We Found The Modern Version Of THE Pretty Woman Dress We’ve All Lusted After For 34 Years
Actually we found 4. All perfect in their own way.
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by The Candidly Team
We’re not proud of every clothing item we lusted after in the early 90s. But there is one we never stopped looking for.
Cut to the Pretty Woman polo dress:
We specified “polo” but you knew the one we were talking about. It wasn’t the one leaning into the driver’s seat on Rodeo Drive or even the red velvet gown collecting opera tears.
Few things have had such a lasting chokehold on our quest to dress effortlessly sophisticated than this brown and white dress.
The simplicity. The ease. The way we know we could wear our hair loosely up and kick our bare feet into muddied grass and still look iconic.
Why every designer in America hasn’t released a dupe for this dress yearly since 1990 is beyond us. But alas, this dress has been impossible to find.
Well, our search has ended.
We found, not one, but four options that are absolutely spot on. And here they are:
1. Free People Ultraviolet Dress
We’ve been known around here to not so cleverly refer to it as the pretti(er) woman dress, and it’s because where Julia’s dress is deeply elegant, this one has these special details that actually make it even more flattering on non-Julia-Roberts-shaped women.
Here’s what they are:
The length: It’s rare to find a real, proper maxi dress, but this floaty skirt falls all the way to your ankles, which means you can wear flat sandals and still look elegant enough to attend a polo match.
The smocking: It’s wildly flattering on the bodice, smooths your tummy, and just holds everything in. You don’t even need a bra, because it basically is one. Only 12x more comfortable.
The back: When there’s supportive smocking to secure you in front, dresses can do much funner things in the back. This one is frankly a showstopper. Behold!
Price: $89
2. DOËN Lorraine Dress
This one is an especially amazing fit for curvy gals, as the bodice is jusssst fitted enough, and the skirt is bias cut, which is the most flattering of cuts. Every detail is just to die.
Price: $398
3. By Anthropologie The Somerset Maxi Dress: Strapless Edition
This is one of Anthropologie’s most acclaimed dresses for one primary reason: it looks gorgeous on every single body type. However, they just released this iconic print, and we fear it will sell out fast, so be quick.
Price: $168
4. Old Navy The Occasion by Old Navy High-Waisted Taffeta Midi Skirt And Cropped Tank
We are weak over the set version, which is from Old Navy, guys. It’s part of a collection overseen by designer Zac Posen himself. He’s doing magical things at Old Navy and Gap by the way. Everything about it is elevated and the price is, as you can imagine, bananas. Sizes up to 4X, too.
Price: $24 for the skirt, $15 for the tank
Would we be remiss not to indulge you by also linking to the modern day version of the HAT* and the BAG*? We think we would.
But the dress is the real star, and between fleeting stock and half the women on this planet searching for this dress for the better part of 30 years, we do worry it might not last long.
In other words, to pass it up would be a big mistake. Big. Huge!
Film Images: Touchstone Pictures | 1990
At The Candidly, we try a lot of stuff so you don’t have to. We only recommend things we truly love, and that we think you’ll love, too. All products are chosen independently by our creative team, and all details reflect the price and availability of products at the time of publication. If you buy something we link to, The Candidly may earn a commission.
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