Help me transition to a different environment!

[LouraLoura]

Hi, I am a dress lover and like floaty things, on a good day I attempt to look like a sleek bohemian lampshade

However, I am moving to a new area, from urban to semi rural. Not deep in the sticks but more outdoorsy. I am not a farmer or a dog walker, and don't like stiff things like jeans or Barbour, so none of that - but I am not sure my dresses and skirts will be... as practical?
Most people in the area where I am moving seem to wear either leisurewear/walking type clothes, like leggings with Arcteryx, North Face and such. I don't feel the need to fit in, but I wonder if there is a reason for it, sort of necessity over style?
I know that I can of course remain my unique myself, but I am thinking of practicalities.
If you live in a rural-ish place, do you wear dresses and skirts? Am I in for a shock?

BTW, I am not very style conscious or into trends, so when I say I wear skirts and dresses, they are very casual, not dressy iyswim?

By semi rural, do you mean a town / village with a direct train to London for example, or do you mean somewhere more rural where you need practical clothes for rainy weather etc?

For the former, skirts are completely fine.

There is a train station but it is almost 2 hours from the nearest city - north west.

It isn't Kirkby Lonsdale, but having been there in the past, it has a similar vibe, but this is not in Cumbria!

Dresses fine but you need boots/shoes that stand up to snow,ice and lots of mud; longline coats to shelter you from weather and lots of thermal underwear. If you wear longer skirts you need to be good at getting mud stains out the hems.

Yes stick with your dresses and add thicker tights and tougher boots and a coat in winter.

No reason why you can't wear nice floaty clothes in the countryside. It is not mandatory to dress like you're presenting Countryfile.

I live in the Lakes. I am, to all intents and purposes, a goth. My New Rock boots are quite practical in the rain. I always wear a good waterproof coat (black, of course) and I still wear long and short skirts, funny/mad tights etc. I see a lot of people kitted out like they're off up Striding Edge to walk around town but I think they're tourists 😄

Thank you for replying. You do notice different regions and town of the UK seem to have their own little dress codes or tastes.

I must admit leggings in all their forms are very reliable, no matter how they divide opinion. I do find it difficult to source decent quality dresses and skirts.

I see a lot of people kitted out like they're off up Striding Edge to walk around town but I think they're tourists

And conversely, you see a lot of people going up Striding Edge (well maybe not quite, but out for a Proper Walk in the Hills) in clothes and shoes that would probably be more appropriate for a wander around a naice market town for a couple of hours.

When I see them, in my hiking boots, Didriksons coat and hat over windswept hair I always wonder how they've managed to apparently walk at least a mile through the woodland in winter and their white trainers still look box fresh while my feet are caked in mud with splashes all the way up the back of my trousers.

OP I can't see a problem with dresses and skirts unless you find that it's colder and windier, you don't like what they look like with hiking boots or wellies or you have a lot of stiles to climb over.

I live semi rurally and go walking most days. I wear walking leggings or Uniqlo legging jeans and similar, mainly for warmth and practicality re the aforementioned stiles, but in summer when it's warm often wear a light floaty dress with cycling shorts underneath and find that suitably practical for being outdoors.

I don't really notice or care what others wear apart from the aforementioned confusion as to how they manage to stay cleaner and tidier than I do (most of my coats have holes in where I've torn them on barbed wire or due to being chased by farm dogs, while walking legally on footpaths I must add).

@BarbaraofSeville Similar here. I used to live in a rural countryside area many years ago and only the tourists wore skirts. I envied them though, as it was usually summer, and who wouldn't on holiday?!

I am a bit out of touch now though. I suppose it is safe to say that balance is key, to have a small amount of both dresses and walking/outdoor stuff. I think I am a bit of an absolutist though and hate having to mentally multitask

Growing up in a village next to a small town, there was no need to wear all weather or specific country clothes unless you were going to a farm. However, you would have just looked silly if you dressed like an urbanite. I remember once realising I couldn't go home with my black and white checked coat because I didn't want to draw attention to myself. In my semi-rural area, you just wear things that blend in, usually dark colours except in summer.

Also consider that fashion may arrive later so if you wear something really fashion forward you might just look silly.

This is a London person going to Newcastle:
""Sporting my new teddy coat a few years ago , l swanned into Newcastle like a Kardashian, only for some workman on Northumberland St to shout out 'hey Bungle where’s Zippy?'

I lived in a very rural agricultural village and when I moved back to suburbia civilisation, I held a ceremonial "burning of the fleeces". Summer uniform for many women was generally shorts and wellies.

I was a bit of an outlier because I did wear dresses and skirts as well. It can be done.

Also nothing olive or khaki is permitted in my house now.