The Jacquard Midi Dress, a Story Told in Midnight Blue
The Jacquard Midi Dress, a Story Told in Midnight Blue
The jacquard midi dress is for the woman whose Thursday has three rooms in it: a 10 a.m. board meeting, a 1 p.m. luncheon for the foundation she chairs, and a 6 p.m. reception where someone will ask what she does. She will not change between them. She wants to be taken seriously in the first room and remembered for her ease in the last, in one dress that looks different under each light.
This is the story of that dress, the Navy Jacquard Midi Dress, Lucy, and of the blazer and the coats that are woven the same way. It explains what a jacquard is, why it photographs the way it does, which size to take, and what to wear over it.
Shop the pieces in this story: Dresses, Blazers, and Light Coats. Complete size runs are listed first.
What a jacquard is, and why it changes with the light
A jacquard pattern is not printed on the cloth. It is woven into it at the loom, thread by thread, so the motif is part of the fabric’s structure and sits in slight relief. On the Lucy the pattern is tonal, midnight blue on midnight blue, which is why it reads as a plain navy from across a room and as a texture from across a table. Morning light flattens it. A chandelier picks it out. A printed dress does one thing all day; a woven one keeps changing.
A jacquard suits a day that refuses to stay in one category. It behaves in a boardroom because it is navy, and at a reception because it is not flat.
7:40 a.m., the dress
Picture the mirror at 7:40 a.m. The Navy Jacquard Midi Dress, Lucy, closes with a hidden zip at the back. The bodice is fitted and seamed, the neckline a soft V, the sleeves sheer three-quarter mesh that finish below the elbow and show the arm without baring it. The skirt is full from the waist and ends at mid-calf, with a band of sheer navy set above the hem, so the dress carries light at the ankle when you walk.
The cloth is 80 percent cotton and 20 percent structured technical crepe, over a breathable botanical lining. The cotton is why you can wear it from a morning meeting through a warm afternoon without it holding heat. The crepe is why the bodice keeps its shape after two hours in a chair. You notice it most at 4 p.m., when nothing has creased.
Fit: the Lucy runs slightly generous through the bodice and waist. Take your true size for a softly structured fit; between sizes, take the smaller. Sizes 4 through 14 are made. The model is 5 feet 9 inches in a size 4 and the hem sits at mid-calf. At 5 feet 4 inches the sheer band sits lower on the calf, which is graceful with a heel, and a tailor can shorten the skirt at the seam above the band without touching the sheer.
9:55 a.m., the blazer that turns the dress into a suit
Five minutes before the meeting the blazer goes over it. The Navy Tailored Jacquard Blazer, Lucy, is cut in the same midnight jacquard with notched lapels, flap pockets, a shaped waist, and a single decorative clasp at the front instead of a row of buttons. Fastened, the two pieces read as a skirt suit. Open, the V of the dress shows and the line softens. The blazer is lined throughout, so it slides on over the sheer sleeves without catching them.
The blazer runs true to size with a shaped waist; size up if you prefer more ease over a blouse. Sizes 2 through 14 are made. At 6 p.m. it is the piece you hand to the coat check, which is the whole point.
Who this dress is for
In 35 years of fittings, a fitted bodice with a full skirt is the shape that asks the least of the body. It gives an hourglass a waist without a belt. It flares over the hip on a pear shape instead of stopping at it. The sheer sleeve covers the upper arm for the woman who has decided she wants it covered, and the V neckline lengthens a short neck. If you carry weight at the midsection, the seamed bodice holds a clean line where a jersey would cling; take your true size rather than the smaller.
If you are tall, the mid-calf hem is where it should be. If you are petite, a pointed shoe in navy or nude keeps the line long. For the wider question of hem and body shape, read the most flattering dresses for a pear shape and the best dresses to skim the midsection.
The rest of the jacquard family
Luna makes three coats the same way, and each answers a different day.
The Beige Jacquard Trench Coat, Rea, is a cream tonal jacquard trench with storm flaps, snap buttons, a tie belt, and a knee-length hem: the coat for the mild days of spring and fall, over the navy dress, on the walk from the car. Sizes 2 through 10.
The Teal Floral Jacquard Light Coat, Emma, is a black light coat with a teal floral woven in metallic thread, a shirt collar, a tie belt, and a knee-length hem. This is the coat for the evening room, when the arrival is photographed and the coat is in the picture. Sizes 4 through 10.
The Silver Floral Jacquard Light Coat, Emma, is the same coat with the floral in silver on black, for the woman whose wardrobe runs to black, navy, and gray. Sizes 2, 6, 8, and 10.
The coats are dry clean only, once a season. The dress and the blazer are not: both are machine washable on a gentle cycle, air dried, and steamed on low, which is what lets you wear the Lucy on a Thursday and again the following Tuesday without a trip to the cleaner. For when a light coat is the right weight, read light coats for women from 50 to 70 degrees.
Before you decide
Every Luna piece is made in our own atelier in Pozarevac, Serbia, in a small run, a few of each size, and we do not reorder mid-season. Orders ship from California, shipping in the US is free, and returns are accepted for 30 days without questions. If the size is wrong, it goes back. If the color is right, you keep the Thursday.
The rational case, in one paragraph. A dress that carries three rooms replaces three dresses. Worn 20 times across two years, a $695 dress costs less per wearing than the ones bought for one occasion and never reached for again, and the blazer works over trousers and over the navy sheath you already own. For the full reasoning, is a 600 dollar dress worth it lays it out.
Frequently asked questions
What is a jacquard dress, and how is it different from a printed one?
A jacquard pattern is woven into the cloth at the loom rather than printed on its surface, so the motif is part of the fabric and sits in slight relief. On the Navy Jacquard Midi Dress, Lucy, the pattern is tonal, midnight blue on midnight blue: plain navy across a room, texture up close, and it changes with the light through the day.
Is the jacquard midi dress appropriate for work?
Yes, wherever a navy dress is. The Lucy has a fitted seamed bodice, sheer three-quarter sleeves, and a mid-calf skirt, and with the Navy Tailored Jacquard Blazer, Lucy, fastened over it the two read as a skirt suit. Hand the blazer to the coat check and the same dress carries a reception that evening.
How does the Lucy jacquard dress fit, and which size should I take?
It runs slightly generous through the bodice and waist. Take your true size for a softly structured fit; between sizes, take the smaller. Hidden back zip, fully lined, sizes 4 through 14. The model is 5 feet 9 inches in a size 4 and the hem finishes at mid-calf.
Can I wear the jacquard midi dress as a wedding guest or as mother of the bride?
Yes to both. Navy is respectful beside a bride, the sleeves cover the arm for a church ceremony, and the full skirt moves for the reception. Add the matching jacquard blazer for the ceremony and remove it for dinner. For a fall or winter evening wedding, the Teal Floral Jacquard Light Coat, Emma, is the arrival coat.
Is the jacquard dress machine washable?
Yes. The dress and the blazer are machine washable on a gentle cycle, then air dried and steamed or ironed on low. Do not bleach, and store both on a padded hanger to keep the structured shape. The jacquard coats, Rea and both Emmas, are dry clean only, once a season.
Choose the size, then choose the Thursday. The Navy Jacquard Midi Dress, Lucy and its blazer are in Dresses and Blazers, complete size runs listed first, and the jacquard coats are in Light Coats.
