Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Product Review: Twinkle Tweed Shift Dress

Twinkle Tweed Shift Dress
Click here for another image
Item 96216
Regular: $395.00

"Thanks!" to Melanie who guest blogged about this {beautiful} dress. The following is her product review:

The first time I saw this dress, I really liked it. It was simple, but had other features that I liked, such as a scooped back. I watched the sizes online dwindle all day before taking the plunge and ordering it. According to the people on the red phone, even though it was posted online, it actually wasn't available to order so I placed a pre-order. Two weeks later, when I was wondering whether my pre-order had become an actual order, they told me there were only 2 available in each size and a long wait list. Of course, I didn't get it that first time around. :)

Then, a few weeks ago, when the blog mentioned that keyword searches would find random cool things, I typed in (no joke) ARGYLE and found the dress again, available in two sizes! I had a free shipping coupon, so I ordered it. I didn't believe it would actually come, but it arrived on Friday.

My first impression was, for a collection dress, they didn't really package it that well. I know people say collection items aren't treated any differently than non-collection items, but it was still kind of disappointing. It came on a plastic hanger, wrapped in plastic. Not even any tissue paper - a shocker!

The dress really does twinkle! There are small, clear plastic sequins that are woven into the fabric and when you move, the sequins flash. I really liked that part - it was subtle but there. The tweed is heavy -- unfortunately, I haven't really seen other tweed skirts or items at J.Crew so I can't compare it but I'm not sure it would carry through spring, if you live in a warmer climate. Calling it oatmeal was a good comparison, as it is a a light, but warm brown, with small strands of a darker brown and a lighter brown. It's a coarse weave, so you can really see the texture, which I like. And the back was by far my favorite part - not as scooped as I thought it would be but enough for you to see shoulder blades. If you have a nice back, it really showcases it. Also, it's fully lined in silk rather than acetate so it's very soft! The tweed is soft, but I imagine it would be scratchy against your skin if the weather was warm. The silk really feels nice against your skin.

When I first put it on, I felt like a dumpy potato. It's a brown dress, and my hips looked so wide! The memory still makes me cringe. :) Then I realized that the torso was too long for me. When I pinched the straps to bring the waist up, it fell so much better and looked much more like the model. However, even pinching the straps up didn't create a completely smooth look, the waist seam is much more defined than what is shown in the picture in the catalog.


"Thanks!" again to Melanie for her great review! She also shared with us the following:

Overall, I did like the dress, but I'm not going to keep it. I am saving up for my wedding and don't really have a place in my life for a $400 dress that I probably won't get a lot of wear out of. Don't get me wrong - it's a versatile and beautiful shift, so I'm sure someone with a less casual lifestyle can get good wear out of it. Just not someone who works in a jeans-wearing office and who doesn't go to dressier parties very much. :) Since it's supply is so limited, I thought I'd see if any Aficionadas had wanted this dress but weren't able to get it - if not, I'll just return it. :) If you're interested, it's a size 2 I'm just looking to recoup what I paid (395 + tax = 428) plus whatever it costs to ship it to your door.

I do think this dress is b-e-a-u-t-i-f-u-l. However, I also think it is one of those dresses that looks great on certain body types and not so great on others (like me and my pear shaped frame- I look best with A line skirts that hide my hips!) ;)

What are your thoughts on the Twinkle Tweed Shift Dress ? Do you already own this dress? If so, please let us know what you think! :)

11 comments:

  1. Thanks for the wonderful review, Melanie! I'm so sorry the dress didn't work out for you...I know you were really excited about it. I'm sure something even more fabulous will come along for you, though! :)

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  2. A great review! You made me laugh,' a dumpy potato', that is why I read this blog, bec. its peeps IRL, who DO have hips, etc.

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  3. Greta review, Melanie!
    I returned my platinum tweed sheath dress for similar reasons. :) It was cute, but not cute and versatile enough to justify the $$$. Also, it seems from the description the black tweed version was made of even rougher weave,.Although it was lined in silk as well, the straps and neckline were itching unberaable whenever they touched bare skin.
    I am glad I ordered it though. Otherwise I would have wanted it badly and regreted not getting it.:)

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  4. Thanks for the review! At least you were a "sparkly" 'dumpy potato'!! :) I also have problems with the torso being too long on dresses. I try to get petite when possible.

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  5. I wanted that dress in a 6, but that will probably never happen. I think it's gorgeous. I'm 5' 10", and I think it looks scaled to a longer frame. The price was hard to swallow, but I think it would have worked so well on me. I keep an eye on ebay for it.

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  6. Oh also- I forgot to say, You probably got a return, and that's why your dress came packaged like that. Sometimes they don't process the returns very well before shipping them out again. Some woman probably wore that out to a date or party and then sent it back to J Crew. Very rarely, I've gotten things where I could tell it was a return by the lazy repackaging.

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  7. Thanks everyone for your nice comments! :) Especially to the woman who called me a sparkly potato - that really made me laugh.

    Anon: You are probably right about it being a return. What a shame, too. :) It definitely took some of the magic out to just see it lying there.

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  8. just got a dream charcoal sweater that was that way--sleeves still rolled up and wrinkled as all get out-thrown in the box. some of these people packing really don't give a S$$T about their job.

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  9. Melanie, good call on returning something that wasn't just what you wanted- especially for that price! I agree that I am not at all impressed with the collection packaging. I got a cashmere collection pea coat styled sweater and other than the black label, there was no difference in packaging. Other than the tighter weave to the fabric, there wasn't much of a difference in quality to the regular cashmere, either. Luckily I got it on a good sale, like$100, so I did end up keeping it but it definitely was NOT a $300 (or whatever exorbitant price they were asking) sweater!

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  10. Melanie,
    I would send an email to JCrew (regular contactus one)and just mention the poor packaging. They need to know...

    I emailed them this summer b/c I got a collection piece that was a rumpled mess.

    Anyone else please do the same. I kindly worded email letting them know their standards are not up to par is needed so they can improve.

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  11. I bought this dress from Melanie and I love it - it seems like it'll never wrinkle and it's just sparkly enough without being obviously sparkly and fits me perfectly. Perfect for travelling and having a dress that works well for daytime and dinner. I don't wear dresses for work very often but I can see myself wearing this with a suit jacket during the day if I have fancy plans in the evening.

    I'm really fond of clothes that don't wrinkle easily and can be easily worn for 12+ hours without looking crumpled at the end of the day AND are still fashionable and well-fitting and not frumpy. I'm wearing the jcrew herringbone university pant in sparkly camel (item 99408) today and they're similarly perfectly not wrinkly (unlike my white slimfit buttondown). I've been sitting at my desk all day and I stood up and noticed the sparkly camel wool fabric has no wrinkles in it. Love that.

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