A guide to buying jersey dresses. Styling a Joe Browns floral dress

This jersey dress from Joe Browns made its way into my clothing collection recently, so I thought (for a change) I would share it with you before it goes out of stock! If there’s one item of clothing I’ve been reaching for lately, it’s been a dress made out of lovely comfy stretchy material! Jersey, by the way is what t-shirts are made of; a woven fabric with some stretch, sometimes with added elastane or lycra for extra stretch. Through winter I’ve been wearing them with a snuggly jumper over the top and thick leggings underneath and it meets that elusive requirement of being comfortable to wear, but still looks good enough to leave the house in. However, there are good and bad points that need considering when shopping for a jersey dress…..

First of all, not all jersey is made equal. Unless I am massively seduced by the style of the dress, I steer clear of polyester jersey. It may feel lovely and soft (New Look are currently doing a few soft-touch jersey dresses that feel divine), but as soon as I walk the dog or do some hoovering, I will get sweaty in it pretty quickly. Rayon or Viscose jersey is fine, but I wouldn’t pay too much money for these items as they often have a tendency to go bobbly quickly. So cotton jersey is your best bet as it will usually be the best quality.

So my advice is, always check the label, or the full description if you’re buying from a website. Choosing a dress made from jersey material online is still a bit of a risk even if it’s cotton, because it won’t tell you how thin the fabric is. Luckily I didn’t spend too much money on a blue tunic top made of cotton jersey from H&M last year because the material was so thin it was see-through and went bobbly quickly and has already moved to my ’round the house only’ pile of clothes!

However, I have been suitably impressed with this black floral dress from Joe Browns so far, and it’s already been worn quite a lot! It’s actually made from viscose jersey, but is tightly woven and although still flowy, it’s not very lightweight. The massive down-side of jersey clothes – for me, anyway – is that the material clings. And what is absolutely fine clinging to a size twelve body, is not so much for me! Therefore, even when my usual size fits, I always go up one or two to try and minimise the cling! And when you’re trying on a jersey dress in the dressing room, even if it looks great standing upright; check you’re also happy with it when you’re bending over or sitting down.

This is why I am wearing a Top Shop blush pink lace shirt over the top. Even though I did buy a size larger, I still wasn’t happy with how visible my tummy rolls are in this particular Joe Browns ‘Office to Bar’ dress. And since taking these photos, the weather has taken a turn for the worse again, so I’m layering a jumper over the top now. This is great – as long as the jumper hasn’t been attacked too much by my cats, the outfit looks fairly smart, but the stretchy-ness of the dress means it’s comfortable enough to sit at my desk all day and walk the dog in. Perfect!

These photos, by the way, are taken in the beautiful city of Truro during our recent trip to Cornwall. Please follow the link if you’d like to watch the video of our weekend there.

Joe Browns is an easy website to order from, and I love looking through the catalogues when they come through the letterbox as this brand is very much my style, however look out for offers for free postage and returns, as surprisingly this still isn’t standard. I received a £5 off voucher from them for my birthday, which prompted me to make the purchase, however almost all that was postage costs, which is a little annoying. Good job I didn’t want to return anything!

You’ve probably seen these boots quite a lot in my outfit posts now, but if you’re new here, they are from Timberland and are very comfortable. I was a teen in the ’90’s grunge era, and boots with dresses is still a favourite style of mine!

The black faux leather circle bag is from Next, and is probably the most on trend thing I own! It’s actually fairly spacious, and although you can see it bulging a bit in these photos, believe me, I’m one of those people that carry everything just in case! My vlogging camera is also in there along with the plasters, paracetamol, a wad of tissues and the usual purse, card wallet and phone.

Shop the look:

Or similar:

or

(Similar bag from Next)

(Similar Timberland boots.)

Do you have a particular outfit you always reach for?

Linking with #iwillwearwhatilike at Not Dressed as Lamb , Anna Nuttall’s bloggers’ linkup, and #visibleMonday at Not Dead Yet Style.