Dolores Dress in brown floral by The Seamstress of Bloomsbury
I purchased this dress along with the Lisa Dress as my first order from Seamstress of Bloomsbury. As with the Lisa Dress, I absolutely adore the print – there are little ballerinas / nymphs among the flowers on this authentic 1940s rayon crepe de chine fabric – but I find the fit quite strange on my frame.
After checking their size chart for this design closely, I opted for the size 8. While it fits the rest of my body well and the length of the dress is perfect, the bust area sits quite high up. Though there is enough fabric with the shirring to fit my 33″ bust, this section is too short on me. The panel underneath the bust cuts across my chest in an odd place and makes by bust look squished. If there was about an inch more length here, the fit would be perfect all round.
The Dolores dress is recreated from an original dress in Seamstress of Bloomsbury’s true vintage archives, so I’m going to put my particular fit issues down to my body just not lending itself to this original 1940s cut. Looking at the sizing on the website, I think the next size up will be too big. I am still able to wear this dress, and have found that wearing it with a reproduction 1940s map bra from What Katie Did helps a little with the squish factor by … shall we say … ‘redistributing’ the bulk of my bust up closer to where the shirring produces the greatest circumference in the fabric. (I hope that makes sense. Grayson is sitting beside me wheezing with laughter). On cooler days, I button up cardigans to hide the top section and wear modern bras. This dress isn’t lined, so I also wear a slip underneath.
This dress is gorgeous, and the fabric is as authentic as you could hope to find with reproduction clothing. This brown floral print is available in a variety of other styles, so be sure to check out the Seamstress of Bloomsbury website for their full range. Make sure you read the size charts for each individual item closely, and if you have similar measurements to me you might want to consider sizing up in this dress, or investing in a repro 1940s bra!
Explore my Dolores Dress Style Gallery:
I am wearing a Size 8 with the following body measurements:
Bust: 33″ / Waist: 25″ / Hips: 36″ / Height: 5’8″
Any questions? Leave me a comment below and I will get back to you!
Explore the Dolores Dress in all prints here
Explore The Seamstress of Bloomsbury on Australian Stockist Call Me Valerie