You guys must know this by now; I’m a burgundy fan, and I don’t mean the wine. For a long while it seemed hard to find vintage inspired pieces in this colour and given its tone-perfect match for wear in colder months it always baffles me that it isn’t more widely utilised for AW lines by repro brands. In late summer as I waited for the new season’s catalogues to go out I lived again in hope that there would burgundy pieces for me to buy, to wear, to love. The first line I previewed was Hell Bunny’s and what would you know, there it was, the Sherwood 50s dress, sleeved and cute and available in the burgundy of my heart’s desire. Hell Bunny, you darlings, you’ve answered my wishes again.

Dress: Sherwood 50s Dress C/O Hell Bunny
Shoes: Old New Look
Bag: Lola Von Rose

Sometimes when I’m out and about running errands of a weekend in my pinup getups a person might tap my elbow while we’re waiting at a pedestrian crossing to tell me how much they like my style, or perhaps call something similar out to me over the fish counter in my local Tesco. It doesn’t happen as much as people might assume (or perhaps maybe it happens less than you’d expect) but the part I always find interesting is that it always happens in clumps. It won’t be one stranger who kindly pauses their day for a moment to tell me something sweet, it will be 3 or 4 or 5, all captured by the same outfit. And the funny part is, to me, I won’t be able to tell what’s so different about that outfit which captured people’s attention compared to my other 50s inspired outfits I’ve worn which didn’t.

This Sherwood dress, as it happens, it one of those dresses that captures people. Maybe they, too, love a good burgundy and feel it’s an underappreciated colour. Maybe the fit of the dress seemed especially flattering to them, or the velvet flocked pattern details especially glamorous. Whatever it was, this dress goes down in the books as One Of The Chosen Dresses, a dress that passes the muster for people whose opinion I wasn’t even polling, inspiring them to say something kind to someone they’ve never met or known. To me that always makes a dress a little bit extra special.

The Sherwood dress is, as we’ve established, a gorgeous burgundy red, but it’s also available in a rich green. It features a woodland scene of stags and bunnies positioned amongst trees and falling leaves, all made of black flocking that gives this dress an extra layer of interest in both dimension and touch feel. The matching grommet belt is coated in the same black flocking and PU backed, so it’s pretty as well as sturdy and designed to stay put. The three quarter sleeves give some arm coverage for cooler weather and the crossover bust is flattering without being revealing. There’s pockets in the pleated skirt, which allows for a slim to medium volume petticoat. The dress closes with a back zip topped with a hook and eye.

Hell Bunny pieces always run half a size large as a rule and this dress fits their typical sizing. In my usual Hell bunny size 16/XL the waist flat measures 35 inches with stretch to almost 37 inches, while the bust measures 42 inches stretched to 46 inches. The armholes measure 21 inches and the circumference of the upper arms measure 14 iches stretched to 15 inches; as someone who has large upper arms, it’s nice to find a sleeved winter dress that doesn’t pinch or pull as I move about. Finally, the skirt measures 26 inches long.

The Sherwood 50s Dress comes in red or green in sizes XS-4XL for £60.99 – £64.99 (as always discount code AMYMAY20!% will get you 20% off all Hellbunny.com orders.) This pattern also comes in several other items, namely a swing skirt, a mini dress and a thick winter coat with faux fur trimming and flocked leaf detailing.