How to Dress Up a Boho Dress

A sweater and jewelry can take your look from boho to brisk.

Photo: Jupiterimages/BananaStock/Getty Images

A breezy boho dress keeps you cool in summer, but you'll need to add that chic factor to your outfit to take the look from the beach to the bar. Bohemian dresses are all about flowing skirts and earth tones -- sometimes with a splash of bold color or print -- inspired by artists, gypsies and hippies. All you need to add class are a few accessories -- the kind that ooze sophistication. With a clever mix of bohemian and elegance, you can dress up your boho dress for any occasion, in any season.

Classic Tights

An easy way to dress up your boho look? Add tights. Skip the funky daytime colors in favor of subtle shades. Whites, grays and pastels are feminine choices against the bold colors of your boho dress. To give your outfit major sophistication, go with classic black. It's a slimming color (whether you need that or not), giving you legs that look trim and tall. Plus, black is a classic color -- and little black tights are as classic as the little black dress. Finish with a pair of heels or shimmery ballet flats -- think gold or silver -- to complete the glamorous look.

Killer Accessories

Adding accessories is the easiest way to dress up your boho dress. Start with a gold or silver belt -- the fancier, the better. If your boho dress is billowy, the belt adds a splash of class and cinches around your waist to accentuate your figure. Adding a monochromatic scarf and a dashing hat, such as a black fedora or a head-hugging 1920s flapper hat, creates enchantment. But the best way to class up your look? Jewelry. Keep pieces sophisticated -- in gold, silver or pearl. A string of pearls around your neck or a pair of delicate silver-hoop earrings are high-class jewelry-box staples, but paired with a boho dress, they show off your personality's mix of bold creativity and old-fashioned flair.

Chic Sweaters

A long, monochromatic sweater helps cover up those bold bohemian colors. Meanwhile, faux fur and lace hark back to bygone eras when these materials were staples of upper-class wardrobes. A faux fur sweater is more than a warm addition to your wardrobe: It's also bohemian, with a luxurious spin. Think 1920s heiress. The posh material lets you get away with any color, from boho olive green to sophisticated black, and still look dressy. Alternatively, a light jacket with a touch of lace upgrades your look from casual to high street in a snap. To cover up a too-colorful boho dress, button up your sweater, so the boho dress looks like a skirt rather than the main event.

Earthy Overcoats

When you take your boho dress for a spin after dark, you'll need a jacket to ward off the chill. Skip the super-formal black numbers for an earth-toned coat. Double-breasted jackets that have length (falling to mid-thigh, for instance) add sophistication to your look, while the rich shade -- whether it's rust red or camel brown -- keeps with your boho-chic theme. For added luxury, look for small details, such as broad collars, gold buttons and unusual stitching that adds flair. All of these little touches add up to create a dress coat that will make that boho dress underneath all the more surprising.

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