Monday, February 13, 2012

Lolita Closet - Metamorphose Room Print

Ever since we wore lolita in Japan on our last trip, my sister has voiced that she would probably never own a brand print because sizing by brand companies is non-existent. It's hard for more fuller shaped ladies to wear lolita since most brands have one-size only items. Although most designs feature shirring panels, it's still difficult to find a dress that accommodate you if you're busty or have a fuller shape.
My sister wasn't deterred and still dressed up in the spirit of lolita when we were out and about in Japan. Right now the only brand pieces she owns are from Bodyline since they offer larger size ranges for some of their dresses. I've been keeping my eyes open to find a brand dress that my sister would like and would also fit in. After a few months of searching, I was successful.

Here is Metamorphose's Room Print JSK (Fully shirred)

Metamorphose Room Print Shirred JSK
The nice thing about this dress is that the bodice is fully shirred and can stretch up to 48", perhaps even 50". Even when I tried it on for fun it looked fine on me and I have a 34" bust. I think the border print design of this dress is adorable. It's based on a princess or fairytale room which is a theme that's consistent with Metamorphose.

Detail on the front bodice
Since the bodice is fully shirred, there isn't a zipper. Although you could probably just slip the dress on, one of the nice design details Meta did was to add a functional placket on the front. It's hard to see, but the bows can untie and you can unbutton the buttons to help you slip the dress on easier. The white lace and ruffles frame where the placket opening is. 

Detail on the inner part of the placket

Another nice detail Meta thought about was to add a snap at the top of the placket. Since the button at the top is about 1" away from the edge, they added a snap to help reinforce the shape and reduce stress on the top button. They really thought it out well!

Removable bows
The dress comes with two removable bows that are placed on the straps. I suppose if you didn't have the matching head band you could have turned these into hair clips. They're a nice cute shape and subtle within the design of the dress.

Metamorphose Room Print detail
Here's a picture of the border print! True to Metamorphose's designs, they have added many of their trademark swans into the print. They are in the motif on the door frame and the handles on the window frame. Until I looked closer I noticed they also added a pair of swans on top of the mirror frame and as the decoration handle for the drawer on the vanity. The picture frame has an image of two swans looking at each other. It's very whimsical and are classical Metamorphose details!
The print also features a cat and a poodle. It's very hard to spot the poodle since it blends into the background. The colorway is faulty for this because the poodle is more prevalent in the white/pink colorway. In the picture frame on the dresser, there's a photo of the poodle and cat next to each other like best friends!

You can also see that Meta used a simple lace along the hem of the dress.

Back of Room Print
This dress has the thinnest waist ties when compared to the dresses that I own. It doesn't take away from the overall design but it intrigued me to see that they were thin. The shoulder straps are adjustable if you remove the buttons and reposition them to fit yourself. There are two buttons per strap.
The dress features a black lining and has a built in layer of tulle to add some volume which is a trademark of most of Metamorphose's dresses.

Matching headband
This is the matching headband for the dress. It has wire built into the bow so you can adjust and shape the bow to your liking. It's similar to my Swan Lake headbow. There are some pearl accents on the bow and the previous owner added a pink Swarovski crystal in the center for some sparkle. 

There is a bit of a nightmare story attached to this dress and I wasn't expecting to have to restore it. The previous owner decided to hot glue gun some rhinestone bows onto the print, and while I knew that it was there I didn't think they were so prevalent. I was not fond of them and neither my sister. (I believe her reaction was shock.) So I took a few days to remove the bows and get rid of the glue from the print. After lots of spot cleaning with water, solvent, tweezers and endless patience, I've removed 95% of the glue but there's still a bit on it that I cannot get out without damaging the print and fabric. Overall the restoration worked out well and you can hardly tell that there was any fault to the print. 
The only things I left on the dress were the pink Swarovski crystals that were places on the pink stars/sparkles. It was subtle and didn't take away from the print so I left them.

The dress is ready to be presented to my sister, so I hope she's happy with her first Metamorphose dress!

4 comments:

  1. I hope she is happy with the dress, I know I would be! ;) And wow, I never knew these dresses had so much technical details and such, it's so nice to know that everything is adjustable and you can coordinate how ever you like.. :))

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    1. Yup, she's happy that it fits! It's nice to discover all the fun little details in lolita dresses, it still surprises me sometimes. The ever growing closet...I still have to post about my shoes LOL!

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  2. I wish I can find such a lovely dress to fit me too... but I probably need a dinosaur suit LOL. That was a nightmare about the glue though and I'm glad you managed to restore it. +1 for Machiko!

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    1. I'm sure if you look hard enough you can find one too! I mean, I found this one for my sister! You just have to look for the right kind of style to accommodate your shape. LOL Omg, don't sell yourself short! I'm sure you'd fit in a fully shirred loli dress too :)
      Yes, I'm glad the glue situation worked out in my favor. I'm just glad I don't have to see it and have my sister giving some stink face at me every time she wears it..

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