J.Crew: Embossed-Cotton Dip-Dye Lorelei Dress Review

This is J.Crew's Embossed-Cotton Dip-Dye Lorelei Dress (item #15200), which also comes in petite (item #15488).  It is numerically sized, and is available in navy and papaya.  It retails for $110.  J.Crew describes the dress as such:

The perfect little dress for sun-filled days, uniquely dip-dyed with a special technique. Beautifully textured cotton in a sweet strapless silhouette. Fitted bodice, with boning and elastic along the top edge to hold it up—so you won't have to. A-line skirt with box pleats. Straight neckline. On-seam pockets. Back zip. Fully lined. Falls above knee; 23" from natural waist. Import. This dress is machine washable, but we suggest dry cleaning to keep it looking newer, longer.

I tried this dress on in a size 4 regular in the papaya color.  I have actually tried on this dress at least twice, maybe 3 times.  I really like this dress.  The dress fits very true-to-size.  The dress has a band around the bust that hooks in the back to help with support.  It is a very comfortable fit, fitting very well around the bust as well as the waist.

I own a few of J.Crew's embossed-cotton strapless dresses from past seasons, and the reason I fell in love with this dress is because of the material.  The embossed-cotton in past seasons has been heavily textured, with fairly heavy embossing.  This embossed-cotton is incredibly soft, and only very lightly textured.  It is also a bit lighter than the other embossed-cotton, and moves a bit better.  (This is true even when comparing to this existing season's embossed-cotton, which is admittedly softer than past seasons' fabric.)  

I also feel that this dress does a better job of having a cleaner line between the body and the skirt.  I felt that past dresses of similar style kind of cut me in half, and I think the transition from bodice to skirt is a lot nicer.

I do like the dip-dye pattern in the papaya color, but I don't really care for it in the navy color, as I think it's a bit too much of a contrast.  I think the papaya color works really well without being too heavy of a contrast, and is a nice, sweet color for the spring and summer.  The color transitions fairly well.  I think the pleats are just okay.  They can stick out a bit in the back, but other than that, they add a bit of shape to the bottom of the dress.

After trying this on multiple times, I finally ordered it in a petite 6 size, which also fits well, and is an inch shorter, so doesn't make too much of a difference in the length.  I am really happy I finally picked up this dress, because I really like it, especially with the new fabric.

What do you think?  Do you like this dress?  Which color do you prefer?  What do you think of J.Crew's embossed-cotton strapless dresses in general?