If I had to choose a favourite vintage brand, it would have to be Miss Candyfloss. Their Autumn/Winter lines especially floor me every year, always producing elegant, stylish, and seasonally-appropriate pieces no matter the theme of their inspiration for the season. This winter the inspiration for their new line was Dior’s iconic New Look, and their resulting releases have been just as extraordinary. So much so that each time I’ve managed to snag a piece it has almost always sold out within hours, let alone by the time the parcel containing my order arrives in my hands. As such, deciding whether to blog sold-out styles has been a conundrum I’ve repeatedly faced, not wanting to torture the ladies who missed out while also feeling these pieces are so beautiful they deserve a spotlight here on the blog.

This week, knowing once again that this latest dress of mine might have sold out by the time this review goes live, I decided it was too lovely a piece not to get its own photoshoot. Folks, let’s all marvel at the Ambre-Wine together.

Dress: Ambre-Wine C/O Miss Candyfloss
Gloves: Primark
Hat: Amazon
Bag: Kooki De Lou
Shoes: Rose Gold Viviene heels by Hotter

This dress contains many of my favourite design aspects for a winter piece. Featuring grey check and burgundy, it includes both my favourite colour to wear in cold weather and my favourite style of print. The blazer-style bodice that flares into a complimentary peplum over a swing skirt is, I think, my all time best-loved of Miss Candyfloss’s dress cuts, flattering on every body shape and superlatively chic. It’s topped off with a coordinating notched belt to tie the look together and cinch the waist. 

Looking back at all this, it seems a little crazy to me now that I almost didn’t snag this dress at all, instead originally thinking I would prefer the Mathilde dress, a similar dress shape in a grey-brown tweedy fabric. Both dresses were released at the same time and seeing them listed side by side on the website, suddenly I had to decide–which one, really, if I was being sensible, was most unlike anything else already in my wardrobe? I opted for the Ambre-wine and am so glad I did. 

The quality of this dress, both of its design and construction, is superb, as is the case for every Miss Candyfloss piece I have ever owned. The fabric has a nice weight to it to help keep you warm in winter, while the modest contrasting-collar neckline makes it work-wear appropriate even while its utter chicness allows the stylish to wear it socially for any occasion they wish. 

The asymmetrical curved button-panel running the length of the bodice not only features functioning buttons, but coupled with the short zip hidden at the top of the skirt beneath the peplum in the front of the dress is the way you get in and out of it. As someone who hates side zips but can also sometimes struggle to get a back zipper done up alone over my shoulderblades if the dress is a snug fit in the bust, this button and hidden front zip configuration is the easiest and most stress-free way to get into a dress I’ve ever encountered, elevated further by the fact that doesn’t pose any risk to the state of one’s freshly styled brush-out. What more could a girl want? Oh, well, sure, pockets, I can hear you think. But, good news! While Miss Candyfloss haven’t typically included pockets in their styles in the past, moving forward into SS19 and beyond they plan to incorporate pockets into their pieces after so many fans requested them. Hallelujah! 

I’m wearing this dress in my standard Miss Candyfloss 2XL and it’s true to their usual sizing. The bust flat measures approximately 43 inches with stretch to 46, while the waist lays flat at 38 with about an inch of give. The skirt is 27.8 inches long and can fit a medium volume petticoat well. 

As a final note, I wanted to touch on the reason behind the limited availability of Miss Candyfloss pieces on the whole and why they sell out so quickly. As a company they pride themselves on producing their pieces ethically in Europe and in limited numbers as a counter to the problems that fast-fashion and mass consumerism are wreaking on our planet. This is why, as frustrating as it is to log on to their website ready to snap up the newest release you’ve been saving for only to discover it’s already sold out, they haven’t drastically increased their production numbers over the past couple years as their popularity has exploded, though they have upped production.

Following Miss Candyfloss on social media is the best way to keep abreast of the latest release news and schedule times, as they now announce the release date and time 1-2 days ahead of the release for the pieces that ladies have expressed the most interest in from that season’s line up. (They also release a lookbook online before the start of every season which previews most of the styles in the new season, allowing you to plan ahead for what you most want to buy.) When a popular piece sells out on their website they are now in the habit of tagging all global stockists of that piece in the caption of any posts featuring said item on social media so that customers can track it down elsewhere, but they are also happy to answer any emails from customers who would like to know the stockists for particular items. Finally, they’re also recently created a Facebook group in which members can swap or sell any Miss Candyfloss pieces, and staff and members alike help to find old or sold out styles for ladies who are desperately searching for The One That Got Away.