The annual what-footwear-with-dresses-in-autumn-and-winter quandary

[DahliaBloom]

In the summer I wear dresses and skirts with flat sandals and birkenstocks and they look fine. Why is this so hard when you add tights to the equation (obviously not with sandals and birkenstocks)? I can't be doing with wearing heels on a daily basis, but when I put on a dress/skirt and tights with flat shoes, I feel like a traffic warden.

Basically every year autumn rolls around again and I just sort of resign myself to jeans and trousers before it gets warm again. But I'd love to wear dresses in the winter.

How do you do it and look good and stay warm? Is it possible?

I'm not sure I'm articulating myself very well but can't be arsed to try and do it better and anyway, I think, you S&B lovelies, you know what I mean.

I do like this sort of look - works in autumn, I guess, before it gets too cold. What dress would you suggest with this tights/shoes combo? Have you seen any tights and shoes like this anywhere? I like a wool tight. And a brown brogue.

Opaque tights and knee length boots. I have the opposite problem - my legs are so pale that skirts and dresses in summer and spring don't look right - and I find high heeled sandals uncomfortable and I my legs don't look right in flats. Love autumn and winter and find it some much easier to dress with high heeled or flat boots and opaque tights - it's brilliant!

Boots, big clunky biker type boots look great with dresses, riding style boots look great with dresses, ankle boots look great with dresses, doc martens look great with dresses. Even wellies look great with dresses! Get some boots!

Opaque tights and chunky boots here too.

I want to get some brown knee high boots this AW, in the misguided belief it will sort all my sartorial problems. I have big calves though so am not optimistic! Saw some nice ones in clarks.

I love the brogues and knitted tights look but, at almost 60, think it just makes me look dowdy. Any advice for an oldie?

Boots all the way here too. I look rubbish in summer and never wear skirts or dresses (white legs, can't wear very high heels, have funny skinny ankles so flat shoes make my legs look like golf clubs etc, god it's one thing after another). Longing for autumn when i can get the woolly tights and ankle or knee boots on again.

I am planning on dragging out my national sugar boots from last year and wearing black tights. I did try ankle boots but it didn't feel right for me

Tights, boots and a biker jacket here.

Boots boots boots. I don't like the feel of tights so I wear leggings - but use them as tights, if you see what I mean.

Well I go with tights and brogues! Or tights and boots when it is chillier. Wool tights or the thermal ones depending on how presentable I need to be or if I am just walking somewhere.

Ankle or knee-length boots. Or ballet pumps in nicer weather (they don't give the traffic warden effect IME).

I own a pair of boots very similar to these which I wear with opaque tights.
www.marksandspencer.com/twin-strap-biker-boots-with-insolia-flex/p/p22331204
I practically lived in them last autumn / winter. They felt smart, went with everything and were easy to walk in.

Footless tights if it's warm, with flats/ballets/heels/sandals. They are a godsend, I hate having sweaty feet. Tights with boots if it's not. Leggings with socks and boots if it's truly parky. I have cat biker, heeled docs, general victorian ankle-style and fly london mid calf boots.

Block strong colours of tights/leggings, many deniers. Mind you it depends on the dress, obvs. Otherwise black/charcoal/blue/brown.

Oh, I hear you OP. Every year I say "this is the year I find interesting winter clothes" and every year I fail.

In addition to the problems you have mentioned above, another issue is that winter clothes & footwear are so much more expensive to make a mistake with.

Don't leggings give too much 'bulkage' around the waist, as opposed to tights?

I wear socks over my tights so I don't get the sweaty foot thing. Sometimes I wear leggings with socks, but I find that tights give me a better silhoette than leggings do.

I'm sure I seen tights in primark with socks at the end

I'm the opposite, love skirts with tights! Brogues, ballet flats or boots later in the winter.

I struggle in autumn/winter too. My ankles are very thin, they don't look too bad in the summer because I'm generally bare-legged, but I just can't wear opaque black tights because they have a slimming effect, and make my ankles look ridiculously thin, and I feel very self conscious. Knee high boots are a great disguise, but most ankle boots are too wide around the top. Many girls at work wear black tights and black pumps/brogues, I'd love to do this, but I can't.

So once it gets cold, I'll be in jeans and trousers til spring.

tonguebiter depends on the leggings and how close the dress fabric clings to you on the waist. For most of mine I don't notice much of a difference. Tights tend to pull my wobbly bits in more, but I don't really feel comfy in them. Leggings almost certainly look a bit scruffier but that bothers me less.

I've got skinny legs so knee high boots usually gape and just look like wellies. And ankle boots do the same - they just don't look good on me with a skirt. I think I might try to find some good woolly tights - not black opaque for the reason Petal gives - and some brogues, and give it a go. Hmmm.

I like cowboy boots with dresses as well I know but I like them
And I recently got these to where with dresses loafers

Wear!!

I posted these on the other winter footwear thread but its several pages down now...anyway, these have just landed here today and I am totally in love, just been and tried on with all my skirts/dresses with tights and they look lovely IMO, also great with my jeans so I'm well pleased!

They are Art 0430 boots and they also come in dark blue, black, plum and lighter brown

so don't piss on my chips by telling me they don't go with dresses cos I won't listen