!) I was very pleased with this find – smart but with a chunky sole. For more of an alternative style I’d also go with big combat boots – sadly mine have just fallen apart, so I’m on the look-out for a new pair.
By the way, if you’re interested, we took these photos in the pretty town of Bruton in Somerset – well worth a visit, particularly for May’s Bruton Packhorse Fair.
Shop quirky pixie and hanky hem dresses:
And if you’re interested in something handmade and hand-dyed by me, I’ve just listed a few pixie hem skirts in my Threads of a Fairytale Etsy shop.