Bright ideas for floral dresses: Our winter floral dress guide

Give winter a lift with pretty floral dresses for a reminder of the blossoms and blooms that epitomise happy summer days

Nobody enjoys getting dressed up in winter. When it’s cold and grey outside, cheer up your dress wardrobe with remnants of spring and summer.

Shop for gorgeous floral dresses; these are tops and a great way to change your mood and brighten the atmosphere. The dresses on sale these days are reminiscent of garden parties on sunny days no matter your size. If you’re looking for floral dress fabrics for dresses, view and shop what’s on sale. You’re sure too find some that feature bouquets or single flowers in a size that suits the dress, or try dainty buds or bold blooms in a large size on subtle pastel backgrounds of dresses.  

We’ve come up with some suggestions for new floral dresses to shop that will help you brighten up your winter wardrobe. Pair your new dresses with neutrals or patterns in whatever size you want to create a statement outfit, or shop for brightly coloured ditsy floral dresses that you can pair with tights and boots or chunky shoes or comfy flat shoes or heels for a pop of colour.

To keep warm, layer floral dresses with a warm coat, a jumper or a jacket in a single shade. Or perhaps choose a contrasting print for your new dresses. Be brave and slip a bright pink cover-up over a long-sleeved pastel flower maxi length dress. Or choose a dress palette in a muted colour defined with monochrome black and white. There are plenty of dresses on sale right now.

Different styles for floral dresses

When you shop, add some pizazz to your winter wardrobe with a selection of different size dresses or tops to suit your mood, personality and body type. You’ll view plenty of great styles of dresses on sale right now. Fabric designs for flower dresses and tops offer feminine, romantic and incredibly versatile effects no matter the size of design you choose and the shoes you wear – heels or flats. Style the dresses soft or go edgy with a mix of blooms and colours.

Here’s our informative guide on timeless florals on sale for dresses right now.

The mini dress:

When you wear mini dresses in winter, choose thick tights for under the dresses to warm up your legs. Choose a neutral shade to let the dresses shine, or offer a view of colourful tights blending with the beauty of the blooms on the dresses. For this look, shop for over-the-knee boots or ankle boots, depending on your taste and size. If you prefer shoes to boots, ensure the ones you find on sale will flatter your legs.

The maxi dress:

On those days when you’re keeping warm and cozy inside, your flower dress will take centre stage. And if you’re going outdoors, you can cover up the view of maxi dresses with a long coat, jacket or cuddly cardigan. 

Floral maxi dresses allow you to increase the layers – leggings, tights, thermal undies are all hidden from view underneath the dresses. Or wear a pair of skinny jeans underneath maxi dresses for a different look entirely. Maxi dresses are always on sale in winter. These dresses are ideal for all shapes, from petite upwards, so shop with abandon! The great thing about shoes for maxi dresses is that you can choose something as simple as ballet shoes or try high heel shoes.

The midi dress:

Classic and timeless midi floral dresses look great no matter how short or tall you are. Make sure the midi dresses reach either above the knee or below mid-calf. Instead of shoes try some boots (flat or with a heel) or flat shoes and a warm cover-up in wool, fleece or faux fur with your midi dress. Or choose a floral midi tea dress with a long sleeve and a flattering neckline on sale and you’re good to go!

The A-line dress: 

This style for dresses is flattering for women with pear-shaped bodies. Dress your outfit up or down, depending on where you’re going. Slip on a pair of flat shoes, shoes with heels or boots plus a warm coat or slim-line jacket.

The wrap dress:

Classic wrap dresses are effortless and ideal if you’re slim and athletic, as they create an hourglass effect. Right now, winter shades or jewel colours for fabric are on sale for your floral dress, so view what’s available and purchase while you can.

Dresses for the wedding guest: 

Patterns for tops or floral dresses are a great choice of what guests can wear to a wedding. Find a beauty – simple, pretty floral frock pattern for weddings. Depending on the dress code, view what you can find in either a mini dress or a midi dress. 

Other styles to try: 

A floral shirt dress can look very stylish, as can a skater dress in a floral pattern (great dresses for teens) and a bodycon dress if you’re slim, which can be a mini, midi or maxi. You could even layer summer dresses under a coat to warm up or denim jacket. A great option for maternity dresses are floral shift dresses. Try on different styles of shoes to see which works best with your dresses. A denim skirt or denim jeans or jacket is a tops. Not only dresses look gorgeous with florals: swimwear is also gorgeous.

Mixing prints and patterns on tops or a dress

Combining different prints and patterns with florals for dresses or tops is a stylish new way of dressing. There are rules to mixing and matching dresses with designs, but let’s define the difference between a print and a pattern here.

Understanding patterns and prints

Don't forget – all prints are patterns, but not all patterns are prints! This is very important when you’re making dresses so take heed.

• A pattern is any figure or picture that is repeated. Floral is a pattern, as are geometrics. A pattern can be woven into the fabric or printed on top (which is the way we do it at maake). Fabrics with designs on them are called patterns.
• A print is applied to the fabric with dye using digital printing (that’s the sustainable printing method we use), or screen printing. View the reverse of the fabric. If there is no pattern on the reverse, you can tell the fabric was printed on. 

How to combine patterns and prints

Dresses with flower prints can easily be combined with a solid colour. Get creative and combine a pattern in floral with other prints for dresses for an eye-catching view. Here are some simple rules to follow for dresses:

1. Match colours first. Start by picking a monochrome look – black and white patterns and prints. Then, choose different monochrome patterns. 

Once you’ve got the hang of it, you can try mixing patterns of a single colour together. Try combining patterns for dresses with more than one colour. Remember: if two colours look good together on dresses then patterns in those two colours are likely to look great as well.

2. It's a good idea to stick to similar colours. When you mix more than one colour, stick to similar shades, like soft baby pastels, or brights for your dresses. Or try mixing different shades of one colour for a different view.
3. Break up the effect by mixing solid colours. Include some solid colours if you find the prints are too much when you view them. The easiest way to include solid hues is by choosing a bag or a cover-up (coat, jacket, cardigan) in a solid colour.
4. Combine dress colours carefully in winter. As winter isn’t considered a colourful time of year, the cold weather colour palette for fashion dresses is mainly made up of neutral shades. Feel free to brighten up your dresses with gorgeous jewel colours to celebrate the Festive Season. Keep shoes neutral if the patterns are very busy.
5. For floral frocks when it’s cold outside, view the winter colour palette to mix dress patterns and prints.

View these colours for your dresses:

-     Black

-     Brown shades

-     Cream

-     Deep ruby red

-     Dark purple

-     Emerald green

-     Grey – medium to dark shade

-     Sapphire blue

-     White

For more details on choosing colours for dresses and patterns on sale view our blog on how to use our Colour Atlas for fabrics and then order what we have on sale in our store for your dresses and tops.

Patterns that work well

• Other florals for dresses:First, start by combining the same florals each in a different size (some tiny, some larger) on dresses or tops. You can also try to mix different floral patterns in the same shades for special dresses.
• Spots on dresses:Polka dots and prints can look really good together on dresses. A few rules of thumb: stick to the same colour palette for dresses on sale or choose colours for dresses that go well together. And try to make the size of the dress patterns similar. Spots on dresses that are too big can drown the wearer.
• Striped dresses: Stripes work beautifully with florals on dresses too. They actually go well with most patterns. Try mixing patterns for dresses of a different size – perhaps large blooms and small stripes, or vice-versa. Or go bold with stripes in a large size and a small-size floral pattern with delicate details. These look amazing on dresses as well!
• Actually, with dresses, anything goes: Once you’ve mastered the art of mixing prints on dresses, you can step out of your comfort zone. Start experimenting with other combinations, like mixing floral and plaid for dresses. Let your imagination run riot and enjoy the view!

Fabric choices for a new winter dress

Make wise fabric choices when you shop for dresses on sale online or in store. Choose warm fabrics for dresses that will keep you cosy but not too hot and sweaty when you’re indoors. Consider fabrics for dresses like recycled polyester, polyester, satin, silk and velvet. For some inspiration, view our guide to the best dress fabric and then check out what fabrics for dresses maake has in stock and for sale for you to put onto your wishlist and shop, whether you’re choosing dresses for yourself, or gifts for someone else. For dresses as gifts, remember this when you shop – consider the size and shape of the person the dress is being made for. You don’t want to give someone a dress in the wrong size!

Shop maake’s fabric sale choices

View the following fabrics we have for sale which are ideal for dresses for yourself, for clients or for gifts:

• Drill: 100% cotton fabric, ideal for casual and tailored garments and dresses.
• Duchess Satin: A 100% polyester medium-weight dress fabric.
• Eco Velvet: More sustainable 100% recycled polyester (rPET) is ideal for fashion garments including dresses
• Faux Silky Satin: It's 100% polyester and the perfect alternative to natural silk for dresses.
• Limani Linen: Consists of 90% cotton, 10% linen. Medium-weight cotton/linen blend with a slub texture. Ideal for dresses.
• Organic Jersey Interlock: This 100% GOTS cotton fabric with 2-way stretch. Ideal for clothing, dresses included.
• Velvet: An ultra-soft 100% polyester matte fabric ideal for fashion wear.
  .      Massey Crepe: Popular fashion crepe for all seasons – beautiful drape and soft handle making it ideal fabric for dresses.

Inspiration for a winter dress with flowers on it

Our marketing department has given you a taste of combining a pattern with a floral for winter dresses in various size patterns and styles. Now check out our extensive open library of designs on our site for some more saved items inspiration on florals, patterns and prints of every size imaginable to mix with them. Now you can shop for dresses in every size with confidence!

Or why not create your own pattern or print for dresses on our website! Then shop for the fabric of your choice! There are some great fabric choices for dresses on sale on the maake site, so act fast!