An item I'm always on the lookout for: plain dresses in good solid colors with sleeves that don't require special underpinings. This is not an easy thing to find so when I do stumble upon one, I get my hopes up. I found my newest hope at Anthropologie:
My quick review: This is the Gathered Jersey dress by Bailey 44. The original retail price was $168 and I paid about $44 for it which is exactly what it's worth. Don't misunderstand, there are a lot of things I like about this dress - it's a beautiful color, easy to wear and very comfortable, pretty without being fussy. But I would be pissed if I'd ordered it full price, partially because the material is that flimsy rayon/spandex stuff that you can't wash (ugh) but mainly because the hems aren't finished. AT ALL. It's just raw cut edges around the hem and sleeves. This baffles me! What on earth? So, I'm happy with my $44 dress but that is definitely it's worth. I mean, hell, you can get something similar from Eileen Fisher on sale for less than the retail of the Anthro dress and it's definitely going to be good quality. (Or this one that's even less money but is more purple than blue.) This shirred Max Studio dress is a bit more body conscious than mine but the price is great. So, don't be buying things full price, is what I'm saying.
Moving on...
I love a dark blue dress because it pairs so well with nearly everything. I threw on one of my favorite ancient leopard scarves from Ann Taylor but I think this MJ version would be a very nice upgrade. Mine is wool but I'd love something like this silk Vince Camuto scarf for spring.
I'm wearing my Madewell ensign necklace which I like with this because it hits at the right place. I also think silver would look nice with this dress. Something like this crazy necklace, maybe?
I know I carry this bag a lot but it's just such a good-but-not-boring neutral. A simple pewter tote or structured satchel is always a good idea. And if you want to splash out, I love this one by DVF.
Boots! These are my Loeffler Randall Matildes (via eBay) but the Madewell Archive boots also come in cognac. I hope someone snapped up a pair yesterday!
You look really, really lovely in that dress. But non-washable rayon makes me insane!
ReplyDeleteI'm wearing a Vince dress today that is 95% modal, 5% spandex, and I'm pretty sure modal = a version of rayon (that's what Wikipedia says, anyway). It is washable. What makes some of these cellulose-based fibers washable and some shrink up to nothing if they get water on them?
Who knows! But for $44, you look fantastic!
You look terrific!
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