Dolly & Dotty is the perfect place for the budget-conscious vintage loving gal to shop. They have been delivering on sweet and flattering dresses that are kind to your body and your wallet, going from strength to strength recently by expanding on their range and designing some particularly adorable summer styles. I had been wanting to try the Darlene dress for a while and couldn’t go past the red & white polka dot version as I had a Minnie Mouse theme in mind for this shoot!

I am bowled over by the cuteness of this dress! It features a sweeping collar neckline with two dainty buttons to one side, contrasting white edging to the sleeves, and a super full skirt. The fabric is a cotton/elastine blend of a reasonable weight, so it both sits and breathes nicely. The red and white polka dot pattern is crisp and bright, and definitely screams fun! The Darlene is such a uniquely designed dress so if you’re looking for a style that’s a bit different then this is the dress for you!

Dolly & Dotty’s full size range runs from UK6 – 26, and the Darlene dress is available in UK8 – 24. I would usually go for a UK6, but went with the UK8 being the smallest size available. I therefore expected it to be a little big, though it’s nothing that cinching my waist with a belt couldn’t fix. Going by the measurements online (31-33″ bust and 25-26″ waist for a UK8) I would say that the Darlene dress is at the higher end of these, maybe even slightly larger, so if you’re smaller in the bust like me then you may wish to size down.

You can buy the Darlene dress directly via Dolly & Dotty’s website for the very reasonable price of £39.99/$75NZD. Most sizes are still in stock, and international shipping is available. The Darlene dress is a popular style at Dolly & Dotty, with 14 different fabrics to choose from and both polka dot and solid colour options available!

Full outfit details:

Darlene dress in red – c/o Dolly & Dotty

Necklace, belt & gloves – vintage

Heels – Chase & Chloe

A big thank you to Katie and the team at Dolly & Dotty for another wonderful collaboration! Thank you also to @cmjsnz for taking my picture outside this beautiful house we’ve been eyeing up for months!

Miss Hero Holliday

xo