A stylist’s guide to Christmas outfits for her - with Alice Hare
If you’re in need of some wardrobe inspiration this festive season– whether that’s for Christmas Day or general outfit ideas for the Christmas period – look no further. We asked our go-to stylist and fashion writer Alice Hare for some seasonal pointers.
One of my greatest joys in life is making the necessary and the utilitarian beautiful – it makes sense I became a stylist. We must wear clothes to avoid both hypothermia and arrest for public indecency, so why not make them things of beauty that inspire joy wherever you go? And there’s no better time than the Christmas season to indulge in the art of making the necessity of wearing clothes a joy-sparking, mood-boosting activity.
Come December, my penchant for ‘literal dressing’ really comes into its own. Literal dressing is Mary Berry in a lemon print jumper making lemon meringue pie, it’s a wardrobe of Fairisle, velvet and tartan at Christmas. On-theme, if you will. Cliché but chic. And pure, undiluted escapism.
So, once the turkey is ordered, the Quality Street bulk-bought and the nativity costume DIY-ed, fret not about turning your mind to your Christmas wardrobe. With our advice, the task of planning your December outfits should become more joyous than laborious. More of a treat than a chore.
I find that the days preceding Christmas become suddenly chock-a-block crammed full of activities, when what you really need is a stretch of free evenings for last-minute wrapping, present buying, and online food shop ordering. It pays then to have your wardrobe mentally sorted ahead of time – particularly if, like me, you retreat from city to country for Christmas and need to pack quickly and cleverly.
Let me present therefore my Christmas wardrobe multi-taskers – heroes of December for him and for her.
The Fairisle jumper: chic and cosy Christmas style
Ahh, the Christmas classic. Named after the Scottish island where the traditional knitting technique originates, Fairisle first gained widespread popularity when the Prince of Wales (later Edward VIII) wore a jumper in the pattern for a portrait in 1925. Nowadays, Fairisle is the chic way to do ‘Christmas jumper’ if buying a flammable, will-bobble-in-five-minutes monstrosity adorned with a 3D flashing reindeer nose isn’t your thing.
When wearing the pattern by day, I lean wholeheartedly into its prim associations, pairing it ‘80s Sloane Ranger-style with a padded velvet headband, pie crust collar and wellies – perfect for blustery walks. Schöffel’s Shetland Fairisle Jumper (£119.95) layers with the Somerleyton Shirt (£89.95) – both pictured below – to do exactly this.
By evening, I clash it with something more punk on bottom, like – whisper it – vinyl trousers. Yes, really. I’m planning on wearing Schöffel’s Filey Fairisle Roll Neck Jumper (£139.95) with Commando’s faux leather trousers (£86, theoutnet.com) and &OtherStories’ red bow heels (£125, stories.com) for Christmas Eve drinks. I like to pull out one of the colours in the Fairisle for my accessories, and the deep red on that of the Filey Jumper is perfectly festive. I’ll complete my look with the Paradis earrings from my favourite independent jewellery Pink Piglet (£190, pinkpigletcollection.com) and Colombia Collective’s Wayuu pom pom bag (£55, thecolombiacollective.co.uk). The Filey’s high neck positively demands pulled-back hair and a giant earring.
That’s precisely the joy of a Fairisle jumper – it’s exceedingly useful in its versatility, all the more so when draughty country houses mean you can’t wear the spaghetti-strapped dresses you could get away with for parties in the city. And because my father refuses to put on the heating, I’ll layer a fleece-lined thermal top underneath, and tights under my vinyl trousers. Maybe this year I’llactually move further than a metre away from the woodburner. Practicality and style.
Trophy coats for Christmas: elegant tweed and technically advanced women’s jackets
You need two coats this Christmas season: one smart, one supremely practical. There’s nothing worse than assembling a knockout party outfit and then ruining it by throwing on top the same mud-stained coat you walk the dog in every day. A rule of thumb: your coat needs to match your outfit in tone. My father thinks it is okay to wear a Peter Storm anorak over a suit. It is not.
Schöffel’s Portree Tweed Jacket (£449.95) will go with a multitude of smarter outfits – think carol concerts, Christingle services, and drinks parties. And it’s not a flimsy option like lots of the smarter coats out there – its tweed is a technically enhanced pure lambswool, ensuring optimum warmth.
I’ll be wearing mine to a charity carol concert in an Arctic church next week over my Pink City Prints tartan dress (£195, pinkcityprints.com). The Portree works by evening as well as day thanks to its luxe details – a satin lining and green moleskin trim to the pockets and collar. Perfect over the top of Olivia Rose’s emerald Eden dress (£240, oliviarosethelabel.com) to arrive at the evening reception of my cousin’s wedding later this month.
And for those ice-cold last few commutes and are-we-in-Narnia Twixmas walks? It has to be the Hurlingham Waterproof Down Coat (£599.95) – Schöffel’s most technically advanced women’s insulated coat ever. Quite something for a brand that has been making coats since 1804.
Daytime decadence: velvet and cord for the Christmas season
My mantra in December? There’s no such thing as ‘saving for best’. With that in mind, luxe, tactile fabrics such as velvet and cord should become part of your everyday wardrobe. Incorporating ‘party pieces’ into your everyday wardrobe isn’t just great fun, but it brings so much joy to fellow women. You know how five-year-old girls love to wear an armful of bracelets and a ring on every finger? I think we have a girlish fascination with all things sparkly and extravagant that never really leaves us.
The key to striking the right balance and not looking like the five-year-old who’s looted Claire’s Accessories? Think of it as a ‘high low’ cocktail. Wear opulent velvet with jeans, gobstopper earrings with a simple white shirt, a double decker-red lip with a cable knit.
For running errands today I wore Schöffel’s velvet Nehru Waistcoat in Ruby (£99.95) with Moi London’s similarly opulent velvet Mary Janes (£80, moilondon.com), but balanced out all this daytime decadence with a pair of vintage Levi’s. For a similar high-low sandwich, pair Schöffel’s Sandsend Cable Knit Jumper (£119.95) with a berry lip (Clinique’s Almost Lipstick in black honey is my holy grail) and matching velvet hair bow (remember what I said about literal dressing? That includes dressing like you are a present). Or clash Schöffel’s crisp white Walberswick Cotton Shirt (£39) with a crystal-drenched earring like Zara’s rhinestone floral offering (£17.99, zara.com).
Read Alice’s guide to Christmas outfits for men here.
