When it comes to fashion, you shouldn’t have to compromise comfort for style. As much as I love elevating a look with a pair of heels, I basically live in flats and runners on the weekend, and outside of the office, my style is, for the most part, quite minimal and relaxed. So, when I find clothes that are comfortable, stylish, and easy to throw on, I will put them on serious rotation!

I recently had the opportunity to shop the Bench collection and it was such a revelation! Prior to then, I really only associated Bench with workout clothes, since all I seemed to see people in was their athletic gear. But to my surprise, when I went in to shop, I saw that their line is actually so much more versatile, including a large selection of denim, trousers, blouses, dresses and skirts! My eye was immediately drawn to the Jess Glynne x Bench capsule collection. I tried on almost the entire line (while my patient fiancé watched and took a few snaps for me), and I ended up walking out with the JG x Bench long zip-up hoodie, as well as the signature Bench graphic tee. If you follow me on Instagram, you’ll probably see both of these pieces creep into future ootds!

But the piece that I felt like it was love at first sight with was this black jersey dress.

The material is pretty soft and it has a relaxed/oversized fit, but it is still super cute and girly at the same time. I love the built-in crop top with a racer back. But what I love most are the cut-outs on the side, which dip pretty low to give this dress some sex appeal!

I had no trouble styling this at all – I literally threw on a pair of sneakers and a leather jacket, and I was ready to go.

You could switch it up and do so many things with this dress, like wear a blouse, denim jacket or denim shirt over top or around your waist, pair with a baseball cap, or change the shoes (black leather runners would look fab with this dress too).

Looks like I found my comfy, casual LBD for the summertime!

Dress: Bench (purchase here); Jacket: Massimo Dutti (similar here and in brown here); Sneakers: Adidas (purchase here or here); Sunglasses: Ray Ban (available here); Bag: Saint Laurent (purchase here)

Let me know what you think of this look and what your cozy closet staples are!