Nearly two years ago a reader named Ally recommended the Aritzia Babaton Bennett dress to me and I hemmed and hawed and checked eBay and checked the Aritzia website for sales and could never quite bite the bullet, mainly because I couldn't figure out what size to get. Every so often I'd get re-obsessed and finally I just bought one on eBay. And hey! I love it:
I bought a medium, which ended up being perfect. It's nicely made and the fit is great. The Bennett dress is a regular item on the Aritzia site but there are also some fun varieties on eBay. I love this dark floral version and oooh, y'all know how I feel about snakeskin. This leopard print version is also super cute.
The one drawback? This here ain't a dress. This is a tunic. When I went back to Ally's original comment about it she basically said the same thing - totally a tunic. I did wear it to work as pictured but it was REAL. SHORT. I think it'll be best in the fall with thick tights or skinny jeans. That said, this is the kind of dress that's I think will be super versatile and it's not hard to find similar (non-tunic) versions. This patterned version by Velvet by Graham and Spencer would be a nice summery option and this gorgeous silk dress by Equipment is a total steal. Boden has a cute Tencel version and hey, Old Navy has an under-$40 version in three colors.
But I gotta say, this dress is cut really well and I do love silk. I used to avoid it because I thought it had to be dry cleaned but that is bullshit! Almost all silk can be hand washed (or if you have a front-loader, machine washed.) For hand washing I recommend getting a bottle of Eucalan Fine Fabric Wash. The instructions are right on the bottle and it smells great. I am totally converted.
Details! I love gold with teal so I'm wearing my old favorite J.Crew locket. I'm always on the lookout for a good locket! This one at ModCloth reminds me a bit of mine and of course there's the excellent House of Harlow version that Marianne wears. And hey, Kate Spade takes it to another level of cute.
Finally! Bag and shoes. I'm carrying my Cambridge Satchel Co twist lock bag because I love how it looks with this outfit. Kinda French girl, right? They also have a saddlebag style in a similar color that I absolutely wish I didn't know about and OMG the new Poppy collection. So cute. My sandals are Sam Edelman Trina and they're great. Get a pair already!
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ReplyDeleteGap has some similar cinched waist dresses right now both with and without sleeves that I love. They have pockets! I bought the tall option for more length and they are totally work appropriate. I may or may not own them in 5 different colors/patterns.....
ReplyDeleteOh, awesome, thanks!
DeleteThat dress looks great on you, and my goodness the legs. Your legs looks incredibly long and tan in this dress.
ReplyDeleteHa, it's basically a tunic so you can see most of my legs. 😁
DeletePoppy? Did I hear someone say Poppy?
ReplyDeleteYay, so glad you went for it. I'll have to look on eBay, too, though the three I have look well on their way to lasting for many more years, even with only machine washing (and air drying). I wear mine to work with super-slim ponte trousers. More casually, fab with leggings and boots. That blue-green looks wonderful on you!
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