Blue and black dress - mini dress discontinued by Espiral - review by Breas

The Blue and Black Dress by Espiral is available in sizes S-XL. I purchased the size XL. The dress is also available in a gold/black colour combination. The dress arrived folded in a plastic package. There was no text or photos on the plastic package. Attached to the dress was a cardboard tag with a photo of a model wearing the outfit. The tag states the company name, product name, size, and material composition. The dress would be best stored on a hanger in a closet.

The dress is 93% polyester and 7% elastan. The top part of the dress does have a bit of stretch to it but not as much as the bottom portion. The belt and skirt part of the dress is very stretchy. I’ve taken measurements of the dress laying flat, unstretched. If you need additional measurements, let me know and I can get them for you.

Length of halter ties: 18 inches each
Length of top of dress (taken down front of dress from bottom of halter tie to where blue material ends): 15 inches
Belt length: 2 3/8 inches
Belt width: 13 ¾ inches
Length of skirt part of dress (taken down side): 11 ½ inches



When I was taking measurements for the review, I wasn’t exactly sure which measurements I should include since the style of the top of the dress is made so that it drapes at the centre front. The distance between the two halter straps when the material lays flat and is not draping is approximately 23 ½ inches. The amount of drape that you’re going to get with the top is determined by how you tie the halter straps behind your neck. Like I had mentioned, if you need a measurements I haven’t included, let me know and I’ll be happy to get them for you.

The belt beneath the blue material is black and has 4 rows of diamond shapes as its pattern. This belt is stretchy but it is not adjustable. What I mean by this is that there are no clasps nor is it detachable. It will stretch to fit you, but the more you need to stretch it, the tighter (and potentially more awkward looking) it will be. I would have preferred that belt to be detachable with clasps because I’m quite wide. Before trying the dress on, the belt is what worried me the most. The last thing I need is an upside down muffin top (the belt cutting into my chub creating puffy fat areas beneath the belt).

One thing to note is that the blue part of the dress is a bit darker in real life compared to the stock photo colour. The stock photo makes the blue look like a baby blue but it’s actually more of a turquoise. The colour is still very pretty, but just not as pictured in the stock photo. Even in the photos that I’ve taken, the colour still looks baby blue. I tried getting a photo of the difference in colour but was unable to.

There is no padding or underwire in the chest area of the dress. The material is thin so you’ll need to wear pasties or a strapless bra to avoid nipple outline. The material of the skirt is also quite thin. The only part that seemed to have a bit of sheerness was between my thighs at the bottom of the skirt. It was slightly see through when I stood with my feet shoulder width apart.

The material to the dress is comfortable and I do not have any complaints about the material being bothersome to my skin while wearing it. The care tag states the care instructions in symbols. The dress should be hand washed and I assume line dried (it doesn’t state this but to be safe, I suggest doing this). The dress should not be bleached or ironed.

As for my experience, it was terrible. The dress was easy to put on and the length was good. I’m 5’6 and the dress fell to mid-thigh on me. The length of the dress can be stretched as well. What was absolutely terrible about my experience was that no matter what I did, the draping area at the top of the dress looked nothing like the models in the stock photo. I am now certain that she has it pinned/tucked/or taped to make it look that way.

...continued

There is a sloppy seam line running along the top of the draping area. I tried to tuck this in so it could not be seen but I had no luck. Also, the stock photo makes the draping look like it only falls at the centre front. Sadly, I could not make this work for me. I tried pulling the halter ties tighter, then loosening them, then pulling the dress down a bit, etc. The entire top part of the dress is droopy, and not in a sexy way. It’s more of a droopy in a sloppy, disgusting way.



Not only did I hate the top of the dress, but remember how I had mentioned that I was concerned about the belt not being adjustable? Yeah. I had upside down muffin top going on. It was horrific. I tried adjusting where the belt would sit on my body and I was able to make the muffin-ness less noticable in certain places but it was still there. This probably won’t be a problem for those with less width to their body but for those like me, steer clear! The photo below shows the muffin-ness at it’s best, and it’s still pretty bad. I didn’t even want to add this photo to the review but I’m doing it to warn others who may have some side chub like myself!



I’m giving this dress a 2 out of 5 because it’s inexpensive and it’s possible that it will work for some people. Also, it probably could be altered to make the draping area look better but honestly, who buys a dress expecting to reconstruct it? I’m not impressed with this. I was mortified when I looked in the mirror. I have no idea what I’m going to do with this dress. One thing is for sure; I won’t be wearing it again.

I actually ended up giving this dress to my mom. My mom is a size medium and it fits her better. It was too tight on me and made my chunkiness look even chunkier. I'm not sure if my mom fixed the cowled area of the neck but I still wouldn't recommend this.