Marquiese Ginham dress by L'ecole Des Femmes review

The Marquise Ginham dress features crisp gingham cotton, self-covered buttons, a box pleated skirt, and lace-trimmed cuffs with ties for decoration. All these details make for a feminine and girly frock fit for spring, summer, and fall.

Fit

The bust (unwashed) in a medium is likely good for a 36 inch bust. Since the sleeves are not patterned for mobility, I do not recommend buying small if you want to be able to lift your arms.

I see evidence of some seam-ripping at the cuff. Whatever the mistake, this cuff was noticeable tighter than the other. Maybe I have wide forearms, but the elastic was a bit on the tight side to begin with. On the cuffs there are ties, but these do not tighten the cuffs, they are purely for decoration.

The neckline is not as low as some of my other dresses which makes it a nice choice for more casual days.

Over all, as it is slightly loose on me, it is a comfortable dress. The hem is long enough if you have a butt. I remember looking almost longingly at those able to wear shorts and miniskirts and have nothing show--this hem length will likely work well for all shapes. To maintain this length, however, I would not follow the tag directions for the first wash, as I anticipate the 100% cotton would shrink if casually tossed in the washer and dryer.

Quality

This was not the only item I ordered that had issues. I've limited this post to prevent this blog from looking like a brand-roast. The Marquise had the following slips in quality:

Below you can see a snag in the fabric and some stitches coming loose at the zipper.

The button panels do not exactly line up. Note this normally sells for over $200.

On the inside of the collar, it looks like a flaw in the fabric or a dull needle catching the threads and creating a run. The fuzzy section center-left is where it started to fray.

Upon close inspection, the fabric seems to be pulling at the threads. Perhaps the thread is too thick for the fabric, or the tension was not right. The photos featured in this blog are of the dress only tried on, and not worn and washed. 

Customer Service

They have a strict returns policy, so approach with caution.

I sent a message asking about what size to buy since they run small. I used two different personal email addresses in their "contact" page to send the message. I also sent an email to their paypal address, and a message on their Instagram with other questions. I called their phone number (something I never do) which no one answered. All five methods received no response.

I returned one item for store credit, and their customer service reached out letting me know it was received. I responded with my same sizing questions and FINALLY got a response.

After multiple returns and reorders with my store credit, I was finally issued a refund (this is against their policy). This was mostly due to issues on their end (improperly sewn goods, incorrectly advertised products, etc.). After all the problems I had with what I ordered, I'm not sure who is more relieved: myself, or their customer service? ;)

Unfortunately most product listings have very few details. Does it have pockets? A zipper? What is it made out of? What is its sizing? I understand it is tedious for a smaller business, but one would expect this for a $200+ product listing.
*Edit: they have recently updated their site to include more product information. Unfortunately, it shows what a large percentage is made of polyester.*