Sunday 7 – The One

Sunday? Again?!

I don’t know about you, but I’m constantly chasing my tail at the moment: time is running so, so fast and I just can’t keep up.

So I’d drafted a shell of this post on Friday, found my Stinker of the Week and Wildcard straight away, but rather unusually I couldn’t settle on  my actual ‘chosen 7’ items (usually I can find the 7 and not a wildcard!).  Instead, I had about 30 tabs open of possible contenders…

This has been the hardest Sunday 7 for me to put together.

Why?

It’s the one about floral dresses.

And there are literally, 1000’s of them around right?

To say my eyes were bloodshot after scrolling through (literally) 1000s of printed frocks would not be an exaggeration… however, most of the print I saw, or indeed the actual dresses (with their fussy details) pretty much made my eyes bleed or just made me want to stab my own eyes out!

Why so hard?

If you’ve been following my blog for a while, you’ll know that after reviewing my own fashion choices from the past year,  I reached the conclusion that most pattern and floral prints are not for me (I wrote about it here).

Although, what I also wrote was that I *do* love the actual print, the pretty-pretty florals… I’m very much drawn to them in a cliched moth-to-a-flame kind of way, but it’s more that I then don’t end up wearing the floral dresses and wot-not very much, as I don’t feel particularly comfortable in print.

So why on earth am I even bothering to look for *the* floral dress or dreams?

I blame the weather.

It happens every blOOdy year… there’s a gorgeous warm Spring day and that desire to get all girly and put a pretty frock on engulfs me.

Overwhelmingly so.

In writing this post I’ve had a bit of a revelation: it’s not just the size of the print which can make me feel uncomfortable when I wear it… it’s more that the actual dress has never been quite right: not the best fit, not the perfect length, unnecessary back slit so you can’t wear a bra, the straps are too thin or too thick…

I have trawled through pretty much every site imaginable to bring you my favourite 7 – and I do mean every where:

Topshop, Zara, Forever 21, Mango, River Island, Dorothy Perkins, H&M, & Other Stories, Cos, Oasis, Warehouse, House of Fraser, Very, Jigsaw, Whistles, New Look, Berksha, Urban Outfitters, John Lewis, Debenhams, Comptoir des Conniers, Finery, Hush, Baukjen, Benetton, Anthropologie, Born at Dawn, Hero, Gap, Banana Republic… even Marks and Spencer!

Eventually, I resorted to scrolling through both Selfridges and the Outnet’s sites, knowing pretty much everything would be out of my budget.

And so, complete with blood-shot eyes and print frazzled brain, I bring you my favourite 7 printed dresses (and yes, I say printed – not just florals, I had to include ditzy/geometric as well or it would have been a Sunday 4!)

Oh but just before we get started … what you may ask, was the brief for the style of dress which made it so impossible for me to find?

I was looking for an every day dress, midi length (on me), delicate print (as bigger florals tend to wear me rather than the other way round) and just something which I could wear with my ankle boots as well as flip flops or trainers.

Easy right?!

Anyway – here are the 7:

7. New Look: Red Floral Frill Trim Wrap Front Mini Dress (£24.99)

How pretty is this little number?  New Look had quite a few dresses which did initially catch my eye, but then, as ever, on closer inspection the navel grazing v-neck or that the dress was a cold-shouldered one (and nothing wrong with those features, but it’s just not what I was looking for.)

Anway, I really like the idea of this red wrap dress, and I believe the length would be just over the knee on me…

However, that’s kind of the problem: it wouldn’t be what I call a true midi length?

Given the over inflated prices of some dresses in today’s 7, I popped into my local New Look to check this dress out in the flesh.  Of course my local doesn’t stock it.

I might order it just to see as the price tag is a lot more palatable for an item in my wardrobe which will only get worn a handful of times every Spring Summer when I ‘get my girl-on’!

6. Mango: Printed Bow Dress (£35.99

Mango are having a really great season aren’t they? They’ve totally pipped Zara to that post… and yet, for the plethora of floral frocks they have available… this is the only one which truly caught my eye.

It’s a cute print; check.

The hemline is just skimming the knee (rather than mid-thigh) on the model, so it would be a proper midi-length on me; check.

But… there’s still a but.

Something which I can’t put my finger on… perhaps it’s the shoulder frill?  I think I would prefer a little cap sleeve at the very least…

5. Comptoir des Cotonnier: Printed Cotton Veil Dress Wild Panthere (£140)

Okay, so this isn’t a floral or ditzy print – I know.

But it’s a subtle (-ish) animal print… the colours are more up my street… I absolutely, very much think, I do, really like it.

But do I £140 like it?

Sheesh!

4. ASOS: Y.A.S. Blossom Print Dress (currently reduced to £35 and still available in all sizes)

A lovely subtle print here…  the long sleeves of the dress give it a little more versatility for me, I’d just roll them up to 3/4 sleeves…

I’m wondering though, why it’s reduced *and* still available in all sizes?

The neckline doesn’t seem to be sitting very well on the model, or am I just splitting hairs?

I love the dress, but it’s too pale for me for every day.

3. Banana Republic: Slub Floral Shirt Dress (currently reduced to £46.99)

I really, really love the print of this dress!

I love a shirt dress too…

But…

(I know, I know, I’m super fussy…)

It’s just that I’ve never been a big fan of the curved hem… and that this dress would be properly midi length on me (it’s available in Regular and Tall) which would put that curved hem far too low on my leg?

I don’t mind the sleevelessness of the dress, I prefer it to a little frill on the shoulder.

Though a little sleeve would have been better…

2. Hero: Ida Ruba Dress (£120)

And so this almost made my number one this week…

I like the over all shape, the subtle print, the half sleeve… I’m not sure the length would be properly midi on me, rather it would be just on my knee.

But… I love it for it’s versatility… I could wear this with my Chloe Susanna boots, gladiators, flatform sandals as well as sneakers.

I don’t know whether to race down to Stockbridge after the school run tomorrow just to try it, or just ask Mr T to do *all* the school runs forever more so that I don’t give into temptation.

And yes, I could still order it online… I know… but I don’t know about you, when I’m at home and online browsing I have the ability to keep my sensible, frugal head on most of the time.

When I’m in an actual shop… I can get… er… a little swept away?!

1. John Lewis: Gerard Wild Floral Print Dress (£195)

My heart actually skipped a beat when I spotted this dress on the John Lewis website… it’s exactly what I had in my mind’s eye.

Unfortunately, I then spotted the price tag.

And wept.

But this is basically it: this is what I want, what I’ve been looking for…

Fortunately for me, the size 6 is sold out so I couldn’t have bought it on my credit card to ‘just see’ anyway. Phew!

That said, I have just found the size 6 available directly from the Gerald Darel website… quick!  Some one cut up my credit card & lock me out of my PayPal account!!

And so that’s my 7.

Slightly underwhelming in the floral-floral print stakes, which I can only apologise about.

I tried, I really did.

I’m not sure I could ever be a blogger who just links to stuff that’s not 100% me.

Anyway… Stinker of the Week?

Oh boy did I have a lot to choose from!

However this crazy ASOS SALON Oversized Cape Jacquard Bird Floral Dip Back Hem Dress (£130) gets the accolade this week:

I mean, the uber-long name of the dress alone is quite something, but the dress?!

It’s rather incredible!

I kind of like it – it’s one of those crazy-beautiful “high” fashion numbers really, isn’t it?

Wouldn’t it look fab on the red carpet worn by a wonderfully eccentric Sleb… with bright, neon eye make up, ankle socks and sandals and crazy big hair?

Or perhaps, one for Ladies day at Ascot?

It’s simply a little too much for every day for us mere mortals though.

(Though since drafting this post on Friday and today (Sunday) the dress has now sold out!)

And my Wildcard this week is this bold print Mango Floral Mango Dress (£59)

I know, I know… it’s just a floral print dress; what’s so wild about that?

Well, for me, it’s pretty wild… the size of the print… the amount of the print… my palms are beginning to itch and my right eye vein has started to pulsate.

That said, I do think it’s a pretty dress on someone who has a bigger frame than mine, or who is just more blessed in the boob department than me.

Styling this kind of dress up isn’t exactly reinventing the wheel, I’d go for tried and tested looks:

Look 1 – Boho: some tan gladiator-esque flats like these Topshop Heatwave Toepost Sandals (£18), a tan & Other Stories Braided Shoulder Bag (£65) and some classic Ray Ban Aviators (£72) is a straight forward little boho look. Just add a floppy summer hat (boohoo £12)  and you’re festival ready!  (Though frankly, I don’t know about you, but my festival going days are well and truly behind me! Perhaps I’ll get to go again when the boys are older and I’m in my 60s!!)

Look 2 – Biker chic: This is now a classic combo… toughen your pretty, girly frock up with a leather biker.  You could go the whole hog and opt for some tough studded boots as well, but just for a change, I’m going for trainers (!) which don’t have to be branded or cost the earth… these Zara Basic White Sneakers (£25) look great, and pretty good value too.  And there are some gorgeous, gorgeous real leather bikers out there, but a plenty of affordable faux leather ones too, like this HM Biker Jacket (£24.99).  I’d tie the bag colour into the red of the flowers, so something like this Mango Quilted Chain Bag (£12).

Look 3 – Babe: Go full on girly with some wedged espadrilles, complete with pom-poms like these Air & Grace Shimmie Wedge Heeled Espadrilles (£99), a Round Moroccan Straw Shoulder Bag (£55).  Just add these oversized Chloe Nate Rectangle Sunglasses (£225) and you’re good to go. Although… I’m sure you could find similar and much cheaper sunnies at TK Maxx, but I didn’t have any energy left to scroll through in excess of 1000 sunnies and I knew these Chloe ones would work. #soz

And that’s it.

For the amount of research I did for this post, I can only imagine that my findings may well be underwhelming… but these genuinely are my favourite 7.

Perhaps I should give up on this one and accept my fate… and yet, every year, for a great many years now, I try and track my perfect floral midi: I could have learnt to sew (properly) and make one for myself after all the hours and hours, over all those years, I’ve spent hunting down the perfect “one”.

So I’d love to hear from you – more than ever this week… if you’ve seen a delicate floral printed dress which fits my brief, I am all ears?  Or have you got your “perfect one” (or many) already?

Catch you later in the week… until then, I’ll leave you with a special, one-off, Beany-Bonus Floral Dress… I’m really rather smitten with this ASOS New Lili Floral Summer Dress (£108):

I adore this little dress… the piping detail, the structure of it… and the delicate print.  And yes, I know, it doesn’t meet my brief.

But alas, the smallest size is an S which equates to an 8, so those lovely fitted shoulders would be dropped shoulders on me no doubt.

Plus, it’s pretty white really, so I’m not sure it fits in with my everyday.

(I still want it though!).

Catch you later in the week.

Thanks for reading

Bx