“Where your other dresses made me feel like a medieval goddess earth mother, this time I felt understated elegant whimsy” - Carlie (Lismore based Ziggy dress tester)
I’ve known for a very long time that shift dresses and my shape are not a match made a heaven. It doesn’t stop me from admiring them… every time I see a woman wearing one, they always look so effortless, elegant and chic.
I’ve always wanted to design one, and more so since I started designing my own prints. Even though I knew it might not be the perfect style for my shape, I couldn’t stop thinking about how amazing it could be for my customers.
I created the base shape back in 2019 and released a tiny handful of them in a tunic length, with a Dalee Ella hand pressed lino print and front patch pocket. They did okay, but I wasn’t getting overwhelmed with sales.
Gwyllem 2019
But I still knew the shape had loads of potential.
Fast forward 7 years and I decided to rework the style into something that feels more up to date and more wearable for me and my customers now.
I knew it was good. But I still wasn’t sure
I’d imagined it just skimming my body effortlessly, but what I actually felt was a little loose around my torso and fitted over the hips - the sensation felt upside down from what I’m used to with my fit and flare dresses. But I’m also highly aware that my shape is my shape and not everyone else’s.
I needed to see it on other women.
Catriona, Carlie and Kiri took me up on being dress testers and I sent them each two sizes to try. Meanwhile, feeling unsure, I pulled the style from my launch schedule, reasoning if none of them liked it I’d better have something else lined up...
But that did not happen. All three loved the Ziggy dress! They also each taught me something different about this dress.
- Shape
Catriona chose to wear it how I’d always pictured it, on the looser side, just skimming the body and without the tie. While she doesn’t wear it fitted she assured me in her video review that its definitely “not boxy Clare, not boxy.” Which made me laugh a lot and relax because she’d reassured me on the thing I was most afraid of - boxiness 😱
- Finer details
Carlie also chose a more skimming fit but added the waist tie, which completely changes the vibe in my opinion. It breaks up the busy print and ramps up the curve factor. But she did tell me that the tie was undersized and as soon as she said it, I saw it.
But she did reassure me on the second thing I was most afraid of - the neckline being quite high. She also wasn’t sure at first, but ended up feeling that it’s “actually very elegant” and on a practical note its just “warmer for winter.”
- Jaw drop moment
Then Kiri comes along….and my jaw literally falls open when I open her video. She’s taken it to a total vavavoom moment by sizing down 😍 Dammmnn, I loved it. And also, why hadn’t I seen this potential before!?
Before seeing Kiri I was already 95% convinced from seeing Catriona and Carlie. But after seeing Kiri, the deal was sealed. I knew I had something really great now.
The icing on the cake was that when I followed Kiri’s lead and grabbed the 14 (a size down for me) the Ziggy dress came to life on my body shape! I wasn’t expecting that and it’s the best surprise.
There’s no way I could have understood this dress without seeing it on other women, but more importantly hearing how they felt wearing it. Its actually one thing I miss about doing the markets, but in a way this was better. I got feedback about the dress several weeks after they’d actually seen how it fit into their lives.
All three say Ziggy is great for a work setting and Kiri wore hers to a job interview.
Plus there was the day trip Catriona took to an art gallery and Carlie’s night out to the lantern parade in Lismore and then slouching it up at the movies (with no digging).
The body feeling feedback was great, “comfy” being the most used descriptor (music to my ears).
A nice feeling on the arms - got the balance right for keeping warm but not getting too hot with the 3/4 length. Plus they don’t feel tight, but are still slim enough to easily pull a cardie or jacket over.
Something I was really focused on was the feeling I sometimes have in winter of wanting to wear less layers. I was so happy when Carlie, who wasn't sure about the high neckline at first, said it's actually a really nice sensation having the upper chest warm and protected without having to wear a scarf.
And thus concludes the story of my designer’s brain inner turmoil. All in all, this experiment went far better than I’d anticipated. I learned SO MUCH and the dress is winner - yay
As always, I'm here to answer any of your questions, I feel qualified to do so now 🤓
Clare xox
