What are we wearing for New Years?

Outfit ideas for the least spontaneous night of the year

I will admit I’m a bit of an NYE hater (the pressure to have a great night rarely amounts to an actual great night does it) but can’t quite bring myself to do nothing and just treat it as a normal night. My husband always wants to do something and I have to admit, the FOMO still gets me a bit too. I have fantasies every year about going to a fancy hotel and watching fireworks from our balcony or sitting on the sofa and drinking champagne in pyjamas having a movie marathon. Alas, I’ve never quite managed that (Covid aside) and each yera vow I will do nothing the next year. So if you read the title of this newsletter and thought ‘cashmere tracksuit’, I salute you and envy you in equal measure.

We normally end up doing the same thing every year; hosting a few close friends at ours for drinks and dinner, which feels like a good happy medium. I do enjoy a good excuse to dress up which is one reason to get behind new years. The key for me is trying to find that sweet spot between comfort and all-out disco. The last thing I feel like doing mid-winter and post-Christmas is squeezing myself into a tiny dress or anything that desperately requires fake tan. So here are some ideas and things I’ve worn recently that feel like they would slot well into my new years plans and mood.

I wore these velvet PJ set from Asceno recently and oh my god did I feel chic. You feel very Abigail’s party wafting around pouring drinks in a fabulous set topped off with great jewellery, but, bonus points, it feels like wearing a tracksuit. And it’s warm and cosy. The ideal hosting-at-home outfit that’s made for kicking shoes off after dinner. I actually love the idea of wearing this on Christmas day too, I just need to decide between the navy and the brown. If I did end up having my dream NYE in a hotel room with room service one day, I feel like these would be ideal.

Gold Hair bobble

On the subject of velvet, this little jacket is an instant festive boost to my usual jeans and t-shirt uniform. I like this method of dressing up at this time of year, focusing on textures and fabrics rather than shapes. Adding a silk, pouch evening bag like this to jeans and cashmere with antique drop earrings feels much more me than suddenly going out for dinner in a feathered minidress. Don’t get me wrong, they have their place and are fun fun fun to wear, but normal dinners out in my world, even at Christmas time, are more along the jeans-and-a-nice-top route than sequins. I do like the matchy-matchy ness of the jacket and bag here too - my mum would be proud!

Jacket | Bag | Earrings and necklace | Jeans

I think some of the jackets from the new Maria de la Orden X Sezane collaboration would be perfect for doing this too. I’d buy oversized and wear undone with some modern touches; maybe slicked back hair and super-sharp pointy heels. I like the below one and this plain black velvet jacket. I think for me, the key right now feels like going for something boxier and shorter rather than a longer length blazer. I always feel like I can easily sway into magician-on-a-cruise territory with a velvet blazer if I’m not too careful so keeping it a bit more boxy helps.

If I were to go full-on slinky and sequinned, I’m calling out the below as my fantasy NYE outfit.