2020 Evening Dress Trends

2020 promises to be an exciting year in couture, especially in evening wear. Trends in color and style continue to evolve, and designers reinvent ways to use color, draping, accessories, and cut. Here are some trends to watch for evening gowns in 2020:

Bright, Rainbow or Gradient Color

Ombre is back in a big way. You may find gradient color in soft pastels or sequins in 2020. Other color trends for spring include food-related colors, like tangerine, peach, pistachio, and butter, or the full spectrum of rainbow colors—a few looks even went full neon. You’re likely to see “highlighter” colors in gowns, suits, shorts, and jackets. For evening wear, however, you’re more likely to find gradient color in subtle hues and gentler versions of food-bright shades.

Cutouts

There’s quite a lot of peek-a-boo going on in spring gowns, with cutouts at the side waist, front, or bustline. The “cold-shoulder” look gets a classy, upgraded treatment in designer evening gowns, featuring necklines that extend into dropped sleeve straps off the shoulder.

Big Florals

Instead of all-over, small floral prints, 2020 evening dress trends will favor a few, large blooms, many featuring roses in particular.

Ruffles

Ruffles are showing up from top to tow in general. In gowns, however, you’ll see them mostly below the knee or on hems, at the shoulder, or on the sleeves.

Tiers

Tiered gowns are all the rage, with various widths of tiers cascading down from empire or natural waistlines. Tiers and ruffles add volume or flow to gowns, making them twirl-worthy.

Polka dots

The dotted dress has moved up from the picnic to the prom. You’ll find dots in classic black and white, or fabulous flamenco-inspired gowns.

Feathers

Feathers add elegance and movement to evening wear, showing up at the shoulder or below the knee, or even on a featured accessory. They adorn dresses, boleros, or tops, adding a light and breezy appearance.

Lace

It’s not just for Grandma’s tablecloth anymore, but neither is it the all-over netting we’ve seen in the past few years. Lace shows up more sparingly as trim at hems, or on collars or sleeves.

Crochet

Perhaps the unlikeliest of evening wear trends, crocheted dresses will march down the runways this fall. Expect innovative patterns and full-length crochet creations.

Applying Trends to Your Style

Trends are suggestions, not commands, and 2020 evening dress trends are no exception. Couture evening dresses aren’t just for fashion week runways; they’re fantastic for your very own special occasions. Effie’s Boutique brings couture to you with hundreds of elegant, wearable choices that incorporate trends in flattering ways. Here are a few tips about how to stay on trend without going too far:

• Know your personal style and flatter your body type: Sometimes, you see a dress and you just know—it’s perfect for you. As you browse dresses online, trust your instincts. Not everyone is up to a huge volume of tiers and ruffles, but you might give a nod to the trend at the hem. Some dresses work best on taller women, where the more petite among us can get away with a fit-and-flare, knee-length style. If peek-a-boo is not for you, consider a dress with a shorter, opaque sheath beneath a longer overlay of sparkling, lacy netting or fine, classy crochet. You’ll still be appropriately covered up while emphasizing the cut-out-trend below the knee and perhaps in the sleeves.

• Personalize color: Fashion pundits may have announced that bright tangerine or highlighter neons are the season’s color commands, but don’t be afraid to make it your own. If you don’t want quite that level of display, you can find toned-down versions with gentle color gradients that flatter your complexion and your figure. If dressing in green makes you queasy, let someone else pull off the pistachio tones while you stick with the peach.

• Consider proportional patterns: Polka dots are so much fun, but they can be overwhelming if they’re too large for your figure. Smaller dots are more flattering to larger figures, while big dots need more altitude and work better on taller frames. And those giant, single flowers can obliterate a petite person, so if you’re small and not tall, consider an all-over floral.

• Fabric: There was a lot of leather on the runways this fall, but it’s not likely you’ll see it in the form of evening gowns on the racks in the spring. Feathers are soft, light, and lovely, but don’t drown yourself in them. They’ll work best as an accent at the neckline or collar, or on shorter gowns. With full-length gowns, a way to play on the trend is to restrict feathers to a whisper below the knee.

When to Consider Couture

As much as you remember the occasion, you will remember the dress. For milestone moments or once-in-a-lifetime events, consider couture. Couture dresses are made with great care, often by hand, and may only be cut from a pattern upon order. While they may incorporate current trends, they are more likely to last as classics, outliving 2020 evening dress trends for many years. We’ve seen those moments where classic couture dresses returned to award-season red carpets decades after the original owner wore them, and they looked as new and fresh as if they were designed yesterday.

If you have a major event coming up, such as prom, homecoming, a wedding, or a special anniversary, give yourself plenty of time to shop and compare. Next season’s dresses will come well before next season arrives. Factor in time for alterations as well. Unless you’re willing to pay thousands for a bespoke dress, your gown may need a little customizing when it arrives. At Effie’s Boutique, we concentrate on offering a wide variety of the most beautiful gowns, cocktail dresses, evening dresses, and prom dresses in a broad range of sizes. We’re confident we can help you find a gown that will fit you beautifully and look great.

We can’t wait to see what the spring runways will be showing for next year. In the meantime, have fun browsing our offerings of elegant, couture gowns for this season.