Palava is a UK brand making funtastic clothing for the young and young at heart! Read on to find out more about them, my thoughts on the Mabel dress featured in today’s post, and a special discount coupon just for my readers.

Palava has a very interesting history! Based in Yarm on Tees in North Yorkshire, there was a family-owned shop called Strickland & Holt which began in 1854. This then became Poppy from 1974 and sold children’s bedding and clothing using their own prints until they closed in 2000. Bryony, one of the younger generations, decided ten years later to revive the store, starting by designing clothing using her own illustrative story-telling prints. Unable to use Bryony as a company name though they ultimately rebranded to Palava, as a humourous nod to the path that’s led to the company now and the strong playfulness and creatively of the brand. They now not only create beautiful clothing for women and children, but have also branched out into adorable homewares!

Super cute prints are definitely a running theme at Palava! From zoo animals to London border prints and of course some gorgeous florals, each style is loaded with a sense of fun, whimsy, and mischief. I chose the budgie print as I love the colourway of the peachy-pink, yellow and blue birds on the white background as these are colours I wear a lot, and it reminds me of some vintage prints I’ve seen featuring birds on a wire. It features matching buttons up the back (which I had no trouble doing up myself!) and generous pockets.

Palava is dedicated to ethical fashion, with forward-thinking initiatives such as European manufacturing, a no waste policy, and responsible and local sourcing of fabrics and artwork all at the heart of their operations. Each piece is made not only with love but with an aim to last; fabrics are durable and are ensured to wash well, especially as Palava’s designs cater for children too. The Mabel dress is made of 100% organic cotton with a full cotton lining, and linens are also regularly used by Palava.

I’m wearing the size S in the Mabel dress, which covers UK sizes 8 – 10. The dress is designed to be on the looser side, but using the attached tie belt you can choose how cinched you want the waist to be. I am really happy with the fit, and also the length which allowed me to fit a double layer petticoat underneath! Each Palava dress has its own size chart on the product listing, so I recommend checking your measurements against that before purchase.

The Mabel dress is available to purchase directly through the Palava website. It retails for £135, but until the 30th of June thanks to the lovely Annabel you can get 15% off this and any other full price Palava styles using the coupon code HEROHOLLIDAY15! Palava post all around the world for a maximum charge of £18. Each purchase also comes with its own storybook; the beautifully illustrated book I received with the Mabel dress lets you follow Poppy and Fred (and all their friends!) on their adventure at London’s Kew Gardens.

Full outfit details:

Mabel dress in white budgie print – c/o Palava

Necklace – vintage

Cardigan – Review

Heels – Chase & Chloe

A huge thank you to Annabel at Palava for the opportunity to try out the Mabel dress! Be sure to follow them on Instagram to see all their fabulous styles. Thank you also to @cmjsnz for snapping these pics in the fern house at Highwic.

Miss Hero Holliday

xo