Autumn musings with Keely from Hell Bunny

As a bigger hipped girl, I’ve definitely been incredibly excited to see some of my favourite brands have recently bought out some more 1940’s style items. With a 44 inch hip and a bit of a tummy, it can be rather hard for me to find true vintage 1940s pieces that fit…and sadly most reproduction companies seem to favour the 1950s and 60s than the 40s. Hell bunny bought out an amazing 1940s range over the past few years and I’ve loved the pieces from this range that I have in my wardrobe. So when I saw the Keely dress from Hell Bunny at Atomic Cherry, I knew I needed to add it to my wardrobe as well!

Flowers ~ Red Rose Double from Daisy Jean Floral Designs
Brooch ~ High Heels Traditional Tattoo Brooch from Bel Air Baby
Dress ~ Keely Dress in red by Hell Bunny from Atomic Cherry
Shoes ~ Nita heels from Royal Vintage Shoes (read review here)

With much excitement I made my purchase from Atomic Cherry and had my Keely dress in my hands within 48 hours, much to my delight. The Keely dress is made of a textured polyester crepe fabric which I’ve found has been surprisingly light and breathable in our recent hot Sydney climate. It has shoulder pads, which help give a more authentic 40’s shape and the buttons up the front are functional: no zip here! You button yourself in and then back out. It does feature a nifty little press stud near the button at the waist button to help keep that part of the dress snug and closed which helps create smooth lines and a cinched waist.

 

The Keely dress features darts on the back of the bodice to help nip even more at the waist. I do love the looseness of the skirt in comparison to the beautiful subtle detail in the top half of this dress. The shoulder pads also help to balance out my pair shape and make me appear more hour glassed. I’ve found as well the cut of this dress is great for gals who don’t always want to wear a petticoat. I tend to wear this dress without one as I find it gives it a more authentic 1940s feel. It still is super full skirt though, just the weight of the fabric means its not as light and fluffy as other cotton skirts are.

The front of the Keely dress is truly the statement piece however. The pin tuck detail at the top of the bodice and the pleats in the under bust give this dress character and style. Its classy without going too over the top and its block colour makes it fun to accessorize with different colours. For this look I chose to keep it simple with blacks and reds. My Nita heels from Royal Vintage Shoes gave the perfect 1940s feel, though I also love teaming this dress with my Royal Vintage Spectator heels in both brown and black!

For this review I felt a simple brooch was enough of a statement. I opted for this gorgeous Tattoo style High Heel brooch from Australian small business Bel Air Baby. Sizing wise I bought the Large but could have easily sized down to a medium comfortably. In truth the large for me is a bit big in the shoulders and bust. The Keely dress is quite generous in its sizing.

I hope you’ve all enjoyed this review! For those who follow my Instagram I’ve worn this dress a fair bit the past few months because I absolutely adore it. Its such a great dress for days when I don’t want to wear foundations as well as days when its too hot for clothes. The texturing in the fabric really helps it breath despite it being quite heavy. I bought the Keely dress from Atomic Cherry for $99AUD + postage. A stunning dress I know I’m going to get a lot of wear out of! Now just to find all the amazing hats to wear with it!

Also, can you tell by the 'autumnesque' setting I'm in denial that its still a scorching summer here? Bring on winter!

Amazing photos courtesy of Photographer Phil Ingram. 

Til next time darlings