The Dress with Gathered Panels by Coquette is available in sizes S-L. I normally wear a size XL but after I had read js50’s review on the dress and seen her photos, I knew I had to try it. I purchased the size large.

The dress arrived on a black padded hanger and the dress was protected by plastic. There were no text or photos on the plastic bag. There was a cardboard tag attached to the dress with a few photos of a model wearing the outfit. The tag also stated the company name, website, product name, size, and colour. The padded hanger that is included is perfect to use to store the dress in your closet.



The dress is 80% nylon and 20% spandex, exclusive of trim. The black material to the dress is very stretchy while the burgundy material does not have any stretch. The shoulder straps are stretchy as well. The black material does not become sheer the more it is stretched.

Below are a few measurements of the dress laying flat, unstretched. If you need additional measurements, please message me and I will get them for you.

Chest (armpit to armpit): 15 inches
Cup length: 5 ¼ inches
Cup width: 7 inches
Adjustable shoulder strap length: 9- 16 ¼ inches
Width at bottom of dress: 20 ¼ inches
Length (armpit to bottom): 24 inches

The chest, shoulder strap, and bottom of dress measurements that I’ve listed above are with the areas not being stretched. The very top of the dress is trimmed with elastic and the black material is stretchy so the chest can be widened. The shoulder straps can also be stretched to add length and the bottom of the dress can be widened because of the black stretchy material.

There are 2 burgundy coloured panels that run down the front of the dress. The gathered panels get wider as they reach the bottom of the dress. At the top of the dress, the panels are approximately 4 inches wide and they are approximately 7 inches at the very bottom. The burgundy colour is also at the top front of the dress (the chest and just slightly below it). The burgundy colour at the top of the dress has a black floral lace overlay to it.

The cups are trimmed with black ruffle. The ruffle is just less than 1 inch in length. There are 2 round decorative buttons between the cups. These buttons are ½ of an inch in diameter each. These buttons are only sewn to the dress with a couple of threads. If you don’t like them, you could easily remove them with a pair of scissors. If you like the buttons, you may want to sew a few more loops through the back of them to secure them better.



1 inch beneath the cups, there is a black velvety trim. This trim is just over ½ of an inch in length and only sits at the front of the dress. Beneath the black trim, there is a flap of black floral lace. The lace is 2 ¼ inches at its longest and like the trim, only sits at the front of the dress. There is no decoration at the back of the dress- it’s the solid black stretchy material.

The shoulder straps are stretchy and adjustable in length with a little tab similar to a bra strap. The shoulder straps are not detachable. The cups to the dress have a thin layer of padding in them and they do have underwire.

So it was time for the moment of truth… would it fit me, or would it not? Here is a bit of information about my body: I wear a C38 bra, my hip measurement is 41 inches, and I’m 5’6 in height. I weight in the high 160’s (not sure of the exact number) and I carry most of my weight in my belly and thighs.

My C cups fit nicely into the cups of the dress. I was able to fit the rest of my body into the dress but it didn’t look as nicely as it could have. The black panel running down the centre front of the dress is very thin. It’s also very form fitting. Depending on how comfortable you are with your belly area, you may or may not like this. I personally don’t like that it’s so tight and revealing of my chub. I mean, you can even see where my belly button is.



Another thing to note about the thin fabric is that any underwear or pantyhose lines will be seen through the dress. The lines aren’t noticeable at the gathered areas but they can be seen at the centre front and the back of the dress.

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The length of the dress was a bit short for my taste. The bottom of the dress fell right below my bum. If I were to bend over, my bum would be exposed. Also, the dress does like to creep up while you’re wearing it so even walking around makes the bottom come up your body a bit. If you’re around my height or taller, you may want to wear opaque leggings beneath the dress.

The dress was really comfortable to wear. I didn’t find the material to be irritating to my skin at all. I also did not find any quality issues with this piece. There were no loose threads or uneven stitching to the dress that I had received. The care tag states that the dress should be hand washed and hung to dry.

Overall, I think the dress is so beautiful, a good price, and would look great on some people. Sadly, I don’t feel like I am one of those people. Perhaps if the dress came in a size XL, I’d be a bit more comfortable in it. I don’t like how it clings to my belly but then again, I’m a size XL wearing a size large outfit. I’m giving the outfit a 4 out of 5 because even though it doesn’t fit me as nicely as it could, I’ll definitely be keeping this in my closet for the day that I can actually feel confident in it. I deducted the one star because of how short the dress is and lack of sizes available.