Like peanut butter and jelly, a dress styled with a pair of sneakers is a classic, fail-safe combination. Fashion girls have been cementing the look as a street style staple since the mid-aughts. While the fashion It crowd hardly invented the trend of eschewing heels for sneakers (my middle school self lived and died by the ole pop-punk princess uniform: an A&F skater dress and a pair of beat-up Converse high tops), they did catapult the styling combo to mainstream success.
The allure is understandable. An off-the-shoulder billowy dress finished off with a set of skater shoes, a cocktail minidress styled with a pair of bulky Triple S sneakers—the seemingly discordant dressed-up/dressed-down ensemble achieves the ideal laid-back look. It's stylish yet gives off an air of having put in minimal effort.
Naturally, the sneaker-and-dress look flourishes best in the summer. Now that it's June, we're on the prowl for the most affordable summer dresses on the market—the better the price, the more options we can stock our wardrobes with. And as a little treat, we've also whipped up a selection of our recommended sneaker pairings. Scroll down to shop 16 summer-ready dresses, all under $45.
Outfit #1
Balance out a minidress with a pair of over-the-top, chunky sneakers.
Outfit #2
Embrace a matchy-matchy color coordinated moment.
Outfit #3
Pare down a more dressy frock with these Meghan Markle–approved Veja sneakers.
Outfit #4
A babydoll dress makes enough of a statement on its own. Let the dress have its moment with a basic pair of footwear.
Outfit #5
Play up this cherry red dress's flirty factor with these playful Champion x Susan Alexandra sneakers.
Outfit #6
When in doubt, Vans make the perfect counterpart to just about any dress.
Outfit #7
Go bold and pick a pair of sneakers equally as statement-making as this lime green dress.
Outfit #8
Mix together two of this season's most popular prints.
Outfit #9
There's nary a dress a pair of Fila Disruptors don't look great with.
Outfit #10
A classic feminine-meets-masculine moment. Dress down a ruffle off-the-shoulder dress with a pair of vintage-inspired sporty high-tops.
Outfit #11
If you're looking to switch it up from a neutral white or black sneaker, go with a shoe that plays with a similar color palette.
Outfit #12
Fashion-forward dress, meet fashion-forward sneakers.
Outfit #13
This strap dress was made for summer outings. Keep the comfort theme going with a pair of velcro sneakers.
Outfit #14
Offset the business-casual appearance of a wrap dress with a pair of bright platform sneaks.
Outfit #15
Dresses and chucks: a dream team since the early aughts.
Outfit #16
Take a page out of Need Supply Co.'s styling book and finish off this semi-formal mini dress with a white tee and some sporty sneakers.
Up next: six innovative styling ideas.
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