11 Ways To Wear A Sleeveless Knit Dress

This post is dedicated to the sleeveless knit dress or what’s also known as a sleeveless sweater dress. It’s no surprise that I’ve been obsessed with wearing sweater dresses during my pregnancy and I’ve gotten creative with styling them haha. But another type of sweater dress I’m very surprised I’m loving is the sleeveless knit dress / sleeveless sweater. Which means I’ve learned to style it so many different ways too haha.

I really like this one in particular because I love the cream color and overall the fit & length. So I’ll go over the sizing real quick before I share all my sleeveless knit dress outfit ideas. Ultimately, it fits true to size. So I got my usual size (my pre-pregnancy size) which is a size 4. Size 4 is equivalent to a size small. The length falls right above my ankles, and I’m 5’4″. This is supposed to be a midi dress but if you are shorter than me, it might be more of a maxi dress.

Even though I got my true size, I do think I could have sized down to a size 2. It has some room to give, but honestly I don’t mind it. As you will notice in all of these photos, I have a bump and knowing the size of my bump now (it is much larger haha) getting my true size was a good idea. And even if I get back to my pre-pregnancy size, I don’t mind the boxy fit!

Overall, this is a non-maternity dress. So if you are not pregnant, this dress will still work for you. I’m just letting anyone who is expecting know how this dress worked for me!

How To Wear A Sleeveless Knit Dress

Wear As Is

If the weather is not too cold and you are looking for a transitional outfit, wearing the sleeveless sweater dress is perfect to wear as-is. It’s a simple dress, but the quality and fit just naturally looks chic.

Add A Belt

Adding a belt to any sweater dress is always a good idea. It accentuates the waist and gives it a different look without much effort. With a growing bump, I wore my belt above my bump. If you are not pregnant, I think a belt bag would look super cute.

Create a Monochromatic Outfit

Monochromatic outfits create that effortless chic look. So layering and pairing the dress with other whites and creams would look awesome.

Layer Underneath

There’s room to layer underneath the dress. I prefer to layer with a turtleneck, but any type of tee will do. You can go solids, prints, or textured.

Layer Over The Dress

You can also wear things over the dress such as a trench coat, jean jacket, or cardigan. Whatever you feel like wearing over the dress when the temperature is cooler.

Keep It Casual

You don’t need to create a dressy outfit. I think it makes a perfect casual outfit by pairing it with sneakers, sandals, or whatever comfortable shoes you have. Layer with a jean jacket and you are good to go.

Create A Skirt

You can easily make this dress look like a skirt by layering a sweater over the dress.

The trick is to wear a skinny belt around your waist and over your sweater. Then slowly, pull out the sweater from the belt. This will create the illusion that a sweater is tucked in and will stay put.

Maternity Friendly / Bump-Friendly

While this dress is technically not maternity, it is very bump-friendly. I started wearing it in my second trimester around 24 weeks and well into my third trimester. So if you notice that my bump is a different size in some of these outfits, now you know why haha.

Sleeveless Knit Dress Outfits

Keep It Simple Outfit

I wore this outfit as is. It’s so cute already on its own.

SHOP THE OUTFIT: Gold Monogram Necklace | Dress |

Belted Outfit

SHOP THE OUTFIT: Double Ring Leather Belt | Knitted Dress | Monogram Necklace

Monochromatic Outfit

SHOP THE OUTFIT: Sleeveless Knit Dress | White Turtleneck | Leather Belt | Gold Monogram Necklace 

Turtleneck Outfit

Here’s another outfit with a turtleneck. This time I wore it with a different color. It also looks great with a striped turtleneck. I didn’t have a chance to photograph it, but I’m a big fan with the striped turtleneck. In my second trimester, I wore this striped one and it was non-maternity. For the third trimester, I wore this maternity turtleneck.

SHOP THE OUTFIT: Turtleneck | Dress | Leather Belt | Gold Monogram Necklace

Layer With A Dress Outfit

This outfit is basically a dress on a dress. I layered the knit dress with another dress. The dress I layered with is a maternity dress from The Nines by Hatch collection (OBSESSED with this collection). The great thing about Nines by Hatch is that all of their maternity clothes work well postpartum too. Since this particular dress has buttons in the front, I just unbuttoned them to create a cardigan over the sleeveless knit dress.

SHOP THE OUTFIT: Puff Sleeve Maternity Dress | Sleeveless Sweater Dress |

Jean Jacket Outfit / Casual Outfit

I can totally see myself wearing this outfit postpartum during my stroller walks. It’s casual and relaxed and baby will be here during Spring!

Also, these white sneakers are the BEST! So comfortable and they go with anything. I’ve worn and styled them so many different ways.

SHOP THE OUTFIT: Oversized Jean Jacket | White Sneakers | Sleeveless Sweater Dress | Gold Monogram Necklace

Sweater Outfit

This is a fun way to re-invent the dress. I just wore a sweater over the dress and it has the sweater & skirt combo look I mentioned earlier.

SHOP THE OUTFIT: Sweater | Knit Dress | Leather Ankle Boots | Monogram Necklace

Utility Jacket Outfit

Love wearing utility jackets during Spring. It’s a great alternative to jean jackets.

SHOP THE OUTFIT: Utility Jacket | Dress | Monogram Necklace

Coatigan Outfit

Coatigans are my fav layering pieces. It’s great if you want to wear a cardigan with more structure like a coat. My exact coatigan is from Italy (a treat to myself when we went to Rome), so I’ll be sure to link a similar one. I find this to be a chic commuter outfit with my Best Of Seven crossbody bag. Best of Seven is one of my favorite small businesses based in Chicago. They are female-owned and their stuff is amazing. I share more details about this brand here.

SHOP THE OUTFIT: Coatigan | Dress | Best of Seven Crossbody Bag

I seriously love this dress so much that I probably can create a million more outfits. After the baby is born, I’ll try to share some new outfits and look at postpartum style with it. Which outfit did you like the best?

xo RD