Laura Ashley, I'm sorry I ever doubted you
Plus a bad dupe an fun dresses for muggy days
On a lunch break meander the other day I found myself in the Manchester city centre branch of Mango, browsing lots of ‘nice but not quite right’ things. My eye was caught by this dress, not least because it eerily resembles a vintage Laura Ashley silk dress I pulled out of my wardrobe a few days previously.
The Laura Ashley dress is a vintage gem I sourced via Vinted. I hadn’t worn it in a while, mostly because it leans slightly purple and I’ve been leaning heavily into primary colours of late. I’d worn it on my birthday though, because it was a weirdly humid, overcast day and the event was a Manchester street party. It’s 100% silk, though not very clingy, and has a silhouette that, for me, feels fun without being an egregious party dress. It’s floral but not ditzy or hippyish or too festival adjacent. It’s an ideal summer throw on, and I immediately felt bad for letting it languish in my wardrobe unworn for basically close-minded reasons.
When I wore it the other day (styled with loafers and a lemon yellow shirt tied around my waist which served no purpose but matched my manicure), I posted it online and received a message from a mutual to say that they also have the exact same one. Good vintage finds its audience, it seems. I think the Mango appropriation it too close to be a coincidence, which raises some interesting points about what is considered a contemporary silhouette.
What’s so interesting about the Laura Ashley ‘original’ is that while it is a slip dress in the same way that the Mango one is, and therefore categorically sexy, there are some seriously frumpy elements to it too. The neckline sits sort of straight and high, vs the Mango’s more plunging neckline. There’s also no slit, and the straps aren’t spaghetti thin. It’s also silk, whereas the Mango one is viscose. This isn’t me trying to be preachy or smug - it is generally interesting how different these subtle design shifts make a garment feel. One is a dress I can casually wear, the other is one I’d have to psyche myself up to wear, and I’d probably feel out of sorts even if I did. I suppose this is a body confidence thing, but it also isn’t. It’s a good design thing.
What’s interesting about the Laura Ashley dress is its consideration to form. It doesn’t look like much on a hanger, but there’s a deep understanding of how garments sit. I don’t wear ‘slinky’ dresses as a rule, but I’ll wear this. Also, it still looks good after a day spent at a muggy street party in Stockport in July. The Mango one looks cute on a model, it would also crease beyond recognition after 0.5 seconds.
Obviously it’s not radical to point to the deteriorating quality of mass-produced garments over time. What is interesting to me though is that these pieces are still very much available, not that hard to seek out, and that they have a perceptible emotional effect - I feel like I am wearing something which a human designed, and that human paid some attention to wanting me to feel a certain way in them. The Mango one is a dress that was designed to create an attractive digital image. There’s a few iterations of the purple LA dress on Vinted as we speak. It’s also available in red, which I have already bought (for £25).
So in honour of the Laura Ashley dress that made my birthday, and made me enjoy wholeheartedly the experience of wearing an ostensibly girly, floral dress, here’s the best of affordable secondhand 90s slip dresses on Vinted. Other reselling platforms are available, but I just don’t bother with them.
Aha the theory checks out. You’re dead right about “outdoor lingerie” and construction, that’s a great point. Thank you ❤️❤️
I HAVE THAT RED DRESS!! The cut isn't on the bias, so the shape of it (darted) feels a bit more structured than what I'd expect of a slip dress, also the lining makes it more of an actual dress vs outdoor lingerie. But it's a good pick for cooler weather (lining is acetate, bit sweaty for summer), the blue looks amazing on you and goes really well with the pale yellow shirt and red lipstick.