I'm fed up of today's dresses!

[MissBattleaxe]

Whenever I find a nice dress it is either sleeveless, knee length or both. If I find one that's midi length ( my preferred length) it is sleeveless. If I find one with sleeves then it is knee length or bodycon. In the summer its all maxi dresses which don't suit me as I am 5ft 2. And they're all sleeveless too.

The message I am getting is that in order to wear a dress in the UK today you need great arms or great legs. The rest of us can sod off. It's very slim pickings indeed and I'm sick of looking and sick of trousers all the time and don't want to have to buy a cardigan every time I buy a dress!

I think I miss the 90s.

Don't know what your budget is but I always find they have nice longer dresses with sleeves at & Other Stories (part of H&M). Also Cos?

There are very few I would look at twice. Sleeveless, no waist, too short. There always seems to be something that makes them unattractive to me.

Are you looking for smart or casual, btw?

Or black... I can't wear black.

I do like & Other Stories for separates but having had a look at their mid-length dresses there isn't one I would try on.

This is my most recent purchase, in case it is of interest.

agree.

I find that ASOS has the odd mudi dress with sleeves. my other source are charity shops. haven't bought anything on the high street in ages.

*midi (not mudi)

So completely agree OP. I am currently on my way to a dinner of a 'non black tie' nature. In my suitcase is an elderly Artigiano jersey dress. Navy, three quarter length sleeves, cross over bodice, waisted and with a skirt that when I sit down doesn't show the parts above my knee I'd rather keep hidden.
I went half hearted shopping for something else but the sleeveless, knee length shift dress I came away with is going back because of the 'fat knee' issue.
For £££,
Bombshell by Katya Wildman does dresses with sleeves, shape and longer than a pelmet skirts.
Artigiano, as mentioned, but you may feel like a well dressed grandmother.
The 1950s style companies like Lindybop are also prepared to use extra fabric on sleeves and skirts, although I found them too short on the waist to accommodate the substantial Norks. The skirt on their Vivi dress wasn't long enough for me either, but I'm 5'8. OP, at 5'2 they might be better for you?
I have a theory that it just costs more in terms of labour and fabric to make dresses such as we're after. On another thread another poster suggested that most buyers are size 8 25 year olds and just size up what they'd look good wearing.

I think you are right whitehair

Could not agree more. I can't stand the way most useful jersey dresses seem to end just above the knee these days, in that 'skater-dress' style. My knees are not my finest feature. I feel like a Grayson Perry impersonator.

If you have a false hem added you can usually get about another inch or more on the length which might help.

I was going to suggest & other stories too. I was in there yesterday and they had a couple of midi dresses with sleeves.

As above Cos and Other Stories are my go to places for dresses. And I have found a few choice bargains along those lines by searching H&M and Forever 21 carefully.

Couldn't agree more!

I'm 5'11, so its even bloody slimmer pickings.

I can't get on with Cos, &Other Strories, Hush etc. They're DEFINITELY not made for a tall hour glass - those straight up and down styles look hideous on me.

Most high street shop dresses are either;:
a) too short, especially for work
b) sleeveless, which I dont mind terribly in the summer, but not for winter (ie. about 9 months of the year in the UK!)
c) too tight fitting ie. bodycon, which is way too much if you're booby and bummish, unless you want to go for the Kim Kardashian look...

Its depressing. I just want a well cut, fitted but not skintight, knee length or midi dress with sleeves. What are the shops playing at? They're missing out on selling to whole sections of the female population - tall women, large women, women over 40...ridiculous.

Thanks to all who posted links. I'm glad I'm not alone. I agree that the buyers must be tiny 20somethings. We 40 somethings will pay for the right dress so why aren't they making them for Us? It's been years since I've found a decent dress.

I get most of my work dresses from jaeger outlet -there are lots with sleeves, and they are usually just loner than knee length on me (5'1")
www.jaegeroutlet.com/women-dresses-outlet/women-dresses-outlet,en_GB,sc.html

Op the same issue has caused me major angst trying to buy for a wedding tomorrow. In the end I bought the least wedding outfit yesterday of a bizarre black crop length trousers literally just above the ankles, a black roll top and a fantastic necklace. In a million years I would not normally wear black trousers and top to a wedding but it was either that or a nasty ill fitting dress. The outfit actually looks much nicer than I am painting it but I would have liked a dress.

I'm sure you will look stylish anothernumberone but how come there just wasn't a dress for you? It's as if they're illegal or something. I had to go to a dressmaker a few years ago and have also got one from a charity shop although I didn't like the pattern. It's ridiculous!

My sisters and I rant about this constantly. It seems if you don't have slim limbs then designers don't want your business.

I've got fat knees and wobbly upper arms so my money is no good.

Only sleeveless dresses are allowed. I don't understand it. I would love to hear from designers and buyers why this is?!

It's not even about my body for me - it's about temperature. This country doesn't have the climate for sleeveless dresses for most of the year, so you end up wearing cardigans or jackets over them, when I'd rather just have sleeves on my dress! I don't really like wearing layers at work and always end up taking cardigans off...then freezing! A dress with 3/4 sleeves is perfect for me.

Brian- exactly- we have long cold winters but even evening dresses are sleeveless. I quite like wrap dresses but some of them are a bit short and tight.

45% of UK women are size 16 and over and although larger sizes are now available, what I don't get is why these clothes aren't made to flatter, so you get a size 22 dress with spaghetti straps or a size 18 bodycon dress. It's all so wrong.

I'm a size 16 and I have a decent waist, so I don't want shapeless sacks and I don't want tight knee length bodycon. Anyone would think that a dress with sleeves of a reasonable length would be a reasonable request in a country with short summers and inclement winters.

But no. Anyone would think we'd asked for skirts made of DodDo feathers.

Monsoon have a few folksy looking ones, this kind of thing:

uk.monsoon.co.uk/view/product/uk_catalog/mon_6.28/8455130208?ranMID=36168&ranEAID=7OLfzcCWrhM&ranSiteID=7OLfzcCWrhM-wBzAxJjvDh3kt8QfXprrHQ&$ja=tsid:68258|kw:10|cgn:7OLfzcCWrhM&skipRedirection=true&utm_campaign=uk-affiliates&utm_medium=affiliates&utm_source=7OLfzcCWrhM&utm_content=linkshare&siteID=7OLfzcCWrhM-wBzAxJjvDh3kt8QfXprrHQ&cm_mmc=linkshare--linkbuilder--linkbuilder--linkbuilder

Good point Brian.

I agree about the temperature. If it's cold enough for wool it's cold enough for sleeves. I can't see the point in a wool dress with short sleeves.

bombshellbykatyawildman

House of Fraser used to offer the Mary Pottas range which made a great fuss about having sleeves on their dresses - but IIRC the dresses were all polyester monstrosities and they are no longer sold.

I suspect it is a price issue as if you look on HofF website there are a fair number of dresses with sleeves in the upper price ranges, certainly more than in the cheaper ranges.

I got a lovely knee length, long sleeved black dress recently in...Sainsburys!
I agree with the point about dresses being too short for work though, even in the "work wear" section of shops. I'm a teacher and we are not allowed to wear short skirts to work and in any case, I don't want to look like a candidate on the apprentice!