Different styles of dresses can have different effects. Lately, I have been wondering whether the wiggle or swing style suits me best, which got me to thinking that each style has its benefits and pitfalls. Some dresses suit particular occasions better than others. I only have one vintage wiggle dress, and that is my glorious Alfred Shaheen sarong dress (oh how I love thee). The rest of my vintage frocks are swing style. I have decided to look to my vintage-inspired collection a la
pinupgirlclothing to see which style I'd prefer.
Let's look at wiggle dresses first. Do me a favour and disregard the ridiculous poses - I was just having a bit of a laugh with my poor husband who was wrangled into taking these photos.
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| Here we have the following dresses, left to right: Pinup Couture's Plum Jayne Glamour dress in satin, Dixiefried's Tiki Twist! in Asian-print brocade, and the Niagara dress in dark fuchsia stretch taffeta (a sample that I scored off a lovely PUGette via PUG Swap/Sell Community). The only one of these dresses that is still available is the Tiki Twist! at pinupgirlclothing. You can still purchase the Niagara dress in a few different colourways though. |
Forgetting the fact that I am obviously no model, wiggle dresses can be really flattering (in my case, when teamed with an awesome bra and shapewear). Not everyone is comfortable with a form fitting dress. Unless I'm wearing hardcore shapewear (Spanx in this case), then I'm not really confident with it myself - I am quite a hippy girl with a tendency to get a little bloated after I eat. I find that these are the kind of dresses that can make a gal feel sexy, but not necessarily like she wants to put away a large meal! A great style for a night out, special event or cocktail party, maybe even a black-tie wedding where you don't feel like wearing a full-length gown, leaving the legs free to party! That being said, I do love the hourglass effect that this style has on me.
Pinupgirlclothing makes a super-duper range of wiggle dresses, well-cut from high quality fabrics. In fact, there are so many great choices it's hard to pick just one dress sometimes ;)
Swing dresses... A different look for me, entirely!
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| Available from pinupgirlclothing. Left to right: Pinup Couture's Evelyn in rose print, The Courtesan Swing in Victorian Print from the Deadly Dames collection and the Pink Psychobilly Skull swing dress, also by Deadly Dames (no longer available). |
I find that swing style dresses have a sweetness about them. I love the flowing fabric and the circle skirts which hearken back to the femininity of the 50's. I get a real kick out of wearing these dresses and I especially love it when old women say, "I used to wear something similar back in..."
A swing dress, to me, seems less formal than a wiggle dress and it hides a multitude of sins (a great way of disguising my tummy when I overeat!). I feel comfortable enough to wear one shopping. As a teen, you would NEVER have got me into something like this, but as a young child, I loved that twirly effect that you would get from spinning around in a circle skirt. Well, there you go. I must have reverted back to my childish ways - I love twirling in my swing dresses! Perfect for a garden wedding, high tea, impressing your nanna... the list goes on.
So, which one? Choices, choices!
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| Two stunning women in two different styles. Photography by Laura Byrnes. Dresses (Micheline Pitt in the Vamp Dress - left, Masuimi Max in the Netti Dress - right) available at www.pinupgirlclothing.com |
Which do you prefer? I would love to know what YOU think.
Happy Friday x
You look like a totally different girl when you switch from wiggle to swing! It's amazing! You look great in all of them. It's pretty hard to decide which is best. You look so sweet in the swing numbers and hot in the wiggle dresses.
ReplyDeleteI prefer the look of swing dresses because to me, they are more evocative of a buygone era than the wiggle dresses you have pictured but to say you look better in one that the other. Nuh uh. You look great in all of them.
Aw, shucks! Thank you, Marie! I'm curious to know if people feel the same way about how a dress can match a mood, or whether or not one style is more appropriate for a particular even than another. I'd also love to know which style people enjoy most wearing and why?
ReplyDeleteI have to admit, I'm more at ease in a swing dress, but sometimes it's nice to change it up and pretend to be a bit foxy he he! Keeps 'em guessing!
I second what Marie said. I'd be hard pressed to choose. You look different yet equally wonderful in wiggle and swing. It's awesome you have the choice to wear either and look fabulous!
ReplyDeleteJust discovered your blog and I have been debating the same thing myself and I honestly see myself as a wiggle. I also think you look great in both styles.
ReplyDeleteHi RoyallySpooky :)
ReplyDeleteI hope you have enjoyed what you have read. These days, I'm leaning more and more towards swing styles. I guess they have more of an old-world appeal. Won't stop me from buying both though, he he!