Product Review: Dressy Jersey Twist-Strap Dress

Dressy Jersey Twist-Strap Dress
Click here for product page
Item 14994
Regular: $78.00

A big "thanks!" goes to AppGal who shared with us her great review (as well as several real-life images) of this dress (which can also be found at her great blog here):

In my quest to find the perfect knit dress for summer, I squealed with delight when I came across the "Dressy Jersey Twist-strap dress"--aka the "Lori Dress," according to the packing slip. When I saw it, I just knew this would be my "it"dress for the summer, just like my Lisa dress was last year. So I ordered the dress in the Tropical Aqua color (which, by the way, is a beautiful color!)

The dress arrived this afternoon, and I have to say, I am pretty disappointed. You will see why in the following pictures, but the fit was all wrong, the detailing was shoddy, and I just felt downright sloppy in it.

First of all...the fit: I ordered an xs in the dress since all of my jersey knit dresses from j.crew seem to fit better in this size. I figured that with the xs, I would have more support in the boobular area, if you know what I mean. From the empire waist down, the fit is fine--no problems there. The problem lies above the waist. The v-neck is sloppy, and I felt like I was swimming in the top region. The fabric just laid over my chest lackadaisically. To get the support and fit I was hoping for, I would have needed an xxs or xxxs!!! It's not like a have a small chest either--I am a 34B, so usually I can at least fill out a dress. Also, the v-neck is way too low for me. Normally, with a low v-neck, I would just layer a tank underneath--but you can't do it with this dress. Because of the twist-straps, the tank's straps would peek out, ruining the effect, IMO. The same with bra straps. You'd have to wear a strapless or one of those nu-bras to make it work.

So it almost looks okay in the first pic...still sloppy though. Don't the bra straps look awful? And come to think of it, a strapless bra wouldn't work either because of the low-back (see last pic). In the second and third pics, you can see what I mean about the looseness a little better.

...Secondly, the detailing just looked cheap. It was actually the first thing my husband noticed about the dress when I asked him about it. It has that rugged, raw edge that has been so prominent in j.crew's recent offerings on the bottom hem and all along the v neck-line. I'm not a fan, especially on a knit fabric like this. The jersey material itself is wonderful, but the cheap edge ruined it for me. The elastic at the empire waist also looked cheap. In my husband's words (gotta love the honesty), "it looks like the waistband of some cheap underwear!"

All in all, it's not horrible, but it's not the dress I was hoping for. Maybe if they carried an xxs I would give it another go! But I just wasn't comfortable with the looseness of the top part of the dress--if they could tighten that up, I'd be all about it! If you're dead set on this dress, definitely size down at least one size, maybe two!

"Thanks!" again to AppGal for sharing with us her great review!

What are your thoughts on the Dressy Jersey Twist-Strap Dress? Are you considering or already have purchased this dress? If so, please share with us your reviews too! :)