The long summer dress that covers your arms, not your shape

Then you put one on at home and it hangs like a tent. Your arms are covered, but so is everything else, and you look bigger than you are. So it is back to the cardi over the shoulders, even when it is thirty degrees outside.

If that sounds familiar, this letter is for you. We want to tell you about a dress we have wanted to list for months.

It is called Delphine, and it has been a quiet best-seller for other online boutiques this year. When we saw it, it took us about ten seconds to understand why: it does the three things most summer dresses don’t.

Delphine is a long, relaxed shirt dress with a small collar and buttons all the way down the front. The bodice has fine pin‑tucks, the waist is gently gathered, and from there the skirt falls loose and long.

The sleeves are short and wide, rolled once at the hem, and they sit over the top of your arm instead of stopping at the shoulder. It comes in ten colours, from soft Light Blue and Sage to Blue, Pink, Mustard and White, in sizes S to 2XL.

We want to be straight with you about the part that matters most.

It gives you a waist without holding on to you.

The gathered seam sits at your natural waist, so the dress has a shape. But it isn’t fitted, and the skirt falls away from the tummy and hips instead of clinging. Our supplier’s measurements show plenty of room through the bust, so the buttons are not doing all the work.

If you want to test the idea at home, put on your favourite loose dress and hold a soft belt at your natural waist. That little bit of shape is the difference.

Saturday at the market, with your hands in the pockets and nothing to carry.

Lunch with friends, when you would like to look put‑together without dressing up.

A day with the grandkids, when you need to bend down, sit on the grass and chase someone to the car.

And a warm evening on the deck, with a cardi over your arm instead of over your shoulders.

It is also easy to dress up or down. Flat sandals and a straw bag for the day, earrings and a nicer shoe for lunch.

Delphine is $89.95, with free tracked shipping to Australia and New Zealand.

Most women end up wanting a second colour, so we keep the multi-buy simple: buy 2 and save 10%, buy 3 and save 15%, buy 4 or more and save 20%. You can mix colours, and it works across the whole store.

We won’t tell you it is almost sold out or that the sale ends tonight. It isn’t, and it doesn’t.

We would tell you to start with Light Blue or Sage. They are the easiest to wear with what you already own.

We would also tell you about the length, because it matters. Delphine is long. Our supplier lists it at about 130 cm in S up to 134 cm in 2XL, measured from the shoulder. On a woman of around 160 cm, that reaches the top of the foot in flat sandals, and on a shorter frame it can touch the floor. If you are petite, email us your height before you order and we will tell you honestly how it will fall.

For size, choose your usual one. The dress is roomy through the bust and waist, so there is no need to size up.

If you choose White or Yellow, a nude slip underneath is a good idea in bright sun.

And if it isn’t right, you have 30 days from delivery to send it back unworn.

If you have spent the last few summers choosing between your arms and your shape, Delphine is the dress that lets you stop choosing.