How to wear mini length in winter?
You may think that, as temperature gets colder, the length of the skirts gets longer.
Yet the opposite is actually happening for many ladies. Thanks to tights.
What is indeed cooler than showing off the beautiful shape of your legs without revealing their real color and texture? Without risk of cellulite display, you can go shorter than you do in summer ^^
And it keeps going better: tights have a sharpening effect, so even if you are not super happy with the contour of your legs, you may want to give them another chance to look good in a mini.
Opaque tights are the best if you are insecure or wants to be sure not to be tacky. More tips about how to wear tights in my most read article.
By the way, I would like to mention that tights are not colder than (most) pants. I even think some are warmer because they actually stick to your skin and are the temperature of it whereas wider pants get cold up by the outside air (brrrr). This message is dedicated to all the streets cat callers who always ask if “you are not feeling cold” (grrrr).
Here is how to wear the mini whilst remaining classy, stylish and cool in winter.
1. Wear a longer coat on top
Opened if the weather still allows it.
This style makes your mini skirt, dress or short look cool and less sexy.
Tokyo Banhbao with a long trench over a mini dress, a classic.
The cherry blossom girl wearing a cape over her mini skirt.
If you close your coat, choose it just slightly longer that your skirt.
If you worry about being too sexy, remember that coats always look less provocative than just a mini anyways.
2. Go for wider shapes
Note that is does not mean you can do not tight shapes, but only that wide shapes help to make a mini based outfit appear less sexy and more effortless.
– Babydoll like dresses and chunky scarves
Maddinka wears a fluid short skirt, a classic straight coat and an oversize scarf. With this outfit that does not show any skin or shape of the body on the upper area, she can dare the mini and even the high socks with a sheer pantyhose effect.
– Oversize sweaters
Olivia Palermo with an oversize turtleneck and a classic straight marin coat that blur her upper body while giving her a cool style. With such a top, she can go for a mini skirt and high heels. Note how she went for the most opaque tights on the market.
Rima Vaidila, with a boyish oversize sweater, crew neck and a super mini skirt that I guess she paired with flats.
Want personalized style advices? Reach me for distance styling or personal shopping!
3. Wear flats
Since the mini skirt already lengthen the leg, you can wear all kind of flat shoes without having a “short leg effect”.
You can even dare flat low boots that go high on the calves.
Flat knee high boots are also a pretty option.
You can even try the flat over the knee boots … but let me tell you that those flatter almost no one (only the very tall and very thin long legged girls).
She tempers her super short skirt with flat loafers, a chunky knitted jumper, opaque tights and a very classy/preppy overall attitude.
Or almost flats
The styling dutchman does every of the above mentioned tricks in one outfit ^^
Mango and salt with a babydoll short dress and almost flat over the ankle low boots. You could warm this outfit with a cardigan, a jumper or a blazer.
4. Be rock
Being rock in a way that is true to yourself (do not try to be if this is not you), gives you the superpower to wear sexy things in a non tacky way (I said rock, not trash).
Julia Sarr-Jamois wearing a real biker jacket that gives attitude to her black bodycon dress (this and the afro cut of course <3)
Les babioles de Zoé wearing a mini short and a low neckline tempered with a loose blazer, lots of tiny jewels, opaque tights and flat santiags look alike low boots.
5. Be androgynous
Mini instantly makes you feminine.
You cannot help it. Men do not show their legs in any western culture.
Maybe in summer a bit. Maybe some scottish calves sometimes. But never the upper tights part. And never in winter. Men tights and short shorts are soooo 18th century Louis!
Therefore, it is fun to make a mini a bit less feminine by wearing it in an androgynous manner.
Leandra Medine that I mentioned two weeks ago also does amazing outfits like this one. The mini skirt and T-shirt combo is super classic. What makes it stylish is how she paired it with a masculine tweed blazer and flat low boots that could belong to a man. Notice the red dramatic lipstick that brings color to the look.
This outfit is very feminine yet the idea of tailored shorts and jacket along with the T-shirt evoke boy’s style.
6. Be chic
You can wear the mini and remain chic from head to toes.
As long as everything suits you perfectly and is body appropriate.
Tip to be chic: wear sophisticated fabrics and cuts!
The skirt of this lady has a sophisticated shape and a thick fabric that makes her look elegant.
She can even pull out stiletto heels.
7. Be fun
Juliette from kitsch is my middle name, pairing marin and leopard print. Trapeze mini, fluid crew neck top and almost flat low boots.
Juliette looking pretty and playful again with mini dots printed shorts, oversize knitted jumper and almost flat strappy girly shoes.
And you? Do you wear the mini in winter? How do you style it?
Bises de Paris,
Aloïs
Cover collage: Found on Madmoizelle, Rima Vaidila.
Actually Irish do wear kilts, just haven’t been wearing them as long as the Scots. Only a couple hundred years. The colors/plaids are different. The Scots tartans (plaids) are largely family oriented. The Irish tartans are county or area related or solid colored.
Will wearing tights or pantyhose make a short skirt appear longer
It’s just what I weared all my life, but was absolutly forbidden in the last past fifteen years.
I especially enjoy idea of flat hills, and clothes that comes from men dressing, I hate to look like a grandma even if I’am 56 years old.
My friend hate this but don’t go away …
Great post with very useful information and fashion tips. I love the mini length. Thanks for sharing.
j’approuve tous ces looks, ce que je préfère ayant utilisé tout cela depuis mon plus jeune âge car je n’aime pas les talons ni le style “bonne femme” et que je ne suis pas fan du pantalon tout le temps.
Ce que je préfère est le court avec le manteau long, et le style masculin.
j’y retourne cet hiver malgré mes 56 ans et cela me redonne espoir de perdre quelques bouées qui gâchent ma silhouette restée malgré tout longiligne. On les voit moins c’est sûr, donc ce qu’on voit moins peut disparaître !
Evidemment mon compagnon fait la tête…mais comme il me dit il ne s’en va pas.
Ah! Just what I needed in the middle of winter… I’ll be wearing some tights this week, thank you!!
🙂
In fact the only time I wear skirts shorter than Midi is winter! My boss doesn’t allow shorter skirts, so I take out the sexyness of the length by only wearing opaque (fleece-lined or woolen) tights with my beloved red cord skirt. I also pair leggings underneath if they are single-coloured, and chose shoes which do not show the end of the leggings.
I like this look a lot! What I missed was the look “turtleneck + mini skirt”, because I think it’s a real classic.
Very good post again – there’s a reason why this is by far my absolute favourite blog! Thank you, Alois!
The man in the kilt is probably a Scot and not Irish, as it’s the Scots who wear kilts. His Scottish calves do look very stylish in that kilt. This is a great post with lots of good tips and photos. I used to wear the tights and short skirt (never a mini but above the knee) quite a lot as a school teacher. It felt so much like a school teacher uniform that now I am no longer teaching I don’t wear it. My age and body type does not suit the baby doll dress or the denim shorts with tights-too bad, they are very cute. Cute never suits me.
of course he is scottish… where was my mind?
J’avoue ne pas porter beaucoup de jupes, robes et shorts en hiver…Le froid engourdit ma motivation. L’hiver, j’en reviens toujours à mon bon vieil uniforme qui inclus un slim. Rien de court donc. C’est pathétique, mais c’est juste un problème de flemme. L’hiver, je n’ai pas trop envie de jouer avec la mode. Le reste de l’année, c’est autre chose par contre.
Mais à lire ton billet, je me dis que je me prive un peu bêtement et que mettre une jupe de temps en temps est un effort à la portée de tout le monde.