Looking for a special dress

[AmythestBangle]

I am looking for a dress that seems not to exist! (Wish I could sew because I know exactly what I want but it does not seem to be out there).

I have an important occasion coming up and I have lost 2 stone since the people who will be there last saw me, so of course I would like to look fabulous! Before I had to choose baggy clothes that would hide the tummy etc, now I don't need to.

The ideal dress:

Midaxi or maxi
Short sleeves (covering crepey upper arms!)
V-neck preferably

BUT everything I have found that fits those requirements has either ruching or shirring/darts under the boobs. Despite my weight loss I still have very big boobs and anything that goes in under the chest emphasises that (and often creates a shelf). Ideally I want a dress that goes straight down from the boobs, but in a quite drapey/jersey-type material.

Does anyone have any suggestions? I have been looking for ages and am getting very frustrated!

Firstly, have you looked to your underpinnings? You should be able to find a bra that resolves the shelf effect.

Secondly - size, budget, context? Day or night, degree of dressiness / formality, weather considerations? How long do you have to choose and where have you already looked?

I do rather like this - and you’d create a v neck simply by not doing up all the buttons:

https://www.essentiel-antwerp.com/uk/p/white-cherry-dress-herstory?ref=Mzcx

Even without a shelf effect, I don't want the emphasis on the boobs! I ordered this one from Farm Rio (pic attached) and it is lovely in many ways (very much my style) but my boobs are just one big roll above the belt! (I am short too, which doesn't help, my boobs are not far from my waist!)

I want to "skim over" them if I can. In my normal life I am wearing things like White Stuff jersey tunic tops, which are a good shape for me as they drape down from the boobs without emphasising them.

Size: 12
Budget: not too fussed
Occasion: mother of the bride at a rural springtime wedding (day into night), more informal than say a church wedding

Ok - I am slightly wondering if you might be looking for the wrong thing. (V. sorry!) You have the figure you have - and no doubt look magnificent in the right frock. But what you’re searching for might well make you appear enormous from neck to calf. (For myself I’m entirely easy with clothes whose purpose is not to make me look as small as possible, so that isn’t why I say this.)

Would you not be better off leaning in to working with, rather than against, your figure?

This, for instance, looks as fashionable as the Farm Rio dress but might work better (particularly if bought a size larger and tailored to fit).

Bernadette dress

It's hard to judge without seeing clothes on you, and no doubt you know what suits you, but just from your description it sounds like what you think you're looking for is very shapeless and unflattering? Your boobs are not going to get smaller, they are there, so surely better to have them well supported so they're lifted and separated, and have clothes tailored to them?

There are also a lot of button through dresses at the moment eg. Nobody's Child which might draw the eye vertically rather than across your bust? But still be tailored in the right way?

One place that might have something you like is:

https://www.wiggykit.com/collections/dresses-and-jumpsuits

@User5274959 and @Preciousssssss I know what you mean, I don't want anything shapeless, just not something that turns the boobs into a single massive sausage roll across my chest like that Farm Rio one did! I had another occasion to go to a while ago, when I had already lost some weight but not as much as now, I was a size 14 then. It wasn't as dressy an occasion, and I wore a long jersey Joe Brown dress, which looked great. It draped well over the boobs but didn't nip in under them, and then fell straight to the hips (I can't find another one like that now, and anyway I need something a bit more dressy).

@Preciousssssss I can't wear wrap tops, they just gape open and I spend the whole time worrying that I am falling out, so looking at my chest constantly. Basically I am very small-boned (although covered with a layer of fat until recently) so my back size is small but my boobs are disproportionately big.

I don’t have big boobs so can’t offer recommendations, but from your description I agree with PP that your first step is to get the right bra. Bravissimo is often recommended here. This will make all the difference to whichever dress you go for, plus any other outfits day to day.

I will try a new bra! Thanks also for the thought about a button-through dress, they tend to give a bit of separation to the boobs because of the weight of the placket and the buttons. I will look at some of those.

The bra I wear at the moment is M&S minimiser (I have worn them for many years, just in different sizes as I got bigger then smaller!).

You sound a similar size and shape to me and I have also lost a bit of weight recently. I agree with a decent bra which separates and lifts. What about a dress with a faux wrap top in a stretchy material? I got one recently for an event from jolie moi, and it's really flattering. Something like this...

Just to add...I know you say you don't want to emphasise yout boobs, but for me this shape makes my bust look smaller and much more in proportion.