I SAW MYSELF IN A SPRING PHOTO AND REALISED I WAS STILL HOLDING MY DRESS IN PLACE. I WANTED TO STOP DOING THAT.
Six little things about a simple off-white midi dress that changed the way I got ready for an ordinary day out.
I am 67, I live in Sydney, and there is a little habit I had hardly noticed until my granddaughter showed me a photograph from our trip to the spring flower market. She was laughing, holding a bunch of daisies. I was beside her, smiling too, but one hand was pulling at the front of my dress.
It was not the first time. In nearly every photograph taken when we went out, I was straightening a hem, smoothing a waistband or trying to make the fabric lie differently over my middle. I had started doing it without thinking. The funny part was that nobody else appeared to be thinking about my clothes at all.
When my granddaughter asked why I kept adjusting my outfit, I said it was simply a habit. But I went home feeling rather cross with myself. I had spent an afternoon among beautiful spring flowers and still managed to worry about whether my dress was sitting properly.
Later that week I came across the Odette at Perth Boutique. It was an off-white midi dress with a clean round neckline, relaxed straight shape, three-quarter sleeves with rolled cuffs and, rather pleasingly, side pockets. No elaborate wrap to arrange, no decorative belt to centre. Just a soft-looking dress that seemed to have been designed for the day rather than the photograph.
I nearly talked myself out of trying an off-white dress. For years I had assumed I should choose dark colours and fussy layers to feel comfortable. Then I remembered the market photograph and wondered whether I would rather keep dressing around that worry, or simply choose something I liked.
When the parcel arrived, I spread the Odette across the bed and looked at its simple shape. It was not trying to be a party dress or a statement piece. And that, for once, was exactly what I hoped it would be.
I did not need a dress that changed my body. I wanted one that stopped making me think about it every five minutes.
That was the beginning of a different way of choosing clothes. Here are the six details I noticed about the Odette, and why they made sense for the kind of ordinary spring days I actually have.
1THE RELAXED FRONT IS NOT TRYING TO CLING TO EVERYTHING
What drew me to the Odette was its relaxed midi silhouette. The product page describes a shape that skims the midsection rather than fitting tightly around it. I liked that the dress had a shape of its own, without a fitted waistline for me to keep tugging into place.
At 67, I do not want to spend the day hiding behind my clothes. I want to get dressed, look neat and carry on with whatever I was planning to enjoy.
The change I wanted was not a smaller waist. It was one less thing to think about when I left the house.
2THE ROUND NECKLINE MAKES IT EASY TO WEAR
I have owned dresses with necklines that needed just the right necklace, a scarf or a different bra. The Odette has a clean round neckline, which I can see working with my usual little earrings or nothing extra at all.
Sometimes an outfit looks put together because there is nothing you have to fuss with. I had forgotten how nice that can be.
The nicest detail may be a neckline that lets me stop hunting for the right accessory.
3THE ROLLED THREE-QUARTER SLEEVES FEEL JUST RIGHT
It is spring in Sydney, when one afternoon can be warm and the next a little breezy. I like a sleeve that looks finished without demanding a cardigan, and the Odette has three-quarter sleeves with a tidy rolled cuff.
The sleeves are part of the simple design rather than a second layer I have to remember to carry. That makes the whole outfit feel easier.
A neat sleeve is such a small thing, until you realise how often it decides whether you feel ready to go out.
4THE MIDI LENGTH WORKS FOR A REAL AFTERNOON
I wanted something I could wear to buy flowers, stop for a coffee, then visit my sister without changing halfway through the day. A relaxed midi length has that sort of everyday appeal. It is neither an occasion gown nor a short little dress that makes me wonder whether I should have brought tights.
The Odette has a softly draping shape, and the store describes its fabric blend as lightweight and breathable. For warmer spring days, those are the details I look for.
I wanted an ordinary-day dress, not another one that waited for an invitation.
5THERE ARE ACTUALLY POCKETS
This is the sort of detail that hardly gets a mention until you have a dress without it. The Odette has discreet side pockets. I like knowing there is somewhere for a small essential while I am moving about, rather than immediately needing my handbag for everything.
Pockets will not change your life, of course. But they are a thoughtful addition to a dress intended for getting on with it.
If a dress has pockets and still keeps its simple shape, that is something worth mentioning.
6THE SIMPLE SHAPE COMES IN EIGHT COLOURS
I chose Off-White because I wanted something fresh for spring. Perth Boutique also lists Black, Blue, Khaki, Orange-Red, Peacock Blue, Wine Red and Yellow. It is nice to have a familiar, uncomplicated shape available in different colours rather than feeling you need a completely different style every time.
The Odette currently comes in Australian sizes AU 10 to AU 20. As always, I would check the product page and size guide before ordering; a relaxed silhouette still needs to be the size that works for you.
A dress that suits your everyday life is more useful than one chosen just because it looks lovely on a hanger.
THE ODETTE, AGAINST THE DRESSES I KEPT ADJUSTING
The dress in that spring-market photograph was not a terrible dress. It just reminded me how often I was thinking about what I wore instead of what I was doing. Here is the difference I was looking for.
ABOUT THE PRICE
Perth Boutique currently lists the Odette | Tummy-Concealing Midi Dress at A$108.99, reduced from A$260.00. The product comes in eight listed colours and Australian sizes AU 10–20. Prices and stock can change, so it is worth checking the page before ordering.
I have bought dresses before because I hoped they would change something about the way I looked. What appealed to me this time was different: an uncomplicated dress with a relaxed shape, a nice neckline, comfortable-looking sleeves and pockets. Those are the details that make me imagine enjoying an ordinary day.
Perth Boutique advertises free shipping across Australia and a 30-day money-back guarantee. I would still read the current sizing, shipping and returns details before buying, particularly if you have a date in mind.
That spring photograph still makes me smile. Not because of the dress, but because of my granddaughter and her enormous bunch of daisies. I think I would like to remember more days that way — for the people and places, rather than for whether I had spent the afternoon straightening my hem.
Maggie
