Since very patterned fabric and trim was divisive last week, this week I’ve gone for a very plain fabric, with no trim whatsoevery. But it’s definitely not boring a boring dress: whatever else it might be, all in one colour and trimless as it is, it’s distinctive. Last Week: an 1850s chine a la branche day dress There was a decided fork in the ratings branch(e) when it came to judging last week’s chine crinoline. Either you liked the fabric, or you didn’t. And either you were sure the trim must have been symmetrical, or couldn’t forgive that it wasn’t. The Total: 7.1 out of 10 Well, it’s an improvement on the week before – more jam with pips than vegemite in the universally appealing scale! This week:  a 1920s day dress with ‘scale’ scallops Since last week’s fabric was so divisive, and trim was so divisive, this week I present a dress that’s completely devoid of trim, and in a very simple, restful eu de nil silk chiffon. The dresses main design feature is …

Thank you to everyone who comment on my post on climate change and mental health. I really appreciate your support, suggestions, and empathy. I’m still working through them, and allowing myself to do just a little bit every day to cope, and even though I haven’t managed to respond yet, I really appreciate that you took the time to comment. One thing that does generally help me is having a schedule, so, although it’s a day late, here’s Rate the Dress. Last Week:  an 1890s evening dress by Mrs Cuttle Here in NZ things that people either really like, or really don’t like, are sometimes described as ‘the vegemite option’ (or, ‘the marmite option’, because using either immediately triggers a vehement argument about which is the better/true extremely weird tasting yeast spread). Vegemite is either something you like, or…isn’t (unless you’re me, and you think it’s revolting as you eat it, and then immediately want another piece of vegemite toast) Last week’s dress was vegemite. And, carrying on the analogy, only a few of you …

It’s always nice to have the most lovely, polished photos for Rate the Dress, but that does limit the options. So sometimes I have to choose a poorly staged garment, just because it’s so interesting. And I think the fabric, colour, and design of this week’s pick make it worthy of inclusion, lacklustre images notwithstanding. Last Week: a 1912 afternoon dress by Jeanne Hallee There was a lot of confusion about the colour of last week’s dress. Was it black? Blue? Purple? My screens say purple, but unless one of us has seen the dress in person we’ll never really know. Photography can be so misleading! There was also a lot of variation in the rating, with scores hitting every whole point from 4-10. And everyone loved, or didn’t love, it for different reasons. No consensus at all! The Total: 7.3 out of 10 It does actually reflect this largest clump of ratings, even if it was a proportionally small clump compared to other Rate the Dress selections. This week:  an 1890s evening dress by …