Cookie banner

This site uses cookies. Select "Block all non-essential cookies" to only allow cookies necessary to display content and enable core site features. Select "Accept all cookies" to also personalize your experience on the site with ads and partner content tailored to your interests, and to allow us to measure the effectiveness of our service.

To learn more, review our Cookie Policy, Privacy Notice and Terms of Use.

or
clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

Crucial Update

Adele’s Saddest Outfits to Copy While Weeping Along to Her New Album

Josiah Kamau/Getty Images

Racked is no longer publishing. Thank you to everyone who read our work over the years. The archives will remain available here; for new stories, head over to Vox.com, where our staff is covering consumer culture for The Goods by Vox. You can also see what we’re up to by signing up here.

Today will be forever recognized as National "Cry At Your Desk" Day, a.k.a. the day that British singer/songwriter Adele has dropped her first album in four years. Now is not the time for adorable sweaters with foxes on them or cutesy autumn plaid. Now is the time to wear black leggings, blankets disguised as capes, and massive sunglasses with which to hide your tears.

Since no one in the world is better than Adele at mirroring the sadness of her music in clothing, she's the best person to take mournful style inspiration. Here's a list of recommended attire for when you inevitably sob onto your keyboard and eventually tell your boss that you're taking a personal day.

1. Hello

Saddest lyric: "At least I can say that I've tried to tell you I'm sorry/ For breaking your heart/ But it don't matter/ It clearly doesn't tear you apart anymore." 
Sadness level: You've made it all the back to 2008 while flipping through an ex-boyfriend's Facebook photos.
Recommended attire: Wide-brim hat, for shielding purposes.

Photo: Fame Flynet

2. Send My Love (To Your New Lover)

Saddest lyric: "Send my love to your new lover/ Treat her better/ We gotta let go, let go of our ghosts/ We both know we ain't kids no more."
Sadness level: Someone stealing your parking spot in a mall lot on December 23rd.
Recommended attire: Spinster witch vibes.

Photo: Slaven Vlasic /Getty Images

3. I Miss You

Saddest lyric: "I miss you when the lights go out/ It illuminates all of my doubts."
Sadness level: Getting zero likes on a selfie.
Recommended attire: Snuggly blanket-esque cape.

Photo: Fame Flynet

4. When We Were Young

Saddest lyric: "And a part of me keeps holding on/ Just in case it hasn't gone/ I guess I still care/ Do you still care?" 
Sadness level: Getting two likes on a selfie, one of which is your mom and the other is a bot.
Recommended attire: The same outfit Adele wore to record the gorgeous live version of this song.

Photo: Josiah Kamau/Getty Images

5. Remedy

Saddest lyric: "When the pain cuts you deep/ When the night keeps you from sleeping/ Just look and you will see/ That I will be your remedy."
Sadness level: Being the only one in a group text who doesn't have an iPhone.
Recommended outfit: Black coat, black dress, black tights, black shoes.

Photo: Fame Flynet

6. Water Under the Bridge

Saddest lyric: "If I'm not the one for you/ You gotta to stop holding me the way you do."
Sadness level: Accidentally drunk-crying on the dance floor.
Recommended outfit: Sparkly dress and missing shoes.

Photo: Fame Flynet

7. River Lea

Saddest lyric: "I'm scared to death if I let you in that you'll see I'm just a fade/ Sometimes I feel lonely in the arms of your touch/ But I know that's just me cause nothing ever is enough."  
Sadness level: Bartender served the person behind you first.
Recommended outfit: Sneakers and sunglasses.

Photo: Josiah Kamau/Getty Images

8. Love in the Dark

Saddest lyric: "Please don't fall apart/ I can't face your breaking heart/ I'm trying to be brave/ Stop asking me to stay."   
Sadness level: Sarah McLachlan dog commercial.
Recommended outfit: Topknot, leggings, baby blanket as handkerchief.

Photo: Fame Flynet

9. Million Years Ago

Saddest lyric: "I feel like my life is flashing by and all I can do is watch and cry/ I miss the air, I miss my friends/ I miss my mother, I miss it when life was a party to be thrown, but that was a million years ago."
Sadness level: Last scene of a Barbra Streisand movie.
Recommended attire: Doesn't matter what you wear, as long as you've got a drink in hand because you're going to need it.

Photo: Fame Flynet

10. All I Ask

Saddest lyric: "If this is my last night with you/ Hold me like I'm more than just a friend."
Sadness level: "Cannot take photo. There is not enough space left on your mobile device."
Recommended attire: Just use your baby as a face shield.

Photo: Fame Flynet

11. Sweetest Devotion

Saddest lyric: "I've been looking for you, baby, in every face that I've ever known."    
Sadness level: Adele's way of saying, "It's time to crawl out of your bed cave, you disgusting mess of a person!"
Recommended outfit: Put on a dress, do your makeup and grab all your Grammys. You got this, girl.

Photo: Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images