There are pretty dresses and gorgeous dresses, and there are even glamorous dresses, but there are also dresses that so entirely capture your love the moment you lay eyes on them that you can’t stop thinking about them. This Cheryl dress was just such a dress for me.

Dress: Cheryl Colourblock dress by Collectif bought from Unique Vintage [A/L]
Bag: Vintage
Brooches: Vintage Monet brooches
Shawl: Bottle green Chiffon scarf from eBay

At first glance, I could understand someone questioning the obsessive ‘I must have it!’ impulse this dress evoked within me–it’s a fairly simple colourblock dress, after all, so what’s the big deal? But there’s something about it for me that very much makes it A Big Deal. Perhaps it’s the square neckline, so rarely utilised compared to other necklines. Perhaps it’s the split in the skirt, half closed by functioning buttons, which allows you to get as cheeky as you want in a way that still hints at the innocence portrayed by a vintage playsuit set. Maybe it’s the rich green of the skirt. Maybe it’s the fact that all of those things combined make it feel casual and stylish in the most wonderful mid-century way, and yet there is still room to experiment with elegance. No matter what, this dress held a certain vintage je ne sais quoi for me that I could not get out of my head. Which made the fact that I could not get my hands on it rather frustrating.

If you, too, love this dress as I do then perhaps you’ve already rushed to Collectif’s website and found yourself facing the problem that I had–it is sold out. It took me a week of refreshing the Collectif product page hoping for a restock before I contacted them directly to query the status. It turns out that Unique Vintage bought up most of the stock via wholesale, so the small amount of remaining stock sold out at Collectif very quickly. Question answered, I ordered from Unique Vintage and was amazed at how quickly it arrived in my little hands even via their slower standard international shipping option. Now Cheryl and I are ready to spend the summer swishing and swaying in chic, timeless glory.

Having run through many of Cheryl’s design features above, there isn’t a lot left to fill you in on. The skirt features wide box pleats and that half side-split which can unbutton all the way to waist, should you wish. Said vent in the skirt does mean a petticoat would be easily seen if you insisted on wearing one, so for the visible-petti-adverse like myself that rules out underskirts. The box pleats create a nice shape to the skirt naturally, though, so for a casual style it loses no points for me in being un-petticoat-able. The ivory sleeveless bodice matches the PU-backed wide grommet belt it comes with, while the skirt is a deeply rich forest green. The dress closes with a concealed zip in the back, below a v-back.

Made from a cotton blend, there’s some stretch in the fabric. Still, I ordered this in a size 20 as these days an 18 feels too fitted for my constantly fidgeting self to be comfortable (tight seams drive me mad), while a 20 tends to sit a little loose. The waist flat measures just shy of 38 inches with stretch to 40, while the bust flat measures 45 inches with stretch to 48. The skirt is 30 inches long. The dress is machine washable.

The Cheryl dress by Collectif is currently only available from Unique Vintage, as Collectif have no plans to restock it this season. It comes in UK sizes 6-22. Unique Vintage ship worldwide and have a customer rewards program.

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Disclaimer: I bought this dress myself, but Unique Vintage and Collectif have gifted me other items in the past in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are truthful and my own, with no input from any of the companies listed or any other individuals. Items marked with (A/L) are Affiliate Links that would earn me a small commission from your order if used.

COVID-19 NOTE: These pictures were taken alone and safely in a secluded outdoors area with no other individuals present or passing, thus practising strict social distancing measures in an effort to help reduce the spread of Covid-19.