11 Different Dress Cuts and When to Wear Them

It's not just color, pattern, and fabric you have to look at when you're buying a dress: the cut of the garment really determines what the dress should be worn for. Different dress cuts are worn for casual, work, and formal wear, and you don't want to be wearing the wrong cut for the wrong occasion.

BodyCon

The BodyCon dress style brings out the best of the woman’s figure, thus making the wearer and viewer conscious of the body under the dress. This dress is appropriate for casual or formal wear depending upon the design of the dress.

Baby Doll Shift

This style of dress is a sleeveless shift and offers a rounded neckline. The zipper at the back of the dress made it easy to put on and the 100 percent polyester material makes this dress easily to launder. This dress is for office work wear, casual wear or formal wear depending upon length and design on the dress.

Empire Waist

The waistline of this type of dress rises above the wearer’s natural waistline. This dress gives new height to the wearer and helps to eliminate heaviness of the bottom part of the body. Sleeveless or not this dress is more formal for a night on the town.

A-Line

An A-Line dress is great for the woman who wants to help hide a heavier figure or emphasize slimmer figures. The top of this style dress offers a narrow top to the waist and gently flares out towards the hem. This dress is great for the office, casual wear or formal design, generally sleeveless with scoop neckline.

Wrap Dress

The wrap dress is versatile. It splits down the front with one tie at the waist. The front of this dress wraps from one side to the other and creates a V-neckline. The ties go around the waist and tie in the back or front. This dress can be for casual, work, or formal wear, depending upon design.

Full Skirt

A full skirt design has a form-fitting waist, with the skirt flaring out ward to the bottom. The full skirt is appropriate for casual, or office ware. Many fashion designers make formal full skirts depending upon the materials used.

Maxi Dress

Opposite of the popular mini dress the maxi dress is long and flowing, casual or formal and not necessarily work appropriate, depending upon the job. This dress, made from various materials, cotton being a popular fabric for this style dress. This dress is perfect for the vacation venue, being cool and comfortable with a flattering fit.

Peplum

The design is a short skirt that attaches to a form-fitting jacket. The skirt flares down ward from the waist. The jacket can be long sleeve, short sleeve or sleeveless. This dress is appropriate to wear in the office work place depending upon design, but offers a more formal aura.

Sheath

The sheath dress is form fitting and simple. Length is to the knees or lower thighs. This dress is appropriate for business. A formal sheath example is a tight fitting black sheath for formal wear. The sheath may be designed with sleeves or be sleeveless.

Tea-Length

The hemline of the popular tea-length dress falls just below knee level. Women of fashion consider any dress falling between the lower knee and ankle a tea length. This design is appropriate for the office place or for formal wear, depending upon design and materials used.

Mermaid

The mermaid dress fits snugly from the bust to the lower calf area, and then the material flares outward. Necklines vary in design. Dresses are generally sleeveless and are only appropriate for formal wear.