I AM 67, AND I THOUGHT A SIMPLE DRESS HAD TO BE PLAIN. THEN I FOUND THE LITTLE FLOWERS HIDING AT THE CUFFS.
Six things about an olive-green button dress that made me rethink what it means to feel properly dressed for an ordinary spring afternoon.
I am 67, I live in Sydney, and in our family I have become the woman who says, “Oh, don't fuss about me.” An invitation arrives for lunch and I tell everyone I will just wear something simple. Someone suggests afternoon tea and I say whatever is comfortable will do. But I would be lying if I said I did not still like to feel pretty when I walked through the door.
My problem was never that I disliked dresses. It was that the plain ones felt a bit too plain, and the fancy ones made me feel as though I had mistaken a Tuesday for somebody's wedding. I kept buying safe things, then wondering why I was never pleased to see them on the hanger.
It was my sister who put it rather neatly. “You don't want to be dressed up,” she said. “You want to look as though you thought about getting dressed.” There is a difference. I had simply forgotten what it was.
A few days later I came across a dress in Perth Boutique's Button Dresses collection. It was called the Francesca. Olive green, with a line of buttons down the front, softly full sleeves and something rather lovely at the cuffs: little raised floral details, like tiny bouquets at the ends of the sleeves.
I noticed the flowers first, if I am truthful. Not because they were loud, but because they made the dress feel considered. It looked like somebody had remembered that a grown woman might still enjoy a pretty detail without wanting ribbons and frills everywhere.
When the parcel arrived, I put the dress on the bed beside my usual dark trousers. It looked quite different from the dresses I had been buying. I tried it on that afternoon and decided it could come with me to the small spring lunch I had been quietly dreading dressing for.
I did not want a dress that made a grand entrance. I wanted one that made me feel quietly glad I had put it on.
After a few outings I realised there were six small reasons this one felt so different from the safe dresses hanging untouched in my wardrobe.
1THE OLIVE GREEN FEELS LIKE A COLOUR, NOT A COSTUME
I have a great deal of navy and beige in my wardrobe, and there is nothing wrong with either. But olive is softer and more interesting than another sensible dark dress. It goes rather beautifully with tan sandals, cream, brown or a simple gold earring, without making me feel that I have to change the rest of my clothes to accommodate it.
It is a colour I notice when I open the wardrobe, but I don't feel self-conscious wearing it.
2THE BUTTON FRONT GIVES IT A LOVELY CLEAN LINE
The neat row of buttons is the first thing you see from the front. It gives the dress a little structure and makes the whole design look finished, even with plain shoes. After years of dresses that were either shapeless or overdecorated, I rather liked that simple detail. It is the sort of thing that quietly makes an outfit look intentional.
Those buttons are like the finishing touches I used to spend ages trying to add with necklaces and scarves.
3THE FLOWERS ARE WHERE YOU LEAST EXPECT THEM
Those little blossoms at the cuffs are what I would show a friend if she asked why I chose this one. There is no huge floral print across the whole dress. The detail is saved for the sleeves, where you notice it when you pour tea or reach for your handbag. It is feminine, but not fussy. To me that is a much more interesting kind of pretty.
I used to think detail meant a busy print. Sometimes a small cluster of flowers is quite enough.
4THE RELAXED SHAPE LETS THE DRESS BE THE DRESS
The Francesca is described by Perth Boutique as having a comfortable, relaxed fit. The shape looks softly roomy rather than tightly fitted, with a shorter hem and sleeves that have some volume to them. I wanted something that felt dressed for lunch without needing a rigid waist, shapewear or endless adjusting. That easy silhouette was part of the appeal.
I like a dress that has its own shape. I don't want to spend the afternoon arranging mine.
5IT WORKS FOR MORE THAN THE LUNCH I BOUGHT IT FOR
For lunch I wore it with tan shoes and small earrings. But it is not a dress that needs a special table reservation. I would wear it to visit a friend, to a family gathering or out for coffee in spring. What I liked most was that I did not have to invent an occasion grand enough to justify taking it out of the wardrobe.
The best occasion for a pretty dress is sometimes simply having somewhere to go.
6IT IS A LITTLE DIFFERENT WITHOUT TRYING TOO HARD
Some dresses ask you to be the centre of attention. This one has enough character of its own without asking anything of you. Olive green, a tidy button front and those floral cuffs make it feel special in a very calm way. Perth Boutique lists the Francesca in Olive, with sizes XS through 2XL. It is worth checking their sizing guide rather than guessing from a UK label.
I have decided at 67 that interesting and comfortable ought to be allowed in the same dress.
THE FRANCESCA, AGAINST THE DRESSES I KEPT PUTTING BACK
I had a wardrobe full of perfectly respectable clothes. What was missing was a little pleasure in choosing one. Here is the difference, laid out plainly.
ABOUT THE PRICE
Perth Boutique currently lists the Francesca | Floral-Detail Button Mini Dress at A$76.99, reduced from A$192.00. The Olive colour is listed in sizes XS to 2XL. It is part of the Button Dresses collection, which features a number of other button-front styles in different designs and price ranges.
I have paid less for dresses that sat untouched in the wardrobe, and more for ones I wore exactly once. These days I would rather find something that looks like me and feels suitable for the ordinary occasions that actually fill my calendar. The collection is where I would start looking.
Perth Boutique currently advertises its Spring + Anniversary Sale and free Australia-wide shipping. Sale prices and sizes can change, so check the collection or product page for the latest details.
If you have started buying clothes simply because they will do, it might be worth looking for the little detail that makes you smile when you see it. For me, it was flowers at the cuffs.
Maggie
