J.Crew: Ruffled-Hem Dress

This is J.Crew's Ruffled-Hem Dress (item #15341), which retails for $78. It is available in nut, caspian blue, and heather cloud. The dress is alpha-sized. J.Crew describes the dress as such:

A ladylike silhouette in our refined, sophisticated viscose jersey. Ruffles at hem. Sleeveless silhouette. V-neck with fitted bodice. Self-tie at empire waist. Falls below knee; 23" from natural waist. Import. Machine wash.

I tried this dress on in a size extra small, in the caspian blue color. I think the dress runs a bit large - I usually wear a size small, and I was able to size down in this dress comfortably. The fit itself is fairly comfortable. I would size this dress primarily based on your bust size, as this is where the dress is most fitted.

The fabric on this dress is a midweight, substantial jersey, which is very soft, but also felt a little less smooth than say the dressy jersey. It's not rough by any means, but it feels a bit more worn and less polished. I actually think that fabric fits this dress really well. The dress was a bit heavier than I expected it to be (just from looking at it), but I wouldn't say that the fabric is heavy, and it definitely doesn't weigh you down.

I think the shape itself is fairly flattering. The empire waist and the tie under the bust helps to create a bit more definition for your midsection. Other than that, the dress hangs in a pretty straight line, but I would say it flares out just a tiny bit at the bottom, but not enough to be noticeable or anything. The dress does move and flow very well, mainly because of the fabric.

One thing I would note about the bust is that it is a little low-cut. I think this is a result of two things, which are related to each other. The tie on the bust did not hit below my bust (ribcage), but actually a little bit on the bust. So thus when I tied below my bust, it may have pulled the front down a bit. And that gets into size a bit - maybe if I wore my regular size, I wouldn't have run into this issue. However, the rest of the dress fit just fine, so you should make this call yourself.

I thought the dress was a bit long, keeping in mind that it is past knee-length on the model even. As for the bottom of the dress, it has three layers of ruffles (two shorter, one longer), and additional rows of trim. I didn't really like the bottom when I saw it in pictures online, but I warmed up to it once I saw it in person. I don't think the bottom is as stiff and heavy-looking in real life as it does online (at least to me).

I think the dress is available in a great palette - a couple of darker neutrals and a light neutral. I think the blue would work with a variety of colors. Personally, I would probably pair the blue with brighter colors, or other light-colored neutrals. This dress strikes me as mostly a casual dress, but I think with the right accessories, you could dress it up a bit.

While I liked this dress, I didn't totally love it, and I know that I would not wear it, so I left it behind.

What do you think? Do you like this dress? Are there any other colors you would have liked to have seen it in? What do you think of the ruffle hem?