This weekend, while researching for a post (and by researching, I of course mean shopping), I cruised through Lulu‘s and noticed a large “SOLD OUT” sign over this dress:
Please, God, someone explain this to me. Am I old? A curmudgeon? Tragically un-hip? I cannot, for the life of me, figure out which this dress is sold out. Granted, the colors are cute, and it wouldn’t be bad without the gigantic, gaping holes in the sides… Am I out of the loop?
I’ve been seeing cut-outs on the red carpet lately, and I’m unsure what to make of it.
Click to enlarge. (Source)
Maybe I’m too… square for these cut-outs. Am I? What do you think?
[poll id=”28″]
View Comments (15)
Uhhhh, negative, Ghostwriter. I don't care how rockin' your bod is, I am definitely of the opinion that this is not a cute look. If I'm paying for a dress, I want the whole thing. I don't want random holes cute in it. Yikes.
Plus... can you imagine the tan (or in my case, sunburn) lines?? Awkward.
Haha! This comment almost made me spit out my coffee. :D
Defntly not sure why this particular dress is sold out - its not my fave. Its rather bland.
I think the cutouts look great on some dresses, but the look its self is just a little too sexy for me. THese dresses would probably look just as spectacular without the holes than they are with.
THis trend isnt for me.
ash
http://www.countrygirlcityworld.com
Not a fan. Reminds me of Julia Robert's blue and white dress in "Pretty Woman."
Ha!! Too true!!!
I had a swimsuit like this when I was 3 - other then that.... no go!
Oh my gosh - I didn't even make that connection!! I think I had a similar suit....
haha I didn't make the connection either.. but now that you mention it, I definitely had one of those suits when Iw as 3 too! LOL
I don't see the appeal of this particular dress. I'm with Sarah - it reminds me of Julia Robert's hooker dress in Pretty Woman. I just can't see how cutouts are appealing? Are anyone's sides really that sexy?
I think maybe it's popular because young women can show off their trendy ribcage tattoos? Yeah, I wouldn't wear it. I'd layer it over a bodysuit or slip.
Ages ago I used to participate in the Society of Creative Anachronism, or SCA - basically, it was a bunch of teen to adult aged kids playing renaissance era. One of the gowns made for me, affectionately called, "The Gates of Hell" - was a brilliant gown that was worn on the outside, with cut-out sides, and a "plain" underdress - it was called "The gates of hell" for the view of the female form beneath it, and it was considered risque' in that era.
Fashion always borrows from its history. I saw that dress, and immediately thought of the gown I had to wear. Looked somewhat like this: http://www.renderosity.com/mod/bcs/praeclarusa-3---the-gates-of-hell-dress/83254
Would I wear a cutout dress? If you look at it, it generally makes the bust appear "off". If you are not a size 0-3, any flaws in your form will show up in high-bias relief. My day-glo skin would certainly have peculiar sunburns. The fall of the skirt, without support of the structure of the cutout sides, makes the drape on the sides of the skirt "off", without strategic two-sided tape [which is highly uncomfortable to wear for any length of time], and...forget movement...the drape will still be "off".
Overcompensating the lack of structure by binding makes the wearer appear to be, more or less, stuffed into the dress awkwardly, resulting in rolls and unflattering appearances to the wearer that do not exist on her otherwise [I've never known Halle Berry to have a paunched stomach, for instance...].
Lots of wordiness. I should have just poked the "no" selection, but I couldn't help it.
This comment was perfect in every way!! Thank you!! I love the story about the Gates of Hell dress - I had no idea!
Fashionistas who design look at fashion's history for inspirations. Oftentimes, yesteryear's patterns re-emerge with newer textiles, etc. You'd be surprised at some of the amazing things you can find in the oddest places, and from the oddest piece periods. Clara Bow, Cher [Bob Mackie], Madonna, Lady Gaga...have adapted/adopted, for instance, grand designs inspired by ancient Egyptian finds.
Once you see a given structure you have a preference for,and a color palette you normally draw to, you can experiment with your own confections from the 1400's, 1800's...why limit to "1970's inspired" or newer?
Couture oftentimes snags patterns from artifacts. You'd be surprised.
Found another with similar accent/idea/concept. Not cutout exactly, but you will note where the concept came from in the contrasting http://bit.ly/lezucX [Collette Patterns, history read, Mary Quant] - in the middle of the page, "Natural Hessian, acrylic pinafore, 1965." - Quant [the designer] used cutaway to make a sort of jumper-styled skirt to wear in/as a layer.
At this point, I think I'm taking up too much room on your blogs: I'll go back to "lurker" status ;-)
No you are not old.. I couldn't agree with you more - that dress is horrid! But every occasionally when its done subtlety and in the right spot it might not look that bad... but I still don't own anything with cutouts. That I can think of anyway?