Pinny Perfection in La Redoute

La Redoute had never really been on my radar when it comes to online shopping. I don’t why, but I had always considered it a little bit dour, a little bit boring. I don’t wear I got this misconception from because, having stumbled across the site whilst looking for midi skirts before Christmas, I pretty much love every item they have on offer.

Since Christmas I have faithfully plowed their New In for outfit ideas and inspirations. One item that really took my fancy was a pinafore. There is something appealing about a good old fashion pinny – they are a little bit prim, a little bit proper, a little bit playful. I feel my personal style is all of these things – prim, proper, playful – so a pinny must be had, right?

The R Edition Pinafore dress is a classic black style with a plain A-line skirt and a crossover fronted top with a deep v-neck to the front and back and bare sides. It is simplicity at its core which, to me, feels very Parisian chic.

I’m wearing a size 18 in this dress and it doesn’t really fit perfectly. The waist band is snug, which suggests that the dress comes up a little small as my waist is by far my smallest point. The tightness of the band means I’m wearing it a little higher than it is perhaps intended which in turn means the cross-over top of the pinny gapes a little. If the waist band were just that little more generous, I could wear the band further down on my waist and thus take up the slack on the material.

That said, I feel a size up would be too big. Given that I love this dress, I’m perfectly happy to put up with the slightly gaping top half!

I’ve style the pinny in true French style – with a striped bardot and sleek accessories. I love pairing a knee length skirt with ankle boots and the grey of these works really well to contrast all the black.

The simplicity of the dress also means you can really play with how you wear it – I’m thinking of summer pairings with a simple cropped-boob tube or a simply blouse for work. I also love the idea of pairing it with a sheer body like this beauty from ASOS.

The dress is priced at £35 which is perfectly reasonable for such a timelessly classic item! It comes in size 6 – 22 and