How to wear the Burgundy Trend (when the high-street isn't delivering for tall women).
This will be my second sober Christmas, but my love for a deep wine hue hasn’t wavered. While I’ve failed miserably at locating a decent 0% red, we’ve been sure to fill Otto + Ivy with some burgundy treats for your feet this season.
Burgundy is always a winner; a neutral that’s a little more exciting than classic black, and looks invariably luxurious. It works with leopard print, denim, and pairs particularly well with black or cream. But this season it’s decidedly on-trend; so I set about looking for some tall-friendly berry pieces.
Truth is, I’ve had almost as much trouble finding long-length clothes in this shade as I have sourcing the elusive alcohol-free Merlot. The availability of tall-friendly clothing in mainstream fashion seemed to have reached a peak about six years ago, and has petered out steadily since Covid. (But that’s a bigger discussion for another day). So I’ve had to get creative with my tips.
Get acquainted with the Men's Department
When it comes to knitwear, don’t forget to stalk the men’s section. I bought this berry Topman boucle jumper, which looks great oversized with jeans or a satin skirt, and the cut around the neckline – which I usually find to be the sticking point when seeking out longer-length sleeves in the men’s section – still feels feminine too.
Any Maxi can be a Midi if you're tall enough
The slim-line satin skirt trend is one to embrace; I like to pick up a “maxi” one in a regular store and wear it as the perfect on-trend midi length. The straight cut is such that it doesn't feel misshapen or weirdly short. My favourite places for this include H+M, Arket and Asos. Asos also has some lovely Tall dark cherry straight leg trousers and I love the look of this oversized Dad coat in Plum.
Burgundy Shoes in Larger Sizes
Despite the sparsity of burgundy clothing in tall collections, Otto + Ivy has a growing number of burgundy options for long-footed women. We’ve just dropped our beloved Olivia flats in a new rich burgundy shade, perfect for adding an easy update. Our Betsy loafer has also had the oxblood treatment this season, and is great with jeans or as an office-wear neutral. And if you want to add this tone to your evening-wear, our over-sized bow Sophia Berry flats will be restocked in about 3 weeks (you can sign up for notifications on the product page to be the first to know). All of our styles are designed specifically for women with larger shoe sizes (UK 8–12), making it super easy for you to add the colour of the season to your wardrobe.
Do let me know if you’ve found anymore tall-friendly burgundy items, or indeed if you’ve hit upon a good zero red. Incidentally I love the 0% Frexinet for drier bubbles, and the Lyres mocktail mixers when you’re feeling fancy. And a zero mulled wine (Sainsburys’ Merry Berry is a good one!) still feels very much like Christmas.
Laura xx