Why Every Busy Girl Needs an Emergency Dress (and How to Choose Yours)

I’m a big believer in this one fact –

Every girl needs an Emergency Dress. 

You know, that dress you keep in your bag / office desk drawer / glove compartment of your car.  The one that you pull out and do a quick-change into when an unexpected occasion arises while you're out and about.  After all, you never know when you need to dress up.

A readily accessible Emergency Dress has saved the day for me on numerous occasions.

Here are the primary  4 scenarios when the use of an Emergency Dress is in order:

• From Office -> Happy Hour or Dinner Date
  
  Imagine you're at your desk at work.  It's around 6 pm and you suddenly receive a last minute invitation to after-work drinks or dinner.  Unfortunately, there's no time to run home and change into a dress, and you don't feel like showing up to a social event in office attire.
  
  Enter the Emergency Dress that you fortunately keep in your desk drawer at work...and you're no longer stuck being the girl wearing a suit or dress shirt to a social event (or worse - having to turn down an invitation because you aren't properly dressed for a certain venue). In my opinion, this is by far the most common use case for an Emergency Dress.  I can't even begin to count the times I've gone straight from work to drinks or a nice dinner on short notice...during which an Emergency Dress (kept inside my office desk) has saved the day for me on numerous occasions.     
  
  
• From Airport -> Party
  
  You're currently on a plane, and you're about to go straight from the airport to a party you can't miss (let's say a friend's birthday), immediately upon landing at your destination. The problem is that you don't want to wear a cocktail dress on the plane (who wants to brave a 5-10 hour flight in stiff tulle or lace?), yet you don't want to show up at a fancy event looking and feeling frumpy in your travel clothes.  My typical strategy for scenarios like this is to keep a wrinkle-free Emergency Dress in my carry-on bag and then do a quick-change in the plane's lavatory shortly before landing.
  
  
• From Daytime Event -> Nighttime Event
  
  Let's say your Saturday plans consist of a going to a BBQ / tailgate party, followed by an evening event that requires dressing up (for instance, a fancy dinner or a night at the ballet) and with no time and place to change in between.   In situations like these, I sometimes resort to changing into my Emergency Dress in the backseat of my car while parked in a secluded area, no joke.  Hey, a girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do.
  
  
• For Emergency Wardrobe Malfunctions
  
  There's nothing worse than having a wardrobe malfunction occur in a very public setting (whether it's having red wine spilled on your white dress at a party or discovering a rip in your seam).  It never hurts to have an Emergency Dress somewhere easily accessible (ex: in your car, parked outside) in cases where you desperately need something to change into.
  
  

   

Ok, so we've just gone over when and why you need an Emergency Dress.  Let's quickly recap where you should keep yours: 

• In your desk drawer at work
• In the glove compartment or trunk of your car
• In your travel bag
• In your purse

You can see in the photo above that my Emergency Dress (when folded) is compact enough to fit inside my purse.  This brings me to my next topic, which is...

What to look for in an Emergency Dress: 

An Emergency Dress should be:

• Wrinkle-Resistant
  
  This is absolutely key.  It's going to get stuffed into a bag or tossed into a drawer and needs to be made from fabric that doesn't wrinkle easily.  When looking for an Emergency Dress, avoid 100% cotton or linen and stick with man-made or blended fabrics.  Also be sure to avoid sequins, as they'll fall off after being shoved in various place.  When in doubt, you can always do what I call the "Scrunch Test" - simply take a fistful of fabric and scrunch by clenching your fist.  If the fabric smooths out afterwards with minimal wrinkles, then it may qualify for your Emergency Dress.
  
  
• Compact
  
  It needs to fit in your purse, desk drawer, or glove compartment when folded.  If you can't carry it around easily, then you won't be able to access it during emergencies.
  
  
• Basic
  
  Pick a dress in preferably a solid color or one that doesn't jump out at being particularly unique.  This allows for more flexibility, and you can change up the look with different shoes, bags, and accessories.  It should also fit in equally at a nice dinner with your boyfriend's parents and be passable at a lounge with friends, so don't pick anything too extravagant or revealing for maximum versatility.  You don’t want to be remembered as the girl that's always wearing the same dress, so be sure that your Emergency Dress is a versatile basic.   

[Above: Here I am after a quick-change into my Emergency Dress. No more having to show up at after-work events in my office clothes!]

Looking for your own Emergency Dress?  Some of my picks here:

Alice + Olivia Nell Leather Waist A-Line Dress

The Crisscross Dress

Diane von Furstenberg Terrazzo Wrap Dress

Bop basics Tracy Open Back Mini Dress

JARLO Lucie Party Dress

Kimchi Blue Soft Woven Peplum Dress

Alice + Olivia Hilly Peplum Dress

Alice + olivia Fierra Y Back Dress

Dolce vita Aven Dress

*****

Do you have an Emergency Dress?  What do you do when you're out and about and need to dress up unexpectedly?