I saw Taylor Swift and Jennifer Lawrence wearing velvet dresses, so I bought a velvet dress too

It's official, velvet dresses are in, and they're the perfect alternative to party dresses now that sequin season is over.

What makes it official I hear you ask? Well, Taylor Swift wore a long-sleeved mini velvert dress in olive for an outing with Blake Lively and Zoe Kravitz in New York, and that's proof enough for me. Jennifer Lawrence also slipped into a maxi, burnt orange version for the Golden Globes after-party which works for me too.

It also helps to have designers back the trend with designers like Chloe, 16Arlington, The Vampire's Wife and Rixo all championing black velvet dresses for Autumn/Winter 23 - we call it the Wednesday Adams effect.

While black dresses will always be timeless, as we transition away from party season and into spring, experimenting with neutral and earthy tones will add a fresh twist to the trend - again as demonstrated beautifully by Taylor and JLaw.

It's tempting to think this is a winter trend only due to the heaviness of the fabric, but it's actually much easier than you'd think to wear throughout the transitional season, and works well during the day too.

The key is to dress it down with accessories and play around with texture and prints. Taylor wore her mini dress with knee-high boots, while Jennifer wrapped up warm in a leopard print coat with faux fur collar.

You can wear yours during the day with trainers or chunky boots, with a baggy cardigan or oversized denim jacket over it.

For the evening, try patent Mary-Jane shoes and a 90s-style longline leather jacket.

Here are a few velvet dresses that caught my eye, and that are available to buy now.

Shop velvet dresses