Skirt to dress

I have no "casual" dresses in my wardrobe - they're all very ... dressy. Either overly event-type or overly formal.

My mum has a stash of Indian-style long flared skirts, which I've been wearing for the past few weeks. I ran out of tops to match them with, so I took a bit of tips from Michelle Phan and turned a dull green skirt into a halter-neck, fit-for-a-day-at-the-beach dress.


You'll need:

• a floor length skirt (or any skirt that you have that is near ankle-length, or just plain too long), preferably with an elastic band
• a waist belt that can be tightened to your exact waistline, skinny for the dainty, medium for the low-key and thick for the bold
• one or more medium-sized safety pins for adjustments

The reason for the elastic band is so that it would fit better, as opposed to side-zipper ones. The skirt I used had drawstrings, but the skirt is old and the elastic is gone, so I had to rely on trusty safety pins~

Here's what you do - just pull the entire skirt up above your bust (you would want a strapless bra or one that has the clear straps) and secure it there. Do whatever means necessary. What I did was tie a knot with the drawstrings (real tight), then pin it in place with the safety pin. Another knot above that one and the rest of the drawstrings were pulled back behind me neck and butterfly-knotted for extra insurance.

Now, typically these flared skirts are, well, flared. If you just leave them as they are, it would be extremely obvious that it's a skirt, and you would be shapeless. This is where the belt comes in - wrap the belt around the smallest part of your waist, and cinch it tight (get a good belt for this).

The skirt that I used was a dull green waist-to-ankle length skirt, so when I pulled it up, the hem of the skirt reached my knees. Something to note, though - sometimes the front would be shorter than the back because the front would usually be above your bust, and the back would be slightly lower than that.

I used a thick, white PVC belt that I had lying around. I tried my pink cloth belt and my chainlink belt, both didn't work. The PVC belt helped me make my waist even smaller (I pulled it extra tight, though I wouldn't recommend it), and your look is complete.

Throw on some Bohemian/beach accessories and a pair of girly wedges and you're done. Accessorizing depends entirely on the skirt you're using. Decent sandals will help make the dress look beach-worthy, while wearing it with heels will add that extra touch of femininity.

Dull, plain skirt?

Use some more bright and colorful accessories, adding a touch of chrome here and there. Your belt could a bright color as well.

Bright, plain skirt?

Go funky and get some patterned accessories like leopard-print headbands~ How about a neutral-colored belt?

Darker patterned skirt?

Bright, but plain accessories will compliment the dress, and similar belt would be complimentary as well.

Bright patterned skirt?
Chrome or muted accessories would best compliment the skirt.


Basically you can go crazy with this - you can pair floral with floral, whatever suits your liking. It's super versatile~