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Without a doubt, the item of clothing that has sat at the top of my favourites list for the past year has been the Reiss Lara Dress in Stone. I was slow to pull the trigger on this when it was first released over a year ago but I finally got my hot little hands on it earlier in the year.
Before lockdown measures were put in place, I managed to enjoy the dress ‘in the wild’ and wore it to work a few times as well as on a couple of date nights (one of those was to see Kevin McCloud live!). Since being at home, I’ve found myself reaching for it when I’ve needed a bit of a pick-me-up in the sartorial department (and a big fat 🙅🏻 to a third consecutive day in trakkies!).
The Lara dress has been re-released as part of Reiss’ new season and comes in three shades – stone, black and forest green. To me, it’s the perfect transseasonal piece and the epitome of minimal elegance with the ability to do double duty for both work and play.
Style
The dress is cut to a Y silhouette and features exaggerated shoulders that drape beautifully across the bodice, dolman sleeves that taper in at the cuffs and a fitted skirt. The dress comprises a heavyweight and stretchy knit fabric with an allover ribbed texture and is soft and luxurious to the touch.
The fabric composition is 57% viscose, 26% polyester, 14% nylon and 3% elastane. Despite the lack of natural fibres, the dress carries a hefty price tag retailing at $450 AUD / £185 / $345 USD.
Sizing
I’m petite (158cm) and pear-shaped – so I’m always a bit more mindful to choose pieces that don’t accentuate my wider hips and thighs. I was torn between getting a size XS or a size S but I opted for the latter so that the skirt wouldn’t fit too snug. Overall, it’s a relaxed fit on me (I’m an AU8 for reference) and I could have sized down to an XS with no issues. That said, I do love how the size S drapes on the bodice being a tad more oversized and slouchy.
Verdict
Despite the hefty price tag, I’m such a fan of the dress and think the flattering silhouette and lush neutral tone makes it worth every penny. I’m looking forward to wearing this out and about once normal programming resumes!
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P.S. See my comprehensive review of my Celine belt bag and Gucci belt featured in my outfit.
I found your blog by googlig Reiss lara dress reviews. You look wonderful in the dress–wow! Thanks for including your height. I am just 157 cm and wondered how this dress would fit a petite woman and you’ve answered my question perfectly.
I am considering purchasing this dress in teal and I with your experience, I plan to order a size small.
Thanks for sharing details. Very helpful indeed.
Author
i’m so glad to hear that it was helpful and I know of a fair few petite women who have bought and loved this dress 🙂 i hope the dress has worked out for you – the teal shade is so beautiful! x
Hi,
I have this dress and the black. I am so comfortable styling the black. However I don’t know what shoes to wear with it or what colour. Black seems to make it look to dressy. Any ideas what else will work. I’m quite short so ankle boots tend to cut my legs off and flats are out of the question.
Any ideas will be great. You seem to look amazing in this dress.