I only hate sunburn and hangovers. This is just business.

Hey everyone, happy Friday! It has rolled around more quickly than I expected it would, given that I was back at work this week. It was helped by the fact that Nic and I booked a holiday to Paris for later in the summer. YEAH BOI. We're going to have ten days in Paris and we're staying in a beautiful apartment in Montmartre, although it is a different one to the place where we have stayed for the last few years. Maybe we'll grow tired of Paris eventually, but we're not tired of it yet. In any case, it's really good to have a holiday to look forward to.

It's been a decent week, all in all. Work is in a quieter spot at the moment, which is nice. There are a few important activities coming up over the next couple of months, but it's much less frantic a pace than it is throughout the rest of the year. The office itself is horrible in the summer months - it's one of those modern buildings that's all glass and steel and where the windows only open by decree from estate management, who are based on another site. Luckily, I'm able to work at home, and that's what I've been doing this week.

One of the really good things about working from home is being able to use my commuting time for other things. Often that's sleeping, but this morning it was a little bit of sewing. Although my commute is short, it can be very draining all the same (you know, the public) so not having to do it also usually leaves me with more energy in evenings. Nic was out on Tuesday evening and I made a dress - a nautical Cambie/Belladone combination that I will try to photograph over the weekend - and this week I also finished my Andi Satterlund Vianne cardigan. It's blocking away as I speak. So, it's all been very productive!

I've been sewing away but recently I've bought or been given a few lovely RTW dresses. Last month, Tom from Carousel Clothing in Dublin got in touch with me and asked me if I would be interested in learning about his own brand, Circus, and choosing a dress to try out. I don't often accept these sorts of requests but I was interested by the brand. Their patterns are cut in Dublin, and their fabrics are printed in India, where their clothes are made. I had a look through the catalogue and chose the Brigitte dress, which is €65.


I used to buy a lot of dresses. A lot. Nowadays I don't, and when I do, it's usually because it's a fabric or a cut that I either wouldn't able to replicate or just wouldn't replicate. This is the latter. I've only rarely seen a striped fabric that I would want to buy, and even if I did - well, my attention span is genuinely not sufficient to faff around with stripe matching. So this dress is kind of perfect for me!

I'm uncomfortable with ragging on the quality of RTW clothing - after all, ALL clothing is hand-made - but I don't like buying or wearing cheaply made clothing. I was pretty impressed with the quality of this dress. It's made from a good quality, medium weight slubby cotton. It isn't lined, but this isn't an issue for me with a summer dress. The neck and armholes are finished with self-fabric binding and the dress fastens with a side lapped zip. The zip is really lovely, actually, if you can believe that - it's a very high-quality metal zip. Thumbs up all around for quality. The dress comes with a self-fabric sash belt which - well, look, I guess other people can make those work, but I can't. I always end up looking like a sack of potatoes that has been badly tied around the middle. I think this dress looks grand without it, but I will be looking out for a nice shiny patent red or navy belt.

I went full-on nautical when I wore this the other day, pairing it with another Lobster-themed garment...


The Brigitte dress has the sort of silhouette that I gravitate towards - a fitted bodice with a gathered skirt - and it fits true to the size chart on the website. I asked for a size 8 and I think it fits very nicely for an off-the rack dress. It's very lovely all round and it's a dress I'll wear lots in the hot weather - it's breezy and cool and cute.