Story

'O ye, all ye that walk in Willow-wood,
That walk with hollow faces burning white;
What fathom-depth of soul-struck widowhood,
What long, what longer hours, one lifelong night,
Ere ye again, who so in vain have wooed
Your last hope lost, who so in vain invite
Your lips to that their unforgotten food,
Ere ye, ere ye again shall see the light!'

– Dante Gabriel Rossetti, The House of Life

Like Willowwood is a place for lost loves to reunite, the Willow is where I reunite (though hopefully not so briefly) with one of my all-time favorite dress styles, the wrap dress. Tulip sleeves and a tulip hem give the Willow a bit of understated glamor, while narrow ties pull the whole thing together (literally).

Design Details

• Main: 100% silk printed in Canada
• Lining: 100% cupro woven in Japan
• Designed, cut, and sewn in Arkansas, USA
• Wrap dress with tie closure
• Tulip hem and tulip sleeves
• Hidden pockets in side seams
• Fully lined
• Measures 44" long from shoulder at longest point
• Hand wash cold, line dry, warm iron as needed (learn more about garment care here)

Materials

This dress is made of silk Georgette, custom-printed just for us in Canada. Lightweight, sheer, and with a characteristic dry hand and subtle crinkle, this fabric has an extraordinarily elegant drape. I had Mary Cassatt's floral motifs (on dresses, wallpapers, upholstery, and the like in her works) in mind when digitally designing this abstract floral print, referencing several vintage fabric patterns in the process. The fabric is digitally printed using reactive dyes in a process that conserves ink and reduces fabric waste.

The dress is lined with Bemberg cupro woven in Japan. If you've never worn this type of fabric, you're in for a treat: cupro has all the benefits of being a natural fiber — breathability, biodegradability, durability — in addition to all the benefits of a super silky lining fabric — anti-static, anti-cling, total opacity. Made from the leftover fibers (known as linter) from the cotton plant after the ginning process, cupro is super-sustainable too (a true zero-waste fiber!).

In addition to the fabric, this dress uses organic cotton thread and cotton garment labels.

Fit

Take a look at our Size Guide to find your size.

The Willow is fitted in the bust and the waist and free in the hips, so use both your bust and waist measurements when determining your size. If you fall in between sizes, I recommend going with the size closest corresponding to your bust measurement, sizing up if you'd like a bit more coverage and sizing down if you'd like to show bit more skin. Nonetheless, because of the wrap construction of the dress, the sizing is quite forgiving, both up and down.

Sarah is wearing a size 4 and is 5'9" with a 33" bust, 24" waist, and 35" hip.