Vintage Lace Puff Sleeve Dress

Heirloom lace. Covered buttons. A skirt that turns.

A white lace dress with the quiet, old-fashioned lines of a christening gown, this is one of the most understated flower girl dresses in the collection: a mandarin collar standing softly at the neck, a row of self-covered buttons running the length of the front, long puff sleeves gathered at the shoulder, and a full skirt that falls in deep folds to the knee. The floral lace runs edge to edge, hem included, and finishes in a scalloped lace border.

Photographs Without Glare
The lace is matte, with no sequins or shine to catch a flash. In church light, garden light or a studio it reads as texture rather than sparkle.

Lined Where It Touches
A smooth lining sits under the lace through the bodice and the skirt, so the pattern stays on the outside and nothing scratches at the neck or the arms.

Built for a Long Afternoon
The seam sits at her natural waist with no stiff boning, and the gathered skirt leaves room to sit, kneel and run between the ceremony and the cake.

A Neckline That Stays Neat
The mandarin collar closes high and holds its shape, so the front still looks tidy in the photos taken at the end of the day.

More Than One Wearing
Ivory lace and long sleeves carry from a winter blessing to a spring wedding to a birthday lunch, so the dress is worn again rather than packed away.

It was made for weddings, walking ahead of the bride in lace that sits well next to her own, and it works just as easily as one of our girls formal dresses for a christening, a naming day or a family portrait session. For a first birthday or a cake smash it reads as a proper white dress for girls instead of a costume, and it holds its own among birthday girls dresses for the years after that.

The details

• Style: Vintage-inspired lace dress with a fitted bodice and a full gathered skirt
• Color: Ivory
• Fabric: Floral lace over a smooth lining
• Neckline: Mandarin stand collar
• Sleeves: Long puff sleeves, gathered at the shoulder
• Closure: Self-covered buttons down the front placket
• Silhouette: Fitted bodice, full A-line skirt
• Skirt: Layered lace finished with a scalloped hem
• Length: Knee-length
• Occasion: Weddings, christenings, first birthdays, formal portraits, holidays
• Sizes: 2T to 10 (80-140 cm)
• Season: Fall, winter and spring, and indoors year-round
• Care: Hand wash cold or dry clean, lay flat to dry, cool iron on the lining only