Sleepwear for day — The new way to dress up
It’s an industry cliche that we should wear clothes that can take us from day to night. What about the other way around.
The concept of “day to night” used to get bandied about a lot when I was reading fashion journalism as a teenager, that idea of dressing in such a way as to move effortlessly from office to cocktail party. Which, of course, one does all the time. As the writer Margaret Lyons posted on Twitter/X, “Women’s magazines really convinced me that ‘going from day to night’ was going to be a big part of my adult life but so far this has not come up.” Indeed.
In fact, it’s “night to day” that has inadvertently become the dress code de nos jours among celebrities and the fashion pack: garb that evokes the bedroom and/or the boudoir worn out and about for all to see. The front row often looks akin to a pyjama party, not that Sleeper’s befeathered creations bear much relation to anything I wore to a sleepover. And there appeared to be not a dress code at Victoria Beckham’s 50th birthday party last month so much as a slip dress code, examples being sported by everyone from Eva Longoria to Beckham’s daughter Harper, 12.
There’s a slipper thing going on at the moment too. Not, to be clear, the kind of footwear that Nora Batty swept her steps in. Rather it’s about thin-soled pumps that look as if they might have been designed for indoors rather than out. I wasn’t the only one wearing the cult Balla mesh style from the boutique British brand Dear Frances for the Ralph Lauren show in New York on Monday night, for example (from £350, AUD$673, dearfrances.com). In normal service I like to pair them with jeans for contrast. Zara’s, available in white and red, cost £35.99 (AUD$70, zara.com). Arket’s, in black, white or red, are £139 (AUD$268), its leather version of similar, in black, £149 (AUD$291) (arket.com). Everlane’s so-called day glove, in a wide range of leathers, is £132 (AUD$255) (everlane.com).
Fluffy is another route. I have been wearing my black shearling version of Essen’s foundation flat for ever, and they get me compliments every time I put them on - as well as, admittedly, baffled looks from some (£199, AUD$385, essenthelabel.com). I have my eye on the Birkenstock Big Buckle Arizona in shearling for summer, available in assorted shades (£170, AUD$327, birkenstock.com).
What lies behind night to day? Partly it’s because clothes designed to lounge in, if not be unconscious in, are perforce comfy. And comfy is proving to be far and away the most persistent perma-trend in contemporary fashion. We like pyjama pants for exactly the reasons we like other varieties of trouser that were conceived for their function rather than their form, whether that’s combats or track pants. Sure, we might think about them when we put them on, but after that they demand not a square centimetre of brain allocation.
That’s not all that’s going on. Looking cool these days is about offsetting that functionality with just the right amount of nonconformity. That’s what keeps things interesting; even ever so slightly edgy. It’s about mixing the high with the low. It’s about juxtaposing night with day, in other words - literally in the case of this particular approach. What’s more, this is a trend that can look sexy in a non-try-hard way too.
Might there be something more existential afoot as well? Could it be a case of - with apologies to Shakespeare - “to sleepwear, perchance to dream“? A means of sleepwalking through the harsh realities for many of life in the third decade of the 21st century?
Such is the range of slip dresses on offer at All Saints that I really do think the brand should consider rechristening itself All Slips. The most classic is the Bryony, which comes in black as well as brights and prints (£99, AUD$191, allsaints.com). Essentiel Antwerp has pushed the envelope further with its slip with contrast lace trim in turquoise/neon orange or pink/neon green (£190, AUD$366, essentielantwerp.com).
I suggest offsetting the slip’s potentially deshabille nature with harder lines - to wear it under a blazer if you want to dial things up, or a denim jacket if the only way is down. If, like me, you like - nay, need - to be able to wear a bra, Ghost’s polka dot Cicely, in green and white or white and orange would be a great option (£149, AUD$291, ghost.co.uk). Or you could pick a more nightdress-adjacent short-sleeved style, such as its dark green Grace (£179, AUD$345). Either of these would be wonderful for a summer wedding.
The silk tank dress from Serena Bute, the ultimate investment piece, can be worn with a bra, and comes in black and two pinks, one raspberry, one
shocking (£340, AUD$654, serenabutelondon.com). (The small British brand is also good for posh PJs.) Sleeper is, as discussed, the mother lode when it comes to pyjamas to be seen out in, the feather trims removable for washing, not to mention for the office (£395, AUD$760, the-sleeper.com).
Just asking to be taken on holiday is Mango’s extravagantly printed outsize shirt and matching wide-leg trews, in blue/white (£35.99, AUD$70, mango.com). Rise & Fall has low-key co-ords in machine-washable “easy silk” in black, brown, or cream, the trousers £155 (AUD$299), the T-shirt-style top £140 (AUD$270) for the long sleeve (riseandfall.co). Its organic cotton poplin comes in black or sand (£95 for the black shirt, AUD$183, £95 for the trousers, AUD$183).
Whatever your choice of pseudo-PJ, it’s a good idea to break up the pairing on occasion, whether you wear the top with jeans or a tee, the bottoms with a blazer or more denim. Night and day, as I said.
The Times
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