Wrap dress - wardrobe fail in waiting?

[RishiRich]

I bought myself a new wrap dress last week (this one: www.apricotonline.co.uk/falling-leaves-wrap-dress/M027936-Navy.html) and am wearing it for the first time today.

First try, the neckline was so low that you could see the middle bit of my bra. I've stuck a vest top on to deal with that. However, now it seems to want to flash my knickers at everyone when I sit down or walk without careful consideration.

Do I need to treat this like a dressing gown and buy a full slip to wear under it? Are all wrap dresses like this? I haven't worn one since I was very pregnant years ago.

Safety pins. You might need to play around with the positioning but I usually put one about half way down the skirt and one to hold the neckline in place.

I have never got on with wrap dresses for all of the reasons you mention.

They were bad when I was a size 8 to 10 so I can't imagine they would be any better on my middle aged body!

Just pin it at your mid-thigh with a safety pin

Agree safety pins. The best wrap dresses are made from a heavier fabric (but still one with nice draping) and with a wide half thatmakes up the bottom layer of the wrap to avoid knicker flashing. I do find the shape of my body means they always sit very low on the boobs though

You might need a bigger size if showing knickers is a risk, it should definitely wrap round enough to not fall open, the lower skirt layer should reach to the outer side of your thigh.

I can’t wear them as well The neckline is always too low on me, it seems that I don’t have enough boobs to keep it high enough. And they don’t sit right on my middle.

I love wrap dresses but it definitely depends on the material about whether you’re going to flash your knickers as PP say. With knee-length, heavier jersey, and enough fabric to wrap from hip to hip, I’ve never flashed.

I agree that they often show a bra though, unless it’s a fixed (sewn) wrap dress. Tie wrap work better with my shape though.

I can’t wear them for all these reasons!

I've got a few dresses like this and I put a safety pin or a little stitch on the neckline to hold it together better. For the split up the leg I do the same and pop a few little stitches in. Occasionally I have the confidence to just own it and flash a bit of thigh!

This is definitely the risk with wrap dresses, and pins are the only answer. I say this as a wrap dress lover. Generally, the ones that don't cover property haven't been made with enough fabric, which means there isn't a good enough overlap.

Slip on bottom half

Vest top or brooch on top

I don't really like them for the reasons OP experienced

Better ones will have a hook at the bust and an inner tie - I've got a couple from Gap like this and they say put really well. Otherwise they feel about as secure as a dressing gown!

I have a lovely wrap dress but have had to modify it.

I sewed in a small press stud to keep my boobs under wraps. The skirt is a bit flappy but seems to be heavy enough (so far) to not show my knickers.

Definitely a safety pin - small one, and there’s an art to placing it so worth practicing.

@LegsOfJelly is the inner tie on the skirt bit? I might add one of those to mine. How far down is it?

I bought a full length slip to go under mine, and used a safety pin on the bust.

I still giggle thinking of a thread in classics that said about wearing a wrap dress...... something like "here is my bust, the rest of me will follow later"

Avoid them like the plague, they always crossover underneath my bra. It's not like my boobs are particularly perky or anything, I cannot understand who's designing the bloody things (wrap dresses, not my boobs)

That sounds about right - a little bit of bra flashing is okay though, right? ;)

@Leftbutcameback I've just checked my Gap wrap dresses and it turns out I misled you slightly - sorry! There is indeed a v useful hook at the bust and the tie is at the waist but very long (ie wraps around a couple of times) so does feel secure from a bra flashing point of view. But there is a safety pin halfway down the thigh - how did I forget that I'd done that?! I haven't worn any summer dresses yet this year, in my defence...

So the perfect wrap dress is still to be designed, disappointingly. Some useful tips for dress designers right here, though 😃

It does sound like some wrap styles are more skimpy than others

I had one in the 00s with a properly sewn in skirt with a seam down it if she

Typo autocorrect

Iftms

Facilities decided to pick today for a fire drill, so we all had to troop outside to stand in the wind for 10 minutes. I definitely flashed more than a bit of thigh heading back in. The dress is behaving itself indoors though.