Black Dresses Little Black Dresses

Table of Content

• Linen Front Pleat Maxi Dress with Hood by Aakasha
• ASOS DESIGN embellished mini dress with encrusted gems in black
• Posh and Pretty Peplum Off Shoulder Dress in Black

The Naadam is currently on sale, so it’s a steal, but be aware that there are no returns. A LITTLE black dress is a closet essential – most women have one at some point, but it takes time to find the right one to fit your body. This simple black dress is perfect for nailing that presentation or job interview. It’s plain enough to personalize with accessories, but the details make it special enough to stand on its own. We liked the high-quality cashmere of Everlane’s The Cashmere Turtleneck Dress—it hardly pilled and didn’t stretch out.

We love pairing colorful statement earrings with our black dresses to add a pop of color, or pairing them with printed or colorful heels. From basic black mini dresses to little black cocktail dresses, you’ll find an LBD to conquer everything in style. Think little black dresses in pencil and A-line silhouettes to master workwear, while little black dresses with embellishment and sequins are just the thing for after-dark.

Linen Front Pleat Maxi Dress with Hood by Aakasha

This dress ran slightly large for some testers—if you’re between sizes, we suggest sizing down. One tester with a straighter figure found the Résumé to be a bit too big everywhere. Our panelists with larger hips liked how forgiving the dress was in the waist and hips, but they found the bust a tad too large . Sizes range from 00 to 24 in the regular cut, which we tested, and this dress also comes in petite and tall. We recommend trying it on in the store, if you can, or ordering a handful of sizes to find a perfect fit. This turtleneck dress features high-quality cashmere and a double-sided slit to modernize the look.

This thick ribbed dress is comfy and great at smoothing out any lumps, while accentuating your favorite body parts. And it comes in the broadest range of sizes of our picks. Universal Standard uses a unique sizing scale so check the measurements carefully. All these items are staple pieces you can wear and style in different ways.

ASOS DESIGN embellished mini dress with encrusted gems in black

There is absolutely no wardrobe staple that is more iconic and classy than a little black dress! It doesn’t matter what the occasion is, a LBD is a closet staple you can always go to. A black cocktail dress is a perfect fit for a date night, wedding, homecoming, brunch or church.

The slim fit looks best on people with straight figures; it’s not great for those with ample hips. The neckline on the COS Sleeveless Cowl Neck Dress was uncomfortably high, and the dress’ overall fit wasn’t flattering. Our testers said this little black dress reminded them of a bathrobe. I also had a panel of four people with different body types wear our dress contenders to help determine which styles have the best shot at becoming staple pieces in your closet. We all identify as women, and our typical dress sizes and heights are 2/S, 5 feet 9 inches; 8/M, 5 feet 3 inches; 12/L, 5 feet 10 inches; and 14/XL, 5 feet 7 inches.

Posh and Pretty Peplum Off Shoulder Dress in Black

Then I selected the 14 contenders that ranked the highest to send to a panel. I enlisted three additional testers who typically wear a women’s 2/S, a 12/L, and a 14/XL. The panelists paid special attention to the dresses’ overall quality, style, fit, and comfort. They also noted how they’d wear each dress and which ones, if any, they’d purchase for themselves.

There’s an art to selecting a little black dress that’s equal parts stylish and timeless. Pick a look you love, find a flattering fit and cut, and understand quality fabric and good construction. “It’s all about being confident in who you are,” according to Influencing in Color, a Houston-based group of fashion influencers.

As Wirecutter’s pets and style writer, I spent three months digging into what makes the perfect little black dress. I interviewed fashion influencers, stylists, directors, and historians. I asked Brett A. Jamison, a Bloomingdale’s stylist, and Arielle Siboni, Bloomingdale’s ready-to-wear fashion director, about how to find a great dress in your price range. For the initial round of testing, I measured my bust, waist, and hips and ordered each dress in my size according to the retailer’s sizing charts. I typically wear a women’s dress size 8 or M, but in the often-inconsistent world of women’s clothing sizes, retailers’ sizing charts put me anywhere from a 2XS to an XL. I wore each dress for an hour and paid attention to the quality, style, fit, and comfort.

Even our panelist who hates spaghetti-strap dresses liked the Reformation Astrid dress, but it wrinkled immediately. The Banana Republic Sweater Dress is well made, but the relaxed fit wasn’t as flattering as the fitted Universal Standard Rita Ribbed Sweater Dress With Pockets. The 100% viscose A.P.C. Oleson dress was too heavy when worn, and it looked shapeless on most of our testers. We thought the ASOS Design Tall Soft Denim Tea Dress was also too juvenile, and the fit wasn’t true to size.