Happy Tuesday everyone, I hope you are having a great week!
Today’s post features the dress that I wore to the Finale Runway Show for Full Figure Fashion Week 2016 in NYC. I am also happy to report that it highlights a new brand for the blog – Jessica London via fullbeauty.com.
For those of you who haven’t heard of this amazing online shopping resource, let me tell you a little bit more about it. Full Beauty is the world’s largest plus-size marketplace. They provide you with access to over 300 American and European brands that can offer anywhere from size 12 to 44. And they carry a full variety of products including swimwear, formal dresses, shoes, accessories, intimate apparel, shapewear, lingerie, and hosiery.
They also ship to Canada and Internationally but you will find that there are several brands that they are not allowed to ship outside of the US due to limitations placed on them by the brand itself. If an item is not available for international shipping, it will be clearly marked in the product’s description. But not to worry, when I reviewed the list, most of the brands that were excluded will ship to Canada and or Internationally directly.
One of the brands that I have been wanting to try that Full Beauty offers is Jessica London. This is a brand that started back in 1997 with a focus on clothes for career oriented women in catalogue format. They carry an expansive size range from 12 to 40. Now not all pieces will come in the full size range but the majority go up to a size 32.
Sometimes when I mention Jessica London I hear comments like “these clothes are for old ladies, they are not stylish, young or modern”. But I have to say when I took the time to check out the selection a couple of months ago I was pleasantly surprised and found some modern fresh styles. And I immediately fell in love with this dress!
I am wearing the Flyaway Maxi Dress in the Navy Floral Print. I think you all know how I love a good maxi dress and I was immediately drawn to of course the amazing floral print but also the extra full skirt with multiple layers of beautiful flowing fabric.
This dress also has an empire waist with a V-neck and straps that are thick enough to wear a regular bra which are all favourites of mine. The whole look of this dress is sophisticated and classic but fun at the same time.
So the challenge that comes with shopping a new brand is always what size do I buy? Based on the size chart, I purchased the 32, especially because the fabric doesn’t have any give. My honest assessment is that the 32 is too big for me, I actually probably could have sized down to a 28. Based on the style of the dress I now know that I will stick to the measurement that matters most depending on the garment – in this case it was the bust.
The accountant in me was also very happy with the price point on this dress. Regular price is $120 US which is certainly reasonable for a full length formal gown. But the best part is that there are always sales! I was able to get this dress for $65 US. That is a great deal for the quality and style. So go ahead ladies, give Jessica London another look, I think you may be pleasantly surprised.
I felt fabulous when I wore this to the runway show and I received so many compliments. When you are surrounded by so many of your industry peers and models who are absolutely killing it with their looks, it felt good. I believe I did myself proud for my first time at this event.
The dress itself is dramatic so I chose to keep the accessories understated and simply added these yellow tassel earrings that were a gift from a friend, a coordinating bracelet from Torrid and this kelly green clutch that I happened to have in my closet. And my favourite part? I wore a simple black flat sandal underneath because no one was going to see them!
When we shot this look, I wanted to play up the fullness and layers of this dress and the almost ethereal fairy like feel that I had when I put the dress on for the very first time. So that meant grass and going barefoot. Trust me if I could go barefoot all day every day, I totally would!
I look at these images and I see the little girl in me that would have been so happy to have had a dress like this, a dress that brings a smile to your face and makes you want to spin and twirl all day long. This little girl didn’t have these moments growing up but she sure is having them now!
Thank you to Robert of Robert Skuja Photography for giving me my little girl moment.
Dress by JESSICA LONDON (via fullbeauty.com) | Bracelet by TORRID | Earrings alternative | Clutch alternative |
