Power Dressing Takes on a Whole New Shape

Words: Kira Gimpel | Images: Getty

A growing favourite among international street stylers and the fashion obsessed? The New Dress. With more volume in sleeve, a longer length and a looser waistline, the latest dress silhouette is oversized, tiered or tent-like. Hello, freedom in a frock! Femininity reigns supreme, enhanced to drastic proportions and then flipped on its head with styling. Sneakers and chunky sandals offset the delicate nature of frills and flounces and a playful air encourages an instant sense of ease.

Overly romantic? Sure. That’s the point. The move towards oversized items previously deemed unflattering is quite possibly the response to a history of restrictive dressing and awful beauty ideals for women. Today, the new dress is supposed to be comfortable. It’s familiar, nostalgic and reminiscent of a childhood exploring uncharted garden territories in fancy frocks reserved for special occasions. It’s like dress-up for adults, inspiring creativity and a joyous spirit.

Whether ultra-minimal or covered in prints, in almost every fabric imaginable, the dress also creates endless styling options. Layered up or pared down and worn with sneakers or heels, a single dress can be used as the foundation for many a great outfit. Peeped any red carpets this year? Ariana Grande looked loofah-licious in a tulle grey Giambattista Valli dress while Lizzo offset a tiered tangerine number with a minuscule Valentino bag at the American Music Awards. Although the days of power suits as a striking form of power dressing are not quite numbered, it’s safe to say that the new dress is certainly large and very in charge. 

Throughout history, women’s physical (and societal, of course) movements have been restricted, from squeezing into bone-crushing corsets worn with gigantic crinoline skirts to donning Hobble skirts, intended to limit movement to teeny-tiny steps. And who can forget corset-induced respiratory issues or heavy leg-of-mutton sleeves that were impractical and clearly not fit for any kind of work? Add to this, beauty processes such as swallowing arsenic to lighten skin and binding feet to make them smaller.

Thank the fashion heavens we met voluminous skirts in the 50s, trousers and mini-skirts (gasp!) in the 60s and power suits in the 70s. As each new era became less regulatory, women developed a sense of style that was unique, personalised and less inclined to conform to set standards.

Now in 2020, inspired by a spirit of redefining, owning and expressing womanhood on our own terms, we've firmly arrived at a period where we can choose exactly what to wear, and the power lies more in the freedom to decide than the garment itself. Too big? Too carefree? Too sack-like? Too bad. We're too busy reclaiming ourselves and, most importantly, feeling damn good about it too!