After my negative review in March of my Sealed With A Kiss items, the company contacted me and wanted to know how they could make it right.

It seems that my post on this blog and also in the fatshionista! community had caused quite a stir, and the CEO contacted me himself so they could better understand my beef with their clothes and how they could improve.

Right off the bat I was impressed. It takes a certain kind of person and a certain kind of company to step up and take responsibility for their inferior product. Not only that, but they were willing to go straight to the source (aka me, the shopper) to find out what I really want out of a clothing retailer. Believe me, I had lots of suggestions to make!

After several long and educational conversations (for us both!) I am happy to report that SWAK appears to be one of those companies that want to go the extra mile and please their customers. They listened to my suggestions and addressed many of my issues and I feel that if they can run with this and actually implement some lasting changes/improvements they could become a major player in the lucrative plus-size clothing market.

To show their improvement progress, they sent me their new Veronica Maxi Dress to test-drive.

Here’s what I think

I like this dress. For around $60 CAD it’s not a bad buy and is a marked improvement over the last two dresses I purchased from SWAK.

A very long maxi dress, this garment comes with adjustable straps and a waist tie which helps you adjust the dress to your figure. Thank goodness because at 5’6″ I was almost too short to rock this!

I really liked the pattern on the fabric and the colour choices. I received it in the violet colour and it looked great. The pattern was an appropriate scale and had enough visual interest to not only make a beautiful dress, but also to give me a more slender look when I wore it.

The “boobie cups” at the top (I know, I’m so technical, right?) were molded foam which gave my chest a pleasant shape. With the adjustable straps I was also able adjust how much cleavage I wanted to show.

In terms of construction and fabric… well, you get what you pay for. For a $60 dress it wasn’t too bad. The polyester/spandex material was rather thin, but draped well for a synthetic. I also enjoy the silky feel to it and how it feels swooshing against my legs as I walk.

I wouldn’t recommend wearing it on a very hot day, however. The material tends to keep the heat close to your body (as all synthetics do) and could easily become uncomfortable. I didn’t actually get a chance to wear this until today since the weather has been SO hot and humid!

I might also try and hem the bottom a little bit. Most of the stitching and seams were solid enough but I worry about the flimsy hem on this dress. It skims so close to my feet that I’m worried I will step on it and tear the fabric.

All in all, I am pleased with this dress and would recommend it to my (taller!) friends. I can see myself wearing it a lot more this summer, since I got a lot of attention in it today as I was out & about! (and my mom wants to steal it)

I like that it’s not too expensive, it feels comfortable & stable and that the colour and design are so eye-catching.

I also want to mention that it looks better in person than on the model!

Worth it?

I think so!