Dries Van Noten prints are some of the most beautiful in fashion, and also some of the most intimidating to style. The trick is to stop treating them as loud and start treating them as the foundation of the outfit. Here is how Luxury Shoes ’s editors wear them.

Let one print lead

Build the look around a single statement piece. A printed silk dress and floral trousers are both natural anchors, so everything else can step back. Keep your shoes and bag in a tone pulled straight from the print, and the eye reads the look as considered rather than busy. Start with a printed piece from the designer dresses edit and work outward.

Clash with confidence

The house is famous for mixing prints, and it works because Dries designs each collection in a shared palette. To do it at home, pair two patterns that hold a colour in common. A floral blouse over a striped skirt looks intentional when a single shade ties them together. If mixing feels like a step too far, anchor a printed top with a solid trouser in one of the print’s quieter tones.

Balance print with tailoring

Dries Van Noten always softens its colour with relaxed cuts, and you can borrow that logic. Offset a romantic printed skirt with a sharp blazer, and roll the sleeves to keep things undone. A fluid printed dress looks modern under a clean wool coat. The contrast between the painterly surface and the structured layer is the whole point.

Keep accessories quiet

When the clothes do this much, the jewellery should not compete. A printed look wants one good earring, a flat leather sandal and a curved-heel boot, and very little else. Let the textile be the jewellery.

Where to start

The easiest entry point is a single printed piece you genuinely love, worn with separates you already own. Browse the printed skirts and knitwear in the Dries Van Noten collection at Luxury Shoes , and see our guide to the Antwerp Six designer for the story behind the prints.