I honestly didn’t mean to repeat last week’s random button theme this week! I was a bit at a loss as to what to pick for Rate the Dress, and just went browsing. It wasn’t until I’d selected this dress, because I thought it was an interesting play in monochrome textures that I realised that it relies heavily on lots of button-ness for its decoration (and isn’t even monochrome – it’s patterned!). But it’s an interesting garment, so hopefully you’ll enjoy discussing and rating it. Last Week: a 1910s suit with all the (button) trimmings Quite a lot of you really liked last week’s suit (9/10 liked), but only a few of you loved it. And enough of you didn’t care for either the fabric, or the jacket closure, to pull the rating down just a little bit more. The Total: 8.6 out of 10 Very nice, but not spectacular. This week:  When I first saw this dress, I assumed it was monochrome: an experiment in what you could do with one fabric, a bit of …

It’s always so interesting to see why people do or don’t like a dress: because it appeals to them intellectually, or on a purely aesthetic level.  Because it would look good on you, or wouldn’t.  Because you can imagine it on you, or because you can imagine it on exactly the right person who is very different to you.  Because you like the era, or don’t.  Because it reminds you of a dress you owned and loved, or something you got made to wear, and hate. So many reasons… Last week:  a 1910s dress in peach pink and cinnamon silk Last week’s dress rating was really one that lived and died on people’s associations.  It got some really high scores, and some really, really low scores.  And a lot of middling scores, which rather perfectly match the final total of… The Total: 7.3 out of 10 And the score droops and deflates like the limp drapes of the dress itself… This week: a brown & blue bustle-era dress I have a fascination with historical dresses …