Before I get 26 comments from people saying WELL I WILL BE IN MY PYJAMAS ALL DAY let me say, yes, I know some of you will and that’s great and I applaud you.
But not everyone gets to stay in the PJs all day and are required to, I don’t know, go to church? Or out for lunch or cook (something) and have people over and need and want to get out of their pyjamas and into something acceptable.
Personally, I will be wearing jeans and a Christmas sweater. I once turned up for Christmas Day lunch at my sister’s house wearing a preposterous Gucci rip-off big red skirt and a black jumper and high heeled boots and everyone else was in jeans, fair isle sweaters and stout walking shoes. I won’t be making that mistake again.
I’ve got below some inspiration for you for Christmas Day things to wear, some of which you may already own, ranging from super-smart, to smart to reasonably casual.
If you can be reasonably casual, you absolutely cannot go wrong with a Fairisle pattern sweater. I am linking to this one from Boden because all my digital tracking tells me that you love Boden, like, inordinately much.
Wear this with your favourite jeans and either a smart white sneaker or boots.
A current classic outfit combination if you have/want to be slightly smarter is a sweater and a skirt. You probably already have this outfit but if not, you might want to investigate.
I don’t really suit big midi-skirts and am pleased to see straighter skirts and slip skirts around. You could get one of these satin slip dresses and wear a sweater over the top, which is a thing I occasionally do and works really well. Then you wear tights underneath and the white trainers (I think white trainers and black tights look perfectly okay tbh but you could also wear smart black ankle boots and that would also be fine.)
Or, look, I don’t know who Fabienne Chapot is, but she’s made this sort of brilliant skirt called “Paris by Night” which is hilarious and you could wear with a chunky sweater for Christmas Day or with a black rollneck for NYE supper.
Or there’s this super rich red velour thing from Hush, which you ALSO buy things from with a fizzing enthusiasm when you are not buying things from Boden.
At the moment I am very into the Sezane slutty French girl look of a cardigan worn over just bra like Denise Van Outen circa 1998 on the Big Breakfast. This sweater this chick is wearing is sold out so FUCK HER and also I would not wear this with white jeans as that’s just showing off.
But I have been wearing a white cashmere v neck cardigan from the Pure Collection (I know!), I got the last one in a size 14 and it’s perfect but they’re all bloody sold out even the ones in really weird colours.
Anyway I’ve been having a poke about the internet and found some good alternatives, such as this good one (on sale! It’s a sign!) from J Crew via Net
Or this sort of open-knit fluffy thing from Stories is great.
The idea is you wear it loose, not fitted – either over a camisole if the v-neck is too deep or if you can get away with it, just over skin. Then you wear with it every piece of slim gold jewellery you own; bracelets, rings, earrings, necklaces – the lot. Casual hair. Paint your nails (if you can be arsed, I certainly never can.)
Now: smart Christmas Day dresses – for those of you with church obligations, or maybe you are staying in a Schloss or perhaps you are marrying into a very smart, rich family and this is your first Christmas there or something.
I rather love this jaunty thing from Boden, again, because you love BODEN – I think the frilled collar thingy is very festive.
This, from Bash, is very pretty, will get the job done and you can wear it again.
This thing from Other Stories, literally printed with leopards, is sort of fun and amazing. Or have I lost my mind.
This one, also Stories, is very beautiful. Nicola Formby used to wear something similar from McQueen and looked amazing, but Nicola looks amazing in *everything*.
And then there is this from Kitri Studios, via Selfridges. I have tried this dress on and it is very good. Everything from Kitri is good – not cheap but well made with good seams and quality fabric with a good weight to it. (My grandmother was a seamstress. She had a mania about seams that I have inherited. Sometimes I like to freak people out by saying that certain dresses – e.g. Ghost – look okay but they have “cheap seams”. It’s just so damning, but nobody really knows what it means.)
A side-note – a way to quickly modernise any existing skirts or dresses you have is to wear them with a black pointed boot, like these from Kurt Geiger, or these from Steve Madden. I’ve got these from Topshop – pictured below – and I lurve them – they make everything you wear them with feel brand new.
Okay, last and final outfit option I would like you to consider is a jaunty blouse with smart jeans or trousers. Blouses are just bloody everywhere at the moment so you are spoilt for choice.
This is a beauty from The White Company – very simple and pretty with some sparkly jewellery and your best teeth in. But if you are doing any cooking in it you must of course be fastidious about wearing your pinny.
Or look at this lovely thing from M&S (if Holly says I must have it, I’d better have it).
Here’s another one from M&S which I think is very festive in a kind of handmade folksy way. Or am I wrong.
An surprising heart-stopper from Brora via JLP
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Well, I will be in my pyjamas but I do want ALL those clothes, in particular the sock boot thingies and that lush Hush skirt. Happy Christmas, Spikers.
Thank you for explaining the commission thing. I hadn’t really thought too much about it but you do a fabulous job, make me smile and I often buy based on your recommendations. We’re all trying to work out what to be when we grow up so good on you for making this work.
Ooh, I love everything you’ve included here.
Like someone presenting the Oscars, I like to change my outfit half way through. Usually Christmassy jumper and jeans for a long walk in the morning and for doing the deep prep for dinner (peeling potatoes etc) then something smarter for presents in the afternoon. I love the black & Other Stories dress and the Hush outfit. Can’t go wrong with a bit of velvet. It does tend to be a bit hot though (especially doing the cooking) so am generally also a fetching shade of puce throughout.
Lizzie a mid-day change is impressive.. Velvet is good if you are going to stand about somewhere draughty but actual cooking in a warm kitchen… yes not so super. A nice wafty blouse might be better
TERRIFIC options. In particular I now need a white v neck cardigan SOONEST.
I recommend waiting until Pure Collection re-stock .. I love mine I wear it all the time
Pure Collection is so underrated, their stuff is excellent quality if you can get past the dreadful catalogue
so horrendously styled
Incase I haven’t said it yet this year…your wit makes my day a little brighter! So thanks and Merry Xmas!
Well, I am so pleased to see what you have written in this post! Today I am out for christmas lunch with my girlfriends and I am wearing a fairisle style jumper in red and cream – christmassy but v tasteful – and a red pleated velvet skirt, and from what you have said above I feel right on trend which is something that never happens to me! I am wearing the same for Christmas day!
fabulous!
We tried pyjamas one year and it felt all wrong so now it’s only for stockings then get properly dressed and proper breakfast to stop everyone going a bit mad. I wore a muted tartan dress last year and that worked well. Whenever I’ve worn a Christmas jumper on the day I get too hot, but I’ve been wearing this one from M&S for all Christmassy hoopla https://www.marksandspencer.com/embellished-round-neck-jumper/p/p60201981?image=SD_01_T38_7793N_T4_X_EC_90&color=GREYMIX&prevPage=srp
A few people have commented nicely about it though it is not endorsed by Holly specifically so how do we really know? I’m starting to get sold on the sloppy cardigan look but I’ve really got an awful lot of knitwear this year, I’m buying jumpers like they are love.
I know my knitwear habit is getting out of hand too
This is fab. Thank you! Any chance you could give me the name of your Topshop boots? As I’m out of the Uk the redirect to the EU page means the link doesn’t work! Thanks so much.
Danielle! Sorry this is so late, they are called Mission Western Boots xxx
Next has some lovely pleated velvet (well not actual velvet but they look like it) skirts in gorgeous emerald colours which look super with a silk shirt and are just the ticket for a Christmas Day drinks party.
I have the perfect skirt (M&S) but didn’t know what to wear with it. I think the baggy cardigan look would work better than what I’d had in mind (something more fitted that’s already in my wardrobe). Hate to buy more ‘stuff’ but I do think this be useful, so thanks for the inspo. And happy Christmas to Spikers young and old (me lol).
Yes, baggy cardigan or baggy chunky sweater. anything baggy! lots of jewellery xxx
I’m going to wear a tartan dress for church, as we’re going to my Scottish husband’s Scottish church and, while I feel slightly like I’m wearing lederhosen in Germany, the Scots are unironic about these things. I will then change into a cream fair isle jumper from J Crew and some leather look maternity jeans from Mamalicious (ASOS – 28 weeks pregnant), which I think add just the right amount of badass to my outfit. I thought about wearing one of those burgundy Kate mid knot dresses but I’m quite angrily hormonal at the moment and it didn’t feel right.
I wore a lot of pleather when I was pregnant and skull motifs etc because one can feel so ghastly and uncool when up the duff. I think that all sounds like the right call
This is a tricky one. I think if you are cooking on the day you need to wear anything which is flimsy and old in kitchen due to heat and spillages, then go change for lunch/dinner. Also depends how hot you like your house, or indeed if you are the visitor. I’ve dressed as I thought appropriate and either been boiling in my lovely festive thick jumper, or freezing in my dress. Maybe a lovely dress with a cardi and thick tights? The thought of wearing jeans all day is a bit restrictive for when you (me) scoff enormous amounts of food. Luckily this year I’m going out for dinner (hurrah no cooking). I suspect I’m over thinking this:) Wishing everybody a wonderful Christmas and a great 2019.
I wear a ludicrous santa print skater dress and leggings to accomodate bloat. It’s a STRONG LOOK.
Any tips on footwear? Don’t like wearing shoes in the house but find slippers rather detract from a carefully styled outfit… Happy Christmas Spikers!
Another Pure Collection fan (despite the Kays catalogue styling, surprises they don’t call their trousers ‘slacks’). Always a sale on too.
Well I’ve bought the Boden knit and am delighted you’ll get kick back. Merry Christmas & thanks for this fabulous blog xx