Roland Mouret for Banana Republic Review

Roland Mouret for Banana Republic colorblock One Shoulder dress, Isabel Marant Poppy pumps and Prada sunglasses

I have been a fan of Roland Mouret since he first shot to fame and one of my favorite dresses of all time that I own is from his Galaxy dress days. In fact, I remember trying on the infamous Galaxy dress at Bergdorf Goodman; gorgeous dress, but I could neither breathe nor sit down in it. I noticed his dresses again this last season at Neiman Marcus, and was intrigued when I heard he was doing a collaboration with Banana Republic. I hadn't set foot in a Banana Republic in several years, but stopped by the Third Street Promenade store the day the collaboration launched last week. This one shoulder dress was my favorite, the cut is relatively flattering and with an identifiable "Roland Mouret" silhouette and details, and I like the fun but tasteful colorblocking. It's not a perfect fit, a little too big in the rear and bunchy in the chest, but I can't really expect it to fit seamlessly. This is a size 2, probably my regular designer size these days. Size zero fit, but was a little hard to breathe in. I liked the bright pink strappy sheath dress online (the only style dress which struck me as identifiably Roland Mouret), but the bunchiness with the darts in the chest area is exacerbated with the lighter colors like the pink. The sheath dress runs a little larger, I am definitely a size 0 in that dress. Not really a fan of any of the other styles in the collaboration; they seemed more Banana Republic and less Roland Mouret. I wish the dress had been released earlier before the series of weddings that we attended this summer; I had been shopping endlessly for a wedding appropriate dress before settling on a lovely but plain blue Chloe dress, but this dress would have fit the bill quite nicely (at a far more reasonable price).