Lady Sloth Metallic Mesh Overdress Unboxing and Review

Sometimes I can’t help but wonder if certain brands aren’t actually coming after me and my money personally. Because it seems that Lady Sloth can’t help but design and release things that seem to have my name written all over them. Like this metallic mesh overdress.

By this point we should all be at least aware of, if not familiar with Lady Sloth. It is literally in the top 10 of lolita brands with the most reach according to an independent, informal survey conducted via Rufflechat. So let’s skip the brand introductions (if you want one, why not check out the About page on Lady Sloth’s website?) and get straight into the meat of this review.

Considering how this entire process, from pre-ordering to receipt, took place during a pandemic, everything was very timely. I placed my order on October 29th 2020, during the pre-order period, paying the deposit of 50%. At the time it was advertised that the estimated shipping time was around January 2021. The second invoice was sent to me on February 1st 2021, which I paid immediately, and after posting it on February 4th 2021, it landed in my hands on February 15th. This is pretty much standard pre-order processing time for Lady Sloth in my experience, and considering how they were fulfilling those preorders with limited staff was nothing short of impressive.

Excuse the wonky photo, but here she is in all her glory and in natural light, photographing pretty close to actual colour.

The first thing that I noticed after taking it out of the packaging was how shiny it was and how much lighter it was than I anticipated. In my head I envisioned something closer to the Glitter Mesh blouse I have from Lady Sloth, which is more of an antique gold shade that can be quite tricky to match at times. This one is a far lighter shade, reminds me a lot of that very pale golden sand at beaches where the water is pure turquoise and everything twinkles in the sunlight.

I wasn't sure about the deep V-neck at first, but I've come to see the light.

Which is probably the best description I can give of the shine this metallic mesh has because it’s also nothing like the Glitter Mesh blouse glitter. Where that one was chunkier, actually flecked with specks of glitter, this is more of a consistent shine that reflects light regardless of where it catches. It’s nigh impossible to really capture it on photos and even on video the effect isn’t quite as striking as in real life, though by all means check out one of the three videos now where I’ve used this (the AYWi30C #23, the Letter to My Newbie Self or the unboxing for this overdress below).

The overdress is incredibly full and floaty - like any good overdress should be. My only comparison point is to the Shinku Rose Tulle overdress that I have, and whilst they’re both very fluffy indeed, that volume manifests itself differently when worn due to the nature of the fabrics. Where tulle floats like a cloud and retains a certain stiffness that keeps it pushing outward, the mesh is much softer (it’s an incredibly soft mesh, in fact, comparable to the L’Esprit de la Noblesse's Le Nuage blouse, actually). It’s still light, so doesn’t necessarily drag, but the sheer amount of it does weigh it down a little, so instead you get lots of gorgeous gathers which can then catch and reflect light in even more fantastical ways.

There are ruffles and gathers everywhere and this overdress is already extremely floaty. The sheer amount of fabric that's gone into making one, let alone work, is mind blowing.

I can’t remember the exact number now, but I do remember at some point during production that Lady Sloth asked people to guess via their Instagram stories how much fabric was used per each overdress and it was an insane amount. One which makes sense once you hold it in your hands, see the twinkling sea of fabric in your hands and then appreciate how all those already long edges are trimmed with strips of ruffled mesh - and ruffled means at least twice the length to account for shrinkage! Just knowing this makes me feel all sorts of opulent and one day I will pay an apt homage to this feeling by putting together the kind of ero lolita coord that screams “Oh, I am so terribly upset, officer, to hear of my rich husband’s sudden passing, please, spare a kind thought to this innocent widow”.

How much do I trust myself to not have an accident with these ties? Not much, to be frank.

If there is a thing I don’t like about the overdress, it’s the ties. They are very well made out of the same mesh fabric as the entire overdress, long enough to allow flexibility in how tightly you close it (and this did come in several sizes) - I simply can’t help but worry pulling at something so delicate. Even though the mesh overall feels quite sturdy, it’s still a delicate fabric. It feels counterintuitive to pull on things made out of mesh, so whilst it makes for a very attractive and cohesive look, I fear that one day I will rip something by being careless. (I already caused some damage to the overdress, but not the kind described here, I won’t say, you’ll have to watch the video.)

Quick appreciation photo for how neatly the entire overdress is finished. This is literally dozens of metres of slippery, floaty mesh, but the finish is exquisite!

Yet besides this I have nothing actually bad to say about this. I adore the overdress, it is everything that I wanted it to be and more, and genuinely wish that I could’ve justified getting some of the other colours it came in (the curse of the magpie brain). Lady Sloth has hinted at re-releasing the overdress in non-metallic kinds of mesh and I am mentally preparing myself for that. If I could get my hands on some dark red/burgundy one, I’d be over the moon.

Until then I merely hope that they will have mercy on my wallet and not come up with too many more designs that will also seem to have my name written all over them. I am clearly a sucker for mesh in the form of blouses and overdresses, so now that they know my weakness I truly tremble at how they will use that knowledge…