Well, if you follow me on Instagram, you've already seen my election reaction. I don't really have all that much to add at the moment, so I'll register my feelings in a different way, with a body-positive dress review.
Slowly but surely, I'm getting over my fear of wiggle dresses, and it's all thanks to two things: Micheline Pitt and leopard print. (Well, one thing really: leopard-print wiggles designed by Micheline.) The dam began to crack when I got the leopard Vamp dress last spring, and discovered that it made me feel awesome! Still, when I saw sneak peeks of the stretchy leopard wiggle from Vixen by Micheline Pitt, I wasn't sure if I was ready. While I've made major progress in accepting my Kewpie-doll belly, stretchy spandex/ponte wiggles still felt like a bridge too far, as they're often particularly unforgiving.
Still, this dress just looked so darn good, and while stretchy fabric can show every single curve, it's also super comfy. And comfort, for me, is king. In case you haven't already guessed from the photo above, I went for it, and if you're on the fence, you should, too!
I'll have to admit, I was terrified to try it on, since I didn't want to put it on and then look in the mirror and feel self-conscious. Luckily, my excitement outweighed my lingering body-image fears, and I threw it on as soon as I'd gotten it out of the package. The first thought in my mind was something to the effect of 'omfg this is the loveliest material ever' (or perhaps more accurately 'AHHHH, soft!!'), followed by 'hey, this fits perfectly, just like the measurements said.' Then I looked in the mirror: everything from the ribcage up was firing on all cylinders, and everything below the ribcage was a mystery, since I don't have a full-length mirror anymore.
You know how Cher says she doesn't trust mirrors, so she takes Polaroids of all her outfits? I do this out of sheer necessity. After making Jeff snap a couple of full-length photos, I knew it was a keeper!
The fabric is slightly textured and feels like a dream, and the leopard print is a neutral-to-cool brown that works with all hair colors and a wide range of skin tones. I really like the subtle vertical striping within the print, as it sets this dress apart from the typical uniform leopard print.
As far as sizing goes, this dress is bang-on the size chart. I ordered the large, and it fits well on my 39-30.5-39, 5'2" frame. This dress is actually made for someone whose hip measurement is larger than their bust, but since mine are the same, I have a little bit of wiggle room (pun semi-intended) in the skirt. This goes a long way toward avoiding the VBO that I'm working to accept, and also makes this dress a bit more work-friendly than a super-skintight wiggle would be. That said, after trying it on and realizing I had some room in the hips, I briefly debated sizing down before deciding to stick with this one.
Unstretched, this dress flat measures 18" armpit-to-armpit and 14.5" in the waist, and it's 22" armpit-to-armpit and 18" in the waist fully stretched. Since it's so stretchy, you should order by your waist measurement on the size chart, since the included belt has no stretch. The belt that came with my dress measures 30" on the first hole and 33" on the last. It's 45" long, which means it hits me several inches below the knee for a lovely vintage vibe. For once in my life, the sleeves are more or less the right length on my hobbit arms, which is a lovely change of pace, and they're fitted but not too tight, even though I've been seriously beasting at the gym lately.
Slowly but surely, I'm getting over my fear of wiggle dresses, and it's all thanks to two things: Micheline Pitt and leopard print. (Well, one thing really: leopard-print wiggles designed by Micheline.) The dam began to crack when I got the leopard Vamp dress last spring, and discovered that it made me feel awesome! Still, when I saw sneak peeks of the stretchy leopard wiggle from Vixen by Micheline Pitt, I wasn't sure if I was ready. While I've made major progress in accepting my Kewpie-doll belly, stretchy spandex/ponte wiggles still felt like a bridge too far, as they're often particularly unforgiving.
I'll have to admit, I was terrified to try it on, since I didn't want to put it on and then look in the mirror and feel self-conscious. Luckily, my excitement outweighed my lingering body-image fears, and I threw it on as soon as I'd gotten it out of the package. The first thought in my mind was something to the effect of 'omfg this is the loveliest material ever' (or perhaps more accurately 'AHHHH, soft!!'), followed by 'hey, this fits perfectly, just like the measurements said.' Then I looked in the mirror: everything from the ribcage up was firing on all cylinders, and everything below the ribcage was a mystery, since I don't have a full-length mirror anymore.
This is much more of me than I'm able to see in any of the mirrors we have.
You know how Cher says she doesn't trust mirrors, so she takes Polaroids of all her outfits? I do this out of sheer necessity. After making Jeff snap a couple of full-length photos, I knew it was a keeper!
The fabric is slightly textured and feels like a dream, and the leopard print is a neutral-to-cool brown that works with all hair colors and a wide range of skin tones. I really like the subtle vertical striping within the print, as it sets this dress apart from the typical uniform leopard print.
Closeup of the fabric. I wish Vixen sold belts like this in every color of the rainbow.
Expanding my comfort zone with a photo where I'm sitting down.
As far as sizing goes, this dress is bang-on the size chart. I ordered the large, and it fits well on my 39-30.5-39, 5'2" frame. This dress is actually made for someone whose hip measurement is larger than their bust, but since mine are the same, I have a little bit of wiggle room (pun semi-intended) in the skirt. This goes a long way toward avoiding the VBO that I'm working to accept, and also makes this dress a bit more work-friendly than a super-skintight wiggle would be. That said, after trying it on and realizing I had some room in the hips, I briefly debated sizing down before deciding to stick with this one.
Unstretched, this dress flat measures 18" armpit-to-armpit and 14.5" in the waist, and it's 22" armpit-to-armpit and 18" in the waist fully stretched. Since it's so stretchy, you should order by your waist measurement on the size chart, since the included belt has no stretch. The belt that came with my dress measures 30" on the first hole and 33" on the last. It's 45" long, which means it hits me several inches below the knee for a lovely vintage vibe. For once in my life, the sleeves are more or less the right length on my hobbit arms, which is a lovely change of pace, and they're fitted but not too tight, even though I've been seriously beasting at the gym lately.
Switching up my usual standing-and-grinning pose!
Details: all sparkle all the time, please!
Dress: Vixen by Micheline Pitt
Shoes: Steve Madden, old
Bangles: Splendette
Brooch and earrings: Atomic Lucite
Overall, I'm super happy with this dress, and definitely see myself wearing it to work with a blazer or a cardigan now that the weather is turning chilly. Heck, I might even wear heels, to put a little more vamp in my step and wiggle in my walk!
Are you a fan of wiggle dresses?
Are you a fan of wiggle dresses?
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Instagram: @emily.hallock
Um look at YOU!!! I love that this dress has long sleeves - could be worn into winter with some tights!! NICE!!!
ReplyDeleteI have a few wiggle dresses but only wear them on date nights, to shows, or on vacation. Cody quite enjoys them (no surprise there) but I am more comfortable day to day in my swing dresses and petticoats. Saving wiggles for special occasions makes them even more "va va voom" in my opinion!
AND ALSO - when did you update this blog? I am back from vacation and DIED when I opened this new post and saw the new header! You're illustrated too! YAY TWINS! It is ADORABLE! I love that you're on a rocket in your watermelon skirt. It is so perfectly you =)
Welcome back! I'm so sorry you returned from your trip to all of this election business.
DeleteI'm trying to focus on more winter-friendly clothes right now, since it's supposed to be a pretty epic one here in Chicago, and this dress is definitely one I'm sure I'll get lots of use out of. You look AMAZING in wiggles but indefinitely understand the preference for swing skirts.
I've had the header for a while but finally found the time to sort out all of the layout stuff last week! A friend of my sister is an artist and she did this one for me. I couldn't get over it when she sent me the final version! I wasn't sure what I wanted and then realized that DUH, I need to be riding a rocket!
You look amazing. Animal print is SO in right now..I'm glad you didn't feel self-conscious when you tried it on because it looks gorg. XX
ReplyDeletewww.sopherina.co.uk
Aw, thank you so much!! I'm such a huge fan of leopard print, and I definitely needed a dose of feeling fierce this week <3. What better solution than an animal print?
DeleteThis dress is absolutely fabulous - leopard print is my fav at the moment. Love how balanced your reviews always are!! Jess xx
ReplyDeleteThank you so much -- I am obsessed with leopard too! Zebra print is another one of my faves, for that monochromatic look.
DeleteThis looks so nice on you!! The photos and content of this post is amazing too, so glad you didn't feel self conscious you look amazing xx
ReplyDeleteThank you so very much! It's easier to feel confident when a dress fits well and feels comfy -- when something you're wearing feels like you're being bisected by a tight waistband, it doesn't make you feel your best! Thanks for the lovely encouragement!
DeleteYOU look absolutely amazing! If I looked as good as you I would honestly wear dresses like that every day, gorgeous!
ReplyDeleteYou really are too kind! Dresses like this are for everyone -- I'm sure it would look amazing on you, too! We are always harder on ourselves than we are on everyone else ❤️
DeleteLove the jewelry! Look so good with the dress! Really nice post! xx Corinne from Corinne & Kirsty
ReplyDeleteThanks, Corinne! I'm way too obsessed with sparkly things, especially bangles and pins!
DeleteYou look amazing!! This dress is really flattering. Lovely post. x
ReplyDeleteemily-alice.co.uk
Thank you so very much! I'm really amazed that a dress like this could actually work for me, and I think that means this dress is made of magic ;).
DeleteYour self confidence is on 1,000% right now girl! WERK IT!
ReplyDeleteKeepingupwithMJ.com xxx
Thank you!! I've been trying to cherish these feelings of body confidence when they happen <3.
DeleteYou look beautiful! Great photos. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteSabah || www.womanishaffairs.org
Thanks so much! This dress is a winner!
DeleteLooks so great on you! I love it when a dress makes you feel awesome! I really love the look of wiggle dresses and have more than a few in my closet-- I definitely need to venture out of my full skirts and wear my wiggles more. :)
ReplyDeleteOooh, I hope you haul out those wiggles soon -- I'm planning a weeklong wiggle-wearing event from 11/19-11/25 (blog post coming soon!), so I'd love to see you join in!
Delete:D Sounds like fun Emily! I will try (and be brave) and get my wiggle on! :D
DeleteIt's a lovely dress and it looks so amazing on it! It's very flattering on you :)
ReplyDeleteCorinne x
www.skinnedcartree.com
Thank you so much, Corinne! I can't wait to wear it again :)! I'm debating whether I need one in black, too.
DeleteAhhh!!!! You are stunning, Emily! This dress was made for you! I'm always a bit hesitant about wiggle dresses myself, as I don't like to be uncomfortable either. But I'll have to check Micheline Pitt out! A comfy wiggle dress? Yes, please!
ReplyDelete(Also, love your poses!)
~Lindsey
http://have-clothes-will-travel.com/
Thank you, Lindsey! This dress is truly magical, and I bet it would look amazing on you! Thanks for the encouraging words about the poses, too -- I've been trying to switch it up a little, and step outside my 'stand in front of a wall and grin' comfort zone!
Delete