Where Are The Skirts?
The title is to be said in a Miranda Priestly voice and cadence, otherwise it doesn’t work.
Image from Anthropologie
by The Candidly Team
We are not shorts people.
We are not trend people.
We are not formal people.
But you know what we are?
Skirt people.
But often when we are shopping for skirts or just sort of longing for skirts, we realize we were born in the wrong era. Because for some reason, the idea of an everyday, casual skirt isn’t available to us.
Check out MANY of your fave brands online. Peruse their menus. Tops, pants, accessories, bestsellers, tees, tanks, denim, outerwear, they’re all there. But so often, one simple 6-letter word is missing from these drop-down hamburger menus:
SKIRTS.
(And yes, that is what those three lines are called in the top left of the homepage, cute right?)
Skirt-lovers are forced to reconcile the word BOTTOMS on that menu bar, which feels utterly dreary and unfun and doesn’t at all light up our brains with desire for plaids and silks and linens.
And we had an epiphany about why this might be:
Most brands think skirts are just for work.
They’re not though. They’re for thick-waisted gals who prefer something to skim lightly over our bellies, or big-butted babes who have a hard time finding pants that work on the rump AND on the waist. In short, skirts are often a friend of the weirdly proportioned, who just want to wear a flattering skirt in the afternoon for a casual lunch with an ex. Not to mention that a casual skirt worn with the correct shoe or boot can be one of the chicest looks a person can wear on their bodies.
Also, we are not looking for “work skirts.” We don’t want them for work. There are plenty of brands who make tonnnnnns of those kinds of skirts, and they’re fine, but they’re not what’s missing for us.
So we scoured the earth to find 11 of the most wearable-in-the-day skirts that are flattering, comfortable, AND, many of them have elastic waistbands, so we can just eat a fucking piece of bread if we feel like it.
This honestly took hours, but it’s so worth it for the handful of you out there who are also living your life as a skirty girl in a skirtless world.
Here’s 11 of the best ones out there:
1. Quince Mongolian Cashmere Midi Skirt
The length? Perfect. The shape? Amazing. THE MATERIAL?! It’s giving quiet luxury without really trying. Throw a jean jacket on over this cozy, soft, wear-to-anything skirt, and slip on THESE white sneakers, and you have yourself the perfect fall outfit you’ll still be wearing even when you get back from running errands because you’ll FORGET to change into house clothes. It’s that comfortable. Also this sort of loose column skirt is universally flattering on every single body type. The only difficult choice is selecting a color.
Price: $100
2. Maeve The Colette Skirt
Ok hear us out on this one. The “colette pant” is Anthropologie’s #1 selling pair of pants and we think it’s because they are made out of some kind of witch material that feels like a mix of stretchy cotton, linen, and air. They stretch, particularly across the midriff, flattening any bulges and cinching the waist without feeling like anything at all. And the skirt version is just as flattering and comfortable. It’s almost like the casual cousin of the pencil skirt, which is of course life’s chicest skirt, but isn’t practical to wear in an everyday way. Cute with booties, knee-length boots, sneaks, anything. Just read the reviews. They’re rhapsodic. We have this skirt in nearly every color and sort of have to force ourselves to wear other things.
Price: $98
3. Leset Lauren High Waist Maxi Skirt
A cozy, soft, sweatery maxi skirt is a must in any skirt-lover’s wardrobe. Truly the dream choice when you’re feeling bloated and gross and like you could stay in bed all day because it’s about 3 ticks away from just being the skirt version of cozy sweats. And yet, it makes you look 45 feet tall, and you’ll feel like a million bucks whenever you wear it. We love it with THIS cropped button down and THESE sneakers.
Price: $150
4. Madewell Poplin Flared Midi Skirt in Stripe
The perfect spring/summer skirt color. The shape is deeply flattering, and the stripe makes everything chic.
Price: $126
5. J. Crew Pleated pull-on midi skirt
Ok, yes we know this is verging on looking workish, and we did this big song and dance about how these aren’t work skirts BUT! Here’s why it’s amazing:
The entire waist is elastic.
Typically skirts like this have some stifling button or wide waistband (shudders), so we feel like unless we pair it with a boiled wool sweater with gold buttons, we’re not doing it right. But the stretchy elastic waist on this means you can throw on a sweater and a flat boot and a crossbody purse and look as chic as Audrey bloody Hepburn without putting in a lick of effort. We particularly love the “natural” color paired with all our black or navy sweaters because we’ve invented this dumb RULE about how to wear black HERE.
Price: $128
6. Free People Lowen Midi Skirt
The floaty midi skirt of our dreams. We own it in 3 colors and wear it instead of pants. With everything.
Price: $60
7. Splendid Whitney Stripe Maxi Skirt
Horizontal stripes are flattering. Forget what your mother told you. This skirt is stretchy, supportive, lengthening, and makes you instantly chic. Especially as a set with THIS top. Sorry, we can’t write anything else. Because we are deceased from just looking at this perfect, perfect skirt.
Price: $128
8. Aritzia Wilfred Twirl Pleated Skirt
If your closet doesn’t have at least 3 pieces made of chiffon, your sartorial life is about to get much more fun. Starting now. This is the perfect party skirt, and it comes in every color under the sun. Wear it with a plain ol’ t-shirt and your highest heels, and you have an understated though slightly Carrie Bradshaw-inspired going-out ensemble.
Price: $150
9. J. Crew Gwyneth slip skirt
A similar concept to the pleated version above but even simpler and more wearable if pleats scare you. The real beauty (read convenience) of a silk skirt is that it’s casj and comfy enough to wear daily but it easily dresses up for parties, date nights, etc. There’s also a very similar maxi version of this skirt that we’re wearing in lieu of a dress to every formal event we’re invited to this season, because it’s more flattering than pretty much any dress we own.
Price: $59.50 - $89.50
10. We The Free Come As You Are Denim Maxi Skirt
It’s true that the maxi denim skirt is becoming somewhat of a trend this season, but we’ve had a maxi denim skirt in our closet since college. And this one is our favorite by far, because it doesn’t have that annoying front slit that defeats the point of wearing something long. It comes in the best of blue denim shades but also in black and white. Like our jeans, it’s good for all seasons, and like our jeans, it matches everything. But because it’s a skirt, we look much more “styled” and casually chic than when we just wear jeans, especially when paired with a fitted sweater and a mile-long scarf.
Price: $118
11. Beyond Yoga Spacedye On The Town Skirt
A pencil skirt that looks like you’re a 40s vintage pin up but feels like you’re in bed in pajamas. The dream.
Price: $88
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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