Hello Everyone,
In the efforts of full disclosure, today is not a heavy, thought-provoking, long tome of a blog post filled with advice and information. Instead, we’re focusing on pictures, pictures, and more pictures of the four new variations of the Bolero skater dress and how you can wear them. Since I heaped mountains of praise on Bolero in the past, I am not going to rehash everything here, but I will include some brief comments for any first time readers. However, I recommend you check out these past posts on Bolero to read my full love-fest: Bolero Beachwear Review, Bolero Maxi Review, The (Somewhat) Definitive Guide to Bolero Dresses, and Bolero Wrap Tops.
If you don’t have time to read back posts, then let me introduce you to Bolero by Patricia McCaw. Featuring bust-friendly tops and dresses, Bolero is a made-in-America small business with an emphasis on high quality fabrics and figure-flattering designs. Not only are their multiple dress styles ranging from a classic sleeveless to a maxi to the titular skater style, but Patricia also uses varying sleeve lengths for women wanting more or less coverage. As of the time of writing, I own four of these dresses in varying shapes, and I love every one of them. Her fabrics dry quickly, making the clothes ideal travel companions, stay breathable in the heat, and hug curves in just the right way without clinging or emphasizing lumps. No matter where I have been on the weight roller-coaster of the last 12 months, my Bolero dresses have been by my side, faithfully restoring my self-confidence and making me feel fabulous.
Until the introduction of the skater dress, most of Patricia’s designed used an innovative V-neck with a drawstring to customize coverage, but the skater style features a straight neckline with ruching at the sleeve. With a fit and flare shape, the dress flatters most figures, and the stretch to the fabric accommodates a range of cup sizes. My aunt and I both own Bolero dresses in size small, and she is a size 2/4 to my size 8.
One of my favorite design element for Patricia’s dresses is how, regardless of what back or sleeve style is used, my bra is completely covered. I never have to worry about flashing straps or the side of my cup (although in all honesty I do this intentionally a lot at work—the perks of owning a lingerie store, I guess?). I also think the shape lends itself to layering easily. I have some dresses which are gorgeous, but layering them is challenging. They are meant to be worn “as is,” which is fine, but I am a sucker for being able to toss on jackets, cardis, or scarves to change up the look.
Admittedly, some of Patricia’s fabrics accommodate my need to mix-and-match better than others, but I have been pleasantly surprised by how even the prints work with multiple pieces. I think the versatility originates from her eye for the pattern and color. Based in Florida, there’s a tropical aesthetic to many of the prints, and as a result, you see a beautiful mix of saturated colors like you would expect in a tropical rain forest. It’s easy to pull out colors from the prints and accent or match them to your preference.
She also manages to find prints and colors which work on almost everyone, from the very pale me to darker skin tones and everything in between. To prove it, my stand-out favorite from the dresses is orange. Don’t get me wrong. I love orange! Orange doesn’t love me. Every time I tried something orange, I kind of looked like I may be ill or flushed or . . . well, “not good” sums it up nicely. Consequently, when I pulled the dress out of the package (Patricia never tells me exactly what she sends so it’s like Christmas!), I told my dad and aunt: “Woof. Orange. I guess we’ll see what we can do with this one.” And then I put it on, and my tune changed to: “I love this dress so much!” My only caveat with it, and I have to be fair, is that the fabric on this one is thinner than previous versions. While I have flesh-tone undergarments, my tattoo is pretty visible on the side, and I have been wavering about whether this bothers me or not enough to keep it.
To close the (longer than expected) text portion of this blog, I am going to be putting in a Bolero order in a week or two, and anyone who wants to pre-order a style will receive a special discount. Short dresses are $129, and maxi dresses are $148 regularly. Send a message through our Contact Page to find out more!
Erica
And just for fun: Where would you wear Bolero?
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