The Dolce & Gabbana Dress Edit: Which Length, Which Print, Which Occasion

Dresses are the largest single category Dolce & Gabbana makes and the largest part of
what Luxury Handbags carries. They start around $1,680 and the median sits near $4,470, so this is not
a category you browse casually. It helps to know what you are looking for before you start.

Two things decide almost every Dolce & Gabbana dress: the length and the print. Get
those right and the rest follows.

By length

Mini

The most body-conscious end of the collection, and where the corsetry lives. These are cut
close through the bodice by design, so the bust measurement matters more than the size number.
Best for evening, and they take a heel rather than a flat.

Midi and calf-length

The most versatile length in the house and the one that carries the widest range of prints.
A calf-length charmeuse dress in a rose print works for a lunch and for a wedding depending
entirely on the shoe. If you are buying one Dolce & Gabbana dress, this is usually the
length that earns its place.

Maxi and floor-length

Occasion territory. This is where the heaviest embellishment sits and where prices climb
fastest. Worth buying when you have the occasion, harder to justify speculatively.

By print

Roughly half the dresses are printed, and the print decides the register more than the cut
does.

• Rose on black. The signature. Reads as evening almost regardless of
  length. Add a heel and stop there.
• Rose on a pale ground. A genuinely different garment. Garden party
  rather than dinner, and it takes a flat sandal well.
• Majolica. Geometric and architectural, drawn from Sicilian tilework.
  It holds a structured shape better than the florals do.
• Leopard. Treated by the house as a neutral. On a slip dress it is the
  hardest and best version, and it wants nothing shiny near it.
• Solid black. A third of the dresses carry no print at all. If you want
  the construction without the decoration, this is where to look.

The print edit goes through each
motif in more detail, including the rule for wearing two at once.

Fabric, and what it means for fit

Charmeuse and silk twill dominate the printed dresses. Both fall closer to the body than a
woven cotton of the same size, which is the single most common reason a dress arrives fitting
differently than expected. Where the house publishes a length, we carry it through to the
product page, usually measured from the shoulder on a specific Italian size.

Most product pages also tell you the model is 175cm and wearing an IT 40, which is a UK 8.
If you are shorter, read a calf-length dress as closer to ankle-length on you.

Where to start

Browse
Dolce &
Gabbana dresses at Luxury Shoes , check the
size guide before ordering, and see
what the money buys if you are
deciding between this and another house.