Joanie Clothing – Review
I want to first of all say how I wanted to come up with something witty for the title of this blog post this morning, but alas I failed. This is a post I’ve wanted to write for a while now, but I’ve just recently realised what I wanted to say and how I wanted to say it.
Let me just warn readers, this won’t be an amazing review. It’ll be one of those honest reviews that have a mixture of positive and negative thrown in there. If it wasn’t for my recently order, I probably won’t have written this post just yet. BUT whilst I’m fresh and ready to write about this, I NEED to get it down.
I can’t remember exactly when I heard about Joanie Clothing for this first time, but I have a feeling it was around Christmas just gone and it was through someone on Instagram talking about some of their dresses and jumpers.
Recently I decided I wanted to order myself some new dresses for work and in general. I took ages researching about the company and looking at all their clothes on the website before decided on a couple of pieces.
I want to first of all explain my understanding of Joanie. NOW to my knowledge, Joanie create vintage inspired pieces for all sizes.
From an idea first sparked in December 2015, Joanie was born out of a desire to create vintage-inspired style for the modern wardrobe, with fun, flirtation and femininity at its heart. Our brand is inspired by our Designer’s Great Aunt, Joanie; a glamorous woman who tapped and twirled her way through the fifties and sixties. She was always well-turned out with perfectly coiffed red hair and to this day, Joanie enjoys nothing more than an afternoon of tea dancing, indulging in high tea with friends, and an ice cold glass of ginger beer.
We’re passionate about making beautiful clothes, lovingly fashioned with a pinch of playfulness, a splash of quirkiness and a healthy dose of nostalgia. Whatever the occasion, our girl exudes an undeniable, effortlessly cool aesthetic and stands out from the crowd without making noise. The quintessential Joanie gal is quietly confident, witty and full of wonder – with an infectious fervour for life’s little pleasures. She wears her heart on her sleeve, is loyal to the end and prides herself on being a great friend. Believing that our look is for every body, Joanie’s pieces are always available in sizes 8-22. We are inclusive, not exclusive and celebrate individuals who know their own style; bringing them together as a united community where everyone is welcome. As a brand, we’re inspired by decades past and life’s surprising details; whether it be an intricate print on a china tea set, pretty embroidery on a collar or the pastel washed houses lining sea front villages on the Italian Riviera.
Joanie delivers the perfect antidote to run-of-the-mill fashion with a fun, youthful take on the vintage look, underpinned by timeless feminine silhouettes. With ranges of stand-out dresses, printed tops, cute skirts, novelty knits and unique accessories dropping regularly online, there’s always something new to be captivated by and covet. As Great Aunt Joanie would say, “that’s champion!”
I love what Joanie is about, I really do but as you’ll read in my review. Meh… You’ll see.
I decided to order two dresses from Joanie after much research via Google searches, Instagram posts and even asking a couple of bloggers on Twitter.
One of dresses was the Zooey Floral Collar Dress and the Calista Geometric Bee Print Dress.
The Zooey dress I grabbed in their sale and the Calista dress I got 10% off due to this being my first order from Joanie. I was chuffed by my discounts and savings and couldn’t wait for both the dresses to arrive! I had read on a blog post how the Zooey dresses can pull and gape a little across the bust, which was annoying to read but I hoped for the best!
When the dresses finally arrived I was so excited to get them out of the bag and try them on! The parcel arrived quite quickly and I saved money off of my postage due to ordering over £60, otherwise it’s £4.00 postage.
Dane came upstairs to look at the dresses as I tried them on and I am so glad he was there as a second pair of eyes. When I ordered the dresses he helped me decide. He loved the red Zooey dress I ordered, but hated the Calista Bee one. I loved them both, of course.
I tried the red Zooey dress on first, which I ordered a size up of as they didn’t have my own size left. I was incredibly disappointed by this dress for various reasons, which I also stated on my review of this dress on their website. I was sad to learn that what bloggers has been complaining about online, happened to be true. Due to it being a size too big I had no issues putting the dress on, but when it came to moving about in it, it was just a no no. The bust area of the dress is closed by buttons and I only moved a fraction and ALL the buttons popped open at the same time. I tried this over and over again to make sure it wasn’t just the once, it happened all 3-5 times I tested this out. My bust isn’t the smallest, but it also isn’t the biggest either so the fact the dress was a size up and this was occurring, I was really disappointed. Not only this, the dress made me look MASSIVE. It sat on my hips and it made me look like I was 3 sizes bigger than I actually am. It really did knock my confidence. Thankfully I had Dane there to encourage me and make me feel better.
I’ve read on the website on reviews for certain dresses that it isn’t just me who has had issues with the style and cut of Joanie’s dresses, others have had similar if not exactly the same problems.
I’m not meaning to bash Joanie Clothing in this post, but merely highlight the good and the bad things about the clothing. I like to think I’m “real” on my blog and talk about both good and bad things I’ve used/worn from lipstick, clothing and even customer service!
I really hope you enjoyed my post today however. I’m sure I’ll give Joanie Clothing another go in the future, but I doubt it’ll be dresses.
Have you shopped with Joanie Clothing before? If so, how were their dresses for you? Make sure to let me know in the comments!
Until next time, take care all and I hope you’re having an awesome bank holiday weekend!
