OOTD/Review: Boden Lace Dress.

Lace Dress.  Size 8 Long.  I initially spied this beauty back during the summer preview (original post here) and even though they didn't have the garment measurements up (grr, Boden, grr), I took a chance and pre-ordered the size 8 long, hoping that it wouldn't be too tight in the hips, or (more likely as of late) too large overall, especially in the bodice.

Summer 2013 rolls out and I think, "goody, I get the dress soon."  Nope, hold on...it looks like all colors and sizes are on deep backorder, which means that all of us in love with this dress will need to hold off until mid-April, at the earliest.

Upon receiving it (exactly when they said I would receive it), I grabbed it, tried it on, did a teeny squeal of excitement, and ran out to my dad (was helping with pickup of the kids that day) to show him its gorgeousness.

My dad immediately declared it a winner.  And although I really wanted to wear it as soon as I could, I knew I had to wait for the exact right occasion, which this spring is Mother's Day.

In a surprise twist from Boden, they made the bodice just big enough (without being too large for my smaller upper body) while keeping the hips more a-line, however not sacrificing the pencil shape.  The waist is exactly right for my body, with about an inch of ease, I feel good, but also know that the waist is defined enough to highlight my curves.

The length if fab, hitting right on my mid-kneecap.

I would say that for all of you interested in this one to size for your waist, since this seems to be where the smallest measurement is, plus it is a grosgrain ribbon, which is not stretchy at all, unlike the cotton lace and cotton lining which has at least some stretch (not jersey stretch, of course, just a bit of flexibility).

I have a very high waist and the waistband sits right on it.  Usually in talls, this means I have to sacrifice the right placement for my waist in order to get the length, but this dress was not fashioned with a longer bodice (which means if you have a long torso, this dress may not work for you).

That bump there at the top of my bottom is the zipper.  Good news, it is a back zip, which means easy access as you can put the dress by stepping into it.  Bad news for my shape is that it sticks out a bit, since I suspect I may have a bit of a sway back (didn't even know what that was until I started sewing...now I see it everywhere and am very aware when the garment doesn't quite work with my particular posture).

Now that bump didn't even come close to bothering me, didn't even notice it until I was editing the photos.

Back view.  The slit is accommodating without being too high, nice for moving around.

Word about the lining, it is the same lovely yellow of the lace, so you get a whole lot of "bright" when wearing it.  I happen to love insane bright colors like this, but if you are not a fan, the dress also comes in a white and navy.

The lace is delicate, so please do take care when wearing it.  I accidentally brushed up against the wooden pew at my church and managed to snag a very small bit of thread.  Nothing is wrong with the dress since the damage was miniscule, but just wanted you all to be aware.


Lace Dress.  The model looks so good in it.  The yellow is not quite as bright as in this photo, but still very "happy."  :)

I think the price is high, but I can see why it is so expensive when looking at the detailing throughout, from the cotton lace and fabric to the careful way they enclosed seams and the hem.

Day: Sunday, May 12, 2013.

Where: Mother's Day Mass.

Ease of Wear: (4 of 5 stars--5 being the most easy to wear.)  I am giving this very girly and lacy dress a whole 4 points since I could have kept wearing it all day.  I wanted to wear it at least once more before I had to take it to the cleaners (definitely dry clean), so I took it off right after the photo of the kids and me was taken.

The lace is delicate, as I mentioned above, so I deducted a point for that since you can't really *do it all* in this dress.

Cool Factor: (3 of 5 stars--5 being the coolest.) Hmm. Lace is in, yellow is in, but this frock is probably too mumsy and conservative to be cool.  Do not care.  ;)  The invitation clutch is amazing and really is exactly the right bag for the outfit, and I think that particular piece is cool, so maybe the combo is bumped up from its inclusion?

Anecdote from the day:  My children (specifically CW) gave me a Barbie card for Mother's Day.  Inside the card was a sticker declaring me the "Best Mom Ever."  I totally wore that the entire day.  ;)

Mass was awesome, the kids were really well-behaved, and they didn't even have their coloring books or crayons with them.  I suspect they knew that since it was Mother's Day, it probably wasn't the best time for them to act up, even though they had no diversions.  (Still, those diversions don't bother me--Mr. Dina just forgot them in the car.)

I came home after getting some champagne and fresh-squeezed orange juice (mimosa, mmmm) and while the two oldest, my dad, and Mr. Dina went to a baseball game, and Angus slept, I enjoyed maybe one or two or three glasses.  ;)

Okay, that's it for now.

Happy Mother's Day, btw, to all my favorite moms and moms-to-be out there!

BTW, today marks the start of another set of trim items over at Boden.  This week there are many "high summer" items, including the Harbour Island Dress, which was one of my picks.  I believe I may be ordering that this week. 

If you use the sidebar coupon (below, as well), you will receive an additional 15% off, which equals about 32% off total.