The Dresses Actually Worth Owning in Lagos

The wardrobe is full, but there is still nothing to wear. This is a relatable scenario for most Nigerian women.

Most wardrobes are not short of clothes, they are short of the right clothes, because they were built one event at a time rather than built on purpose.

Think about what you actually attended in the past year. Probably four or five weddings with several events each, a couple of naming ceremonies, church most Sundays, work most weekdays, a handful of dinners, somebody's birthday, and one or two things you could not have predicted.

That is the real list. Five or six dresses chosen against it will serve you better than twenty bought one at a time.

One that handles a long formal day

This is your white wedding dress, your big occasion dress, the one for the day that starts in a church and ends at a reception.

It wants to be elegant without competing, in a colour that photographs well, in fabric that survives eight hours and a lot of sitting. Detail rather than volume, because volume in a church pew is a problem for you and for the person beside you.

The Willow is built for exactly this, which is why it keeps coming up.

One that is rich enough for a traditional ceremony

Deeper colour, heavier fabric, more presence. The traditional is the event where being underdressed shows most, and the one where going fuller is rewarded rather than punished.

If you are sent aso ebi this is handled for you, but you will not always be sent aso ebi.

One quiet enough for a family morning

Introductions, naming ceremonies, court weddings, church on a Sunday that matters. All of these want the same thing, which is something considered and covered that does not read as evening wear.

Modest neckline, midi or longer, sleeves or something to go over it. This is the dress you will wear more often than any of the others and it is the one people least often own.

One for evenings

Dinner, drinks, a launch, a birthday. Closer in cut, because you are seen up close and sitting down, and you are being photographed in low light where volume disappears and texture comes through.

This is where you can be less careful about coverage and more interested in the cut, since nobody's auntie is in the room.

Two that carry an ordinary week

The ones you reach for without thinking. Comfortable enough for a full day, smart enough that you are not underdressed if the day changes, and light enough for the weather.

Something like the Baobab Set does a lot of work here, because two pieces worn together or apart quietly turn one purchase into several outfits.

Where people overbuy and underbuy

Almost everybody overbuys party dresses and underbuys the quiet ones. The bold pieces are the fun purchase, and then they sit there because you cannot wear a memorable dress twice in front of the same people.

The dresses that earn their money are the plain ones in good fabric, because you can wear them repeatedly and restyle them and nobody is keeping count.

Build it slowly

You do not need all six at once. Work out which one you are missing most often and buy that, properly, rather than buying three cheaper things that nearly do the job.

Then get each one altered to fit you exactly. A tailor costs very little and it is the difference between a dress you own and a dress you wear.

Shop AMARAÉ for dresses built to be worn more than once. Delivery across Nigeria and worldwide.