Blame Bridgerton coming back to our screens, or our love for vintage-inspired designers such as Cecilie Bahnsen, DOÊN and The Vampire's Wife, but the prairie dress is undoubtedly one of the most popular trends for the upcoming summer season.
Before we look at SS22's offerings, let's look at the origin of the prairie dress, shall we? Laura Ingalls basically the trend, and I'm only half kidding.
The high neckline, long hem and ruffles were the typical fashion in rural America in the 19th century, no doubt because the fashion was much more modest back then, but also perhaps to protect against the harsh elements for people who had to be outdoors most of the day. The only fancy was the ditzy print, often floral.
It has of course been given a modern update since then, with designers such as Batsheva, Shrimps, Molly Goddard and Brock Collection all featuring the style in their spring collections, this time re-imagined with bold floral prints and colours, whimsical details such as lace, embroidery and grosgrain ribbons - and even shorter hemlines.
How to wear a prairie dress
So how to style the trend? Although it seems like a tricky one, it's not as much of a challenge as you'd think. You basically want to let the dress do all the talking, and keep the rest of your outfit toned down.
I personally will be wearing mine with a paired-down chunky sandal to give it a modern twist, or with a naked sandal if I want to dress it up a bit.
Shop my edit of the best designer and high street prairie dresses below.
Delicately embroidered with carnations that pop against the blush backdrop, it's made from organic cotton-voile and has an A-line silhouette. The puffed sleeves are modeled on vintage prairie styles.
Fall in love with Maje's prairie-dress inspired gown, with its ruffle sleeves and subtle floral print.
The high waistline of this dress makes it perfect for all you Bridgerton fans out there.
Faithfull's dress is cut from linen printed with fresh gingham checks and falls to a swishy tiered hem. It has a fitted bodice and cutout back punctuated by pretty ties.
This floral crossover midi dress is a subtle nod to the prairie dress trend.
With her full length skirt, delicately structured bodice and scalloped edge frill neckline, the Rose Scalloped Nightgown from If Only If will transform your nightwear wardrobe. The sleepwear piece is made from the softest cotton poplin, allowing you to wear it for breakfast or walks around the garden with your morning coffee.
A Bridgerton-worthy gown if ever we saw one.
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