I have a black cotton canvas shirt dress (the kind that has a collar and buttons down the front like a shirt) that is a bit hard to style. It came with a very long belt in matching fabric, which I usually tie like you would a trench coat, but I'm a little bored with the look. The dress has two big patch pockets on the front hip area which also makes it a bit awkward in my opinion.

I have a wide, sort of floppy red leather belt, a hot pink satin belt (although pink is really not my color), and a thin patent leather belt. So far I have worn this dress with the red belt once but I wasn't sure if a bright red belt against a black dress just cut me in half. I'm not so keen on the stretchy waist-cincher type belts because I feel like they emphasize my rather large belly. I also think that a big buckle would clash with the front pockets.

Next time I wear it I'm thinking of going for the thin patent leather belt, but I'm sure there must be a better option that I should be looking for. What kind of belt would other people wear this sort of dress with?