A few days ago at the 5th Ave Anthropologie, I had a lovely surprise. I ran into my cohorts from the Styled With Anthro posts! While making the rounds to peruse the sale items I heard the unmistakable sound of Usha’s voice in the fitting room. We chatted for a bit. Then when I was walking out Keenan was right there — I almost ran into her, literally. We had a wonderful mini-reunion and I hope I didn’t keep Keenan from making her dance class! I love seeing peeps from the community out in the wild.
Oh Anthro, I would really love to do another one of those posts someday.
★★★★★
Like a mirror that sees into the past, Deletta’s Voila Top ($78) has classic Anthropologie written all over it. With strips of silk, panels of lace and little scalloped dots along the front v to enjoy I spent a few minutes admiring all the pretty details before actually trying the top on. I had a hard time choosing between the colors. I chose the sage for the full review but you’ll see the dusty mauve later this week under a sweater.
I was able to size down to a small in this top easily. If I were less hippy I might have been able to go down again to an extra small. This top has an underlayer to it (thank goodness) to keep things demure. I found the diagonal ruffle hit in the perfect spot above my bust without making me look droopy. There’s no itch factor here though the lace is a bit scratchy. Take care as well to remove any jewelry before putting this top on or taking it off. There is no question that I am in love. The hardest choice will be which color to buy this in. I’m leaning towards the mauve since it’s the dead of winter but come spring I feel I’ll want the sage too. In my cart as we speak.
Of course just when I thought Anthropologie had abandoned sheer, along comes C. Keer’s Military Henley ($58). It’s like I’m in fashion hell and the only material is heathered, crappy cotton. I get it. Cotton’s expensive right now. But does anyone really expect us to buy see-through tee shirts just to save a few bucks? From what I can see online all the colors look sheer. It feels cheap to me. Bleh.
After suppressing my continued grumbles I grabbed a medium to try on. The fit is close to the body but not entirely uncomfortable. I’m glad I was wearing a layering cami underneath though. The pocket over the chest is a cute touch that is unnecessary on someone of my cup size. At least it did not stretch or become misshapen. I do like the tab sleeves quite a bit as well as the pretty hardware along the shoulders. There’s something interesting going on with the deconstructed, raw-edge v along the front and the asymmetric seam trailing down. You’ll want to spray the raw edges to protect them. I didn’t feel like this top would fall apart immediately but I also doubt its long-term durability.
I like the ideas in this top. I have a feeling I should have tried the black instead. I’ll give this one another shot on sale but there is no way I’m paying full price. For now, wishlisted.
Whoa, quality issues! When I tried the Slung Silk Blouse ($98) on I thought the weird long tail bottom hem with a heavy right side was intentional. Turns out it’s probably a production error that slipped by quality control. I’m relieved to know the shirt wasn’t intentionally designed to be longer on one side than the other. Then again, I’m disappointed to see this make it to the shelves.
I usually size up in Lil/Fleur Wood and that was again the case here. Moving up from my usual size 6 to an 8 lended a perfect fit. I think the front panel with the tiny buttons is so well executed. There’s unexpected depth within from seams that run diagonally across from each side. This blouse seems simple upon first glance but has so much more to inspect up close. If you like 70s style you’ll enjoy the pooled sleeves that pouf slightly around the wrists and the slight ruching at the shoulders. These effects tend to look sloppy on me, but not here. A beautiful top but the production error on the hem is inexcusable and gets two stars knocked off. Wishlisted for now.
I’m sad I didn’t get a chance to share this review before the Mezza Top (now $170) went on sale. Then again, maybe that’s for the best as I was swooning over this delicate embellished top. First, a few warnings. This top is heavy. It probably weighs a couple of lbs due to the beading. Secondly, it’s very delicate. While the beads are fastened impeccably this shirt will require gentle and careful movements to shimmy into. There’s no zip here — it’s pullover or bust.
I found my usual size medium to fit wonderfully. (It is pulling at the hips in the photo above because I tried it on over a heavy dress. Later on over jeans it was fine.) This dress is a little too much to wear to my work. It’s times like this when I wish I worked in the fashion world or at an art gallery or somewhere would I could rock this on a daily basis. I mean, I could wear it to my work but the engineers would (legitimately!) crack wise.
The silk crepe material is thin but not weak. The beads are heavy in weight but not in styling. It’s great to see Anthropologie commission a piece like this. I want it! I want it badly, but I will probably wait to see if this gets a 2nd cut.
When is a top by Fleur Wood not by Fleur Wood? When it’s by Lil instead. I seriously cannot figure this brand out. Every tag says Lil but sometimes the line is different??? Je ne comprends pas. Either way, this top is surely called the First Hints Blouse ($118). Anthro declares this top has a base of blue. Compared to my jeans it seemed very black indeed. Quibbles aside I was excited to try this top on.
I once again sized up from a 6 to an 8. I’m not sure the 8 was the right size though. I honestly think a 10 might have worked better for a bit more length. Why this top is so short I don’t know. A good two or three inches more and we’d be in business. I keep looking back to the product shot. It shows sleeves that seem much longer than what I got in real life. I want those full-length sleeves, not these 3/4 fakers.
Even with the discrepancies I adored the pattern on this top. The wide neck on this dolman matched with the longer sleeves create a flattering shape. Or they would if the length was better. Sigh. This one is most likely a pass for me, but I highly recommend it!
★★★★☆
One more casual top to throw into the mix. This is Deletta’s River Bends Tunic ($58), a long and twisty cotton-poly thing with seams galore. I hemmed and hawed over which size to try and initially tried on a large. I found it to be too loose at the sides and in the back so it was back down to my usual size medium for the photos above. Admittedly there are some lumps and bumps to be seen but it was a better fit overall.
On the dress form this top really does have movement and I can see the waves flowing across. Add my curves into the mix and it looked more like I’d sewn the remnants of two tops together. Still, the longer I wore this top the more I talked myself into it. From the side it looks pretty good and I think that with the right undergarments it could work from the front too. I’d understand if you disagree with my take but as a mid-layer this top works for me. Wishlisted for further consideration at sale time.
