29 Pretty Spring Dresses For Every Wedding And Event You Have Coming Up
We couldn’t find a decent place to shop for dresses, soooo we just kinda made one ourselves.
by The Candidly Team
Not sure about you but we are sooooo sick of fruitlessly trying to pluck out good dresses from the internet.
Especially when there seems to be an overwhelming number to choose from. But 97% of what we scroll is either polyester garbage with more negative space than fabric or styles that are attractive enough but turn out to be so expensive they make our hearts plop into our laps.
Why can’t we have it all when it comes to something as simple as a dress?
Why can’t we find one that’s eye-catching and elegant? Striking on the front and the back. Something with quality. Fit. A fabric that molds us like the Moore/Swayze Ghost hands on an hourglass pot.
Now that event season is upon us, and we’re forced by weather and wedding dates to peel off our sweats, we’ve once again found ourselves on the hunt for THE dress.
And quite frankly, we couldn’t find a single one-stop, curated place for dresses that remotely met the criteria presented by our various types of 40+ bodies.
So … we went out and made one ourselves.
Call it a boutique. Or a Candidly pop-up. You won’t love everything in it. You might even outright loathe a few things. But if we’ve done our jobs correctly, one dress on this list will speak to you for its unique, problem-solving capabilities and remind you of why you used to LOVE dresses. Why we all did.
To keep things simple, we broke it down into occasion types, and we made sure to pick a number that didn’t feel insane but still gives you plennnnnnty of options.
And with that, here are 29 dresses that are perfect for spring, 1 or 2 of which we desperately hope, will thrillingly end your search.
Starting with…
1. THE OVERALL BEST
Before we even discuss categories, we have to discuss this dress. We actually wrote an exclusive, non-sponsored article about the original version of it (which doesn’t have the dramatic sleeve) a while back because the way it fit was beyond anything we’d seen. All that ruching makes wearing a sleek, fitted dress not at all scary. It’s flattering on every curve we have and on every shape of woman we made try it on to witness its magic.
The original comes in a number of colors that we honestly stopped counting because we found ours in the first row. Hint: it’s the same one Carrie Bradshaw chose.
But black was also always going to be a no-brainer, especially now that there’s this sleeved version that makes this already timeless, classic dress more original and exciting. So, like we said, the best.
Price: $235
2. THE COCKTAIL DRESSES
People act like cocktail dresses are easy, but the fact that so many things fall into this category just makes the idea of finding a single one we love feel more daunting. There are plenty of pretty ones out there, but the problem is always going to be that a lot of them don’t fit well unless you have anti-gravity boobs and the rest of you is a spaghetti noodle.
We chose these dresses not just because they’re pretty but because every single one is flattering in its own special way. Like smart ruching or a little built in cape that’s a gift for those of us with a belly pooch.
All of them have either stretch or structure to their fabrics that melts over bumps and bulges. The skirts are often flared or skimming in a way that magically nips our waists and falls beautifully over rounder hips and butts.
In short, they all look good on real, human, non-model bodies.
3. THE DAYTIME DRESSES
Come warmer weather, half the fancy things we’re invited to start to take place on lawns and gardens and terraces and other broad daylight places where we just feel weird wearing velvet and silk and deep, rich, nighttime colors.
Daytime dresses are a chance for pretty prints and floatier cuts to shine. It’s a time to prioritize comfort right alongside looking gorgeous.
This category is built on dresses that feel light and airy and unrestrictive. None of them will leave us peeling clingy fabric off our sweaty bodies.
But every single one has a perfect silhouette. Some cover your arms. Others your tum. The cheapest one is $40 from Amazon but looks designer. The most flattering one feels so divine we could take a nap in it. And each and every one has a distinct pattern meant to spark outright joy.
3. THE Black TIE DRESSES
If you’re anything like us, your year does not consist of countless functions that call for a gown. These are the occasion dresses we really, truly, only need “on occasion.”
So naturally, we want them to be special, to stand out, to make us look like the absolute best version of our typically slobbish selves. But can they also just do that in a low-key way that doesn’t make us feel like we need 7 pairs of shapewear and a complicated bra?
We found 4 gowns that we guarantee will look good on you.
And yes, two of them have dipping necklines (because we’re not giving up on the most elegantly alluring neckline just because we’re not 22), but they’re fitted enough to feel like support (think swimsuit top) and we can easily throw on THESE and be done.
One is corsetted (new verb) to essentially be its own built-in bra, and one merely requires THIS nothing-like bandeau, while boasting the most beautiful arm coverage we’ve ever seen.
Other than that, the cuts and ties and draping and ruffles are so understated and so perfectly placed that we felt no need to bolster up this category with other filler dresses. These are the finest, most foolproof ones.
4. THE BEACH DRESSES
We could just as easily have titled this category vacation or weekend dresses, because this is where our lovely, effortless, informal dresses that we’ll actually wear in real life get to shine. These are the dresses we love most and feel most ourselves in because we know we can just throw them on and look put together. The question is always how we do make sure these dresses are “nice” or “special” enough for occasions. And the answer is the details.
Something about the dress should be unique. Maybe it’s the length:
THIS dress pictured below is a true and proper maxi and feels amazing on.
THIS one pairs length with the most flattering smocking known to man.
Or maybe it’s the detail in the fabric:
We cannot get over the neckline of THIS striped crochet dress.
Ditto the embroidery on THIS short but incredibly chic linen style.
Just find one element that tangibly stands out and cling to that dress for dear life, because you will be wearing it on many a beach for many a day in your life, the most stunningly minimalist of sandals dangling from your fingertips, naturally.
5. THE ORIGINAL DRESSES
Sometimes, we just want something deeply original. Of course, that means finding something that lights us up individually. Maybe it’s a unique cut or a vivid color. So how could we possibly guess which one-off dress will be your favorite? Well, we just went ahead and picked 4 that lit us up.
The ideas verge on brilliance, starting with a skirt set instead of a dress, which gives us so much more control over how want things to fit us on the top and bottom.
THIS pale yellow skirt from Lilysilk feels like it came from a dream and fits perfectly with any fitted top (so you don’t have to pair it with the matching crop, though we love that THIS one isn’t skintight and looks completely elegant.)
THIS stripe set is also blissfully easy, and really nothing is chicer than a stripe.
As for the dresses included on this list, we’ll let the visuals speak for themselves. But the key thing is they prove you can be bold without sacrificing chicness.
BONUS: THE ACCESSORIES
We spend centuries on the dresses but finding the accessories to an “event outfit” is just as much if not more of a challenge. And not to add more pressure, but getting it wrong can kind of make your whole look come tumbling down.
But where do we even go to find non-boring, understated, but distinct bags and jewelry? Or gorgeous shoes that don’t absolutely destroy our feet 2 hours before we even think of stepping on a dance floor?
Well, we weren’t going to leave you in the lurch. Here we present what might be our most favorite category of all. Like opening an outright treasure chest.
At The Candidly, we try a lot of stuff so you don’t have to. We only recommend things we truly love, and that we think you’ll love, too. All products are chosen independently by our creative team, and all details reflect the price and availability of products at the time of publication. If you buy something we link to, The Candidly may earn a commission.
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