Purple Dresses

Seven purple dresses, from lavender print minis to a beaded high-neck evening gown. Between £35 and £200, sized XS to XXL and UK 6 to 12.

Free UK delivery on every order, no minimum spend, and free 14-day returns.

The colour that reads expensive

A purple dress is the least worn of the strong colours and, for that reason, the most memorable in a room. It carries depth without the severity of black and richness without the obviousness of red — which is why it turns up on evening wear far more often than on the high street.

It also photographs unusually well under artificial light. Where pastels flatten and brights flare under flash, the deeper purples hold their saturation, which makes them a reliable choice for an evening event.

Lavender, or deep purple

Lavender and lilac are the soft end. They behave almost like pastels, work in daylight, and are the safest of the family for a summer wedding or a garden party — sitting close to the dusty tones bridal parties favour without being one of them.

Deep purple, plum and aubergine are the evening end. Formal, saturated, and best in a fabric with some sheen — satin, sequin or beading — where the colour gets depth to work with.

The rule of thumb: pale purple for daytime, deep purple after dark. A deep aubergine at a summer lunch reads heavy, and a lilac at a black-tie dinner reads underdressed.

What we carry

Three maxi, two midi and two mini. Two are sequin or beaded, two are embellished, two are printed. Four are tagged for parties, three for evening and two for wedding guests.

The range runs from a butterfly print batwing mini and a strapless floral high-waist midi at the daytime end, through to a sequin beaded high-neck gown and a ruffle-sleeve sequin high-low dress for an evening.

What to wear it with

Purple is one of the few colours where metal changes everything. Gold warms lavender and the red-based plums, and is the more flattering choice for most skin tones. Silver cools the blue-based purples and suits deep aubergine.

Avoid black shoes with a lavender dress — nude, tan or champagne keeps the line light. With a deep purple, black works, but a metallic works better.

Sizing

These run XS to XXL in letter sizes and UK 6 to 12 in the numeric ones, with full measurements in centimetres on the size guide. Our dresses are true to size.

Between two sizes, take the larger in sequin and woven fabrics, which have little give, and your usual size in anything with stretch. For a bodycon cut, order to your hip measurement rather than your dress size.

Delivery and returns

UK delivery is free on every order with no minimum spend, and takes around seven working days. Returns are free within 14 days with a prepaid label in the box.

Where to look next

By occasion: evening dresses, party dresses, wedding guest. By other colours: pink, blue, green.