The Renee dress from Pinup Girl Clothing is one of those garments that I never thought I'd have the confidence to wear. After being self-conscious about my midriff for what felt like forever, I couldn't quite wrap my mind around a dress with a cutout right over the belly.
One day, though, something happened to change my mind: a Renee in one of my all-time favorite Pinup Girl prints appeared in the Coming Soon section of the website. Well, by now, you can probably guess how the story ends (spoiler alert: with me in a Renee), and I'm happy to report that things worked out perfectly!
First things first: look at that belly! It hasn't seen the sun since Summer 2014 or so, when I last went swimming, so it's visibly a different color than my arms and face right now. I'm 100% ok with that!
More importantly, PUG's orange tiki print is absolutely delightful in this style! As you might have noticed, I've been totally tiki-crazy all summer long. I have this print in a Netti, which is slightly faded but still one of my favorite dresses ever, and was eager to get my hands on the Renee and settle an age-old question once and for all: is the background blue or black? While I'm still not completely positive about the answer, I'm going with 'black,' since that matches more of my wardrobe and will be easier to accessorize.
I went with a large, which is the size I always order in Jenny skirts/dresses, and it fit perfectly on my 39"-31" frame once I tightened the straps as far as they go. For reference, I'm 5'2", so as you can see, it's the perfect below-the-knee length if you're fairly petite. Hold on to your hat, because this next fact is going to blow your mind: I'm not wearing a bra in these photos! Believe it or not, the bust of the dress is that supportive and well-constructed.
I would be totally remiss in my dress-reviewing duties if I didn't tell you about the pockets, because everything is better with pockets!
Apart from the print and the shockingly flattering quality of the cutout, my favorite thing about this dress is that it's a knockout on women of every size! I've seen photos on Facebook and Instagram of women from an XS to a 4X wearing this dress, and it's super cute on literally everyone. As I've written before, seeing other women looking supercute in a wide range of sizes and body types has helped me feel more confident in wearing the styles I like to wear, and the Renee is one dress I'd never have felt ready to try if not for seeing others who have embraced the 'wear whatever the F you want' life.
This Renee is already sold out in a lot of sizes, but the highly sought-after Queen of Hearts border print is set to return as a Renee soon, so if you're a fan of the style, there are more fabulous options coming soon!
One day, though, something happened to change my mind: a Renee in one of my all-time favorite Pinup Girl prints appeared in the Coming Soon section of the website. Well, by now, you can probably guess how the story ends (spoiler alert: with me in a Renee), and I'm happy to report that things worked out perfectly!
When I tried the dress on and showed Jeff, he pointed out that the cutout is like the 'nose' of the dress, and now I can't think of it in any other way.
More importantly, PUG's orange tiki print is absolutely delightful in this style! As you might have noticed, I've been totally tiki-crazy all summer long. I have this print in a Netti, which is slightly faded but still one of my favorite dresses ever, and was eager to get my hands on the Renee and settle an age-old question once and for all: is the background blue or black? While I'm still not completely positive about the answer, I'm going with 'black,' since that matches more of my wardrobe and will be easier to accessorize.
Apart from the print and the shockingly flattering quality of the cutout, my favorite thing about this dress is that it's a knockout on women of every size! I've seen photos on Facebook and Instagram of women from an XS to a 4X wearing this dress, and it's super cute on literally everyone. As I've written before, seeing other women looking supercute in a wide range of sizes and body types has helped me feel more confident in wearing the styles I like to wear, and the Renee is one dress I'd never have felt ready to try if not for seeing others who have embraced the 'wear whatever the F you want' life.
This Renee is already sold out in a lot of sizes, but the highly sought-after Queen of Hearts border print is set to return as a Renee soon, so if you're a fan of the style, there are more fabulous options coming soon!
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SOOOOO CUTE! I love this on you! I love love love when I can go bra-less in a dress. I'm not as busty as you (woo woo hey girl heeeyyy) but it's still such a perk. Especially when it gets hot like this summer!!
ReplyDeleteAwww, thank you! I am so in love with this print that I couldn't pass over this dress. Between going braless and having a good swath of midriff exposed, this dress is like a wearable A/C!
DeleteYay, it looks fabulous on you! What a purrfect tiki print :)
ReplyDeleteThank you, my dear! I am so tiki-obsessed right now!
DeleteI totally see the nose!!
ReplyDeleteI freakin' love this and love it on you! AND I love the bold shoe color....Yes girl, YES!
Bahaha I love a dress that smiles at me when I look in the mirror! After Jeff told me that it looks like a nose, I made a sneezing noise and covered my belly, because I'm a human dad joke.
DeleteIf you can't wear hot pink wedges with a tiki dress, when CAN you wear them? ;)!