The perfect summer dress – and win a $150 Adrift voucher! (closed)

This is a sponsored post for Adrift and Digital Parents Collective.

All through winter I am happy to rock the charcoal look. It’s flattering, softer than black for those of us who may be (ahem) ageing slightly, and you can mix and match and wear the same pieces over and over without anyone really noticing. Shhhhhhh!

But give me the first whiff of spring – the first brave little blossom of Jacaranda to appear on those bare branches, the first evening you can head out without a jacket and know you won’t be shivering your arse off – and I am breaking out the colour party a la Priscilla Queen of the Desert.

This spring I was lucky enough to be gifted this beautiful dress from Adrift (plus the accessories in the shot too). Actually, they let me choose any piece I liked from their spring collection and this is the piece that shouted my name and told me we needed to be together. There are lots of lovely maxi dresses around in the shopping centres this year but I’ll tell you why this dress – and Adrift’s other gorgeous dresses, skirts and kaftans – is different. It’s two things actually: the cut and the fabric.

This dress is a 12 – my regular size. I am 2 or 3 kilos heavier than I usually am thanks to my lazy approach to running over the past couple of months, and some of my pants remind me of this rather unkindly every time I hoist them up over my now-jiggly rump.

But not this dress. Uh-uh.

It skims me. It cuddles me in a very non-possessive way. It says, “Carolyn, I love you just as you are – and I’ll love you just as much when you drop those extra kay-gees over the next few weeks before your beach holiday in November. You see, Carolyn, I’m a skimmer. I’m cut to be loose and flattering and gorgeous on you no matter what sorry state you may find yourself in.”

This is one smart dress. Thank you, dress. Actually, I think I’ll call you Dee-Dee.

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So Dee-Dee and I are now best friends – she makes me feel free to be me. And the other great thing about Dee-Dee is her fabric. She’s not one of those crepey dresses that looks great, but feels like recycled shopping bags and then has you dissolving in a puddle of unbreathable sweat before you’ve reached your front door.

No. Dee-Dee breathes free and easy. No sweat to speak of. Dee-Dee is a free spirit.

Do you need a Dee-Dee in your life? We are going to give one lucky reader a $150 voucher to spend as you wish at Adrift.

Just tell us below what inanimate object you have named in your life – and which Adrift piece you’d like to welcome into your home this summer. You can check out the entire Adrift Spring range here. Entries close at 11:59pm on Friday 17 October.

But that’s not all. Adrift also wanted to give every single one of you a 15% discount to stock up on your spring-summer wardrobe right now. This fabbo discount – available store-wide, is available to Champagne Cartel readers until 31 October.

Just hit Adrift and enter the discount code CHAMPAGNE15 at checkout.

Happy shopping!

Written By

Carolyn is the editorial director of Champagne Cartel and a freelance writer. In her spare time she is a long-distance runner, peanut butter enthusiast, and single mum to three incredible humans.

21 Comments

  • Many years ago I was very excited to receive an advance on a writing assignment. At the time we were living on one-wage in a house that was badly in need of some serious renovations (re-stumping, re-roofing, new kitchen). So what was the first thing I did when my bank account was no-longer in the red? Bought a swimming pool – one of the most frivolous, extravagant, unnecessary and brilliant things we ever bought for our house. Ten years on and it is still proving its value – it remains the scene of many a good time, lots of heart-to-hearts and pivotal family memories. And, for reasons known only to a select few, the pool still goes by her given name of Judith.

  • That photo of you on the swing has made by day! I simply adore this dress and want one it so bad!! We named our caravan Audrey. We love her like she’s part of our family. x

  • We named our couch Lu-Lu, one of my old couches was one of those “Lulu chairs” from fantastic furniture and now somehow that has turned into ALL of my couches being called LuLu, even my 3 year old will say “I don’t want to go to bed, I want to lay on LuLu”, so cute!
    That dress is gorgeous!!
    Alix
    xo

  • DeeDee is a beauty (as are you)!
    I haven’t named any inanimate objects in my life lately, but once I (finally) get my brand new spanky camera, she will be so special to me that I shall have to name her – so I’ll get my thinking hat on.
    As for the gorgeous Adrift Spring range, I’m madly in love with the Bella Dress in White (http://www.adrift.net.au/collections/spring-collection-2014/products/belladressinwhite).
    It’s the perfect dress to wear barefoot to the beach and then put on some tan wedges, grab the Citta Metallic Purse (http://www.adrift.net.au/collections/new-arrivals-bags/products/cittametallicpurse), pop on the Alissa Tbar Bracelet in Orange (http://www.adrift.net.au/collections/new-arrivals-jewellery/products/alissatbarbraceletorange) and head out to a fabulous dinner with my husband.

  • I call my computer Woof, because it can be as slow as a dog at times (a saying that I have never thought made much sense as all the canines I know are particularly fast on their legs). I’d never heard of Adrift before today and I love it! Being a bit of a plus size lass I would go for the Rio Combo dress in Ocean x

  • My brother once said my car was like one of those crappy toys out of a McDonald’s Happy Meal, so I called my car Happy Meal. It stuck for years and years until I had to let her go. I love the Bella dress in navy. We need to be together.

  • All my cars have had names. There was Lionel the Corolla, Adro the Astra and now Raphael the Rav4 🙂

  • Oh and I recently named my computer ‘Marigold’. My three year old Mac was dying a flickering, painful death and I couldn’t let her go to technology heaven without giving her a name and showing her some love. It turned out she just needed a video card replaced so we’ll be reunited tomorrow. I’ll be extra nice to her now. I can’t believe I didn’t tell her I loved her until it was almost too late!! #slightlymelodramaticbutilovesmymarigold!!

  • My first car was a Datsun 180b SSS. It was 3 years older than me. He was named Archie. As in Archie Andrews from the comic books. Sadly he passed in 1998. *sniff*.

    I’d pick the Bahamas maxi dress in flame (small please!). It’s beautiful:-)

  • I like to name my handbags. You know they’re so close to me, swinging by my side, being a wind block in winter and braving up to my underarms in summer. They’re always hanging around just waiting to hold my stuff and ready to hand it back whenever I need – not like those toddlers that i’ve had hanging around the past few years, they don’t hold anything much for me, and trying to get it back is just unheard of! (Actually that’s only kinda true, it’s heard of, very, very loudly heard by anybody nearby.) So right now I have Choochie 😀

    Oh and my fave Drift dress is the St Kitts Dress in Midori … or is it the Acapulco long kaftan in Ocean. I don’t have to choose just one, do I?

  • My husband was at uni for WAY.TOO.LONG (it was like pulling teeth that degree) and we had NO MONEY so when he finally got a job we both got something for ourselves. I got a MASSIVE oven (I know, I know…I stress bake and procrastibake okay?) which I called Patrice and Dan got a couch which he called ‘The Mothership’. Patrice and The Mothership have been best friends for ten years now. I LOVE Adrift. Too much. If I won this voucher I would buy the Caracus Kaftan in Flame in a heartbeat because I had one of their kaftans last summer and my dog chewed it. REALLY. I would take a photo and show you but I was so devastated that I had to Vinnies bin it and hope that someone would love it enough to add a large patchwork flower over the top of the hole. And I can’t afford to replace it. I kid you not… MY DOG CHEWED A BIG HOLE IN MY KAFTAN. He is now on Prozac for his anxiety…hence why I cannot afford to buy my own kaftan…do you KNOW how expensive dog Prozac is?! Rant endeth here.

  • Oh I do love the Adrift dresses! I took one of mine to Bali, where it met another lovely lady also wearing one, just this week!

    The two dresses had a little moment together, saying how much they loved their owners and how fabulous they both looked, while we stood to the side and giggled at the ridiculousness of the situation.

    Meanwhile, I’ve named my car. It’s called Tina. It’s a Napoleon Dynamite reference, and although our car is nothing like an alpaca, the name has stuck.

    If I was lucky enough to win your giveaway, I’d be getting myself a Dee-Dee I think. My fabulous number is a shorter dress, but I do love a maxi and I think we’d be best of friends.

  • My 1960 Morris Minor was nicknamed Baby. I’d pat her on the dash when we were heading up steep hills and say “come on Baby. You can do it”. I rolled Baby on black ice and walked away with cuts and bruises. Any other car … let’s not think about it. She was a little darling. Sweet baby blue and built like a tank!

    Ooh, and man, I’d adore the Acapulco Long Kaftan in Ocean. We’d get our party on this summer!

  • I have always named cars:
    Ford Falcon – Henry
    Mitsubishi Colt – Mitzy
    Holden Camira – Cammy
    Mitsubishi Mirage – Sand-ee
    Daihatsu Charade – Chardonnay
    Mazda CX9 – CX-Y (sexy!)

    Yes, we are a weird family! Hubby wants to upgrade the car in 12 months, an exciting time when I get to name another car! 🙂

    I love the CARACUS DRESS IN FLAME – Gorgeous!

  • I name everything but this year my family bought me a really good camera for my birthday. I named him Walter Mitty because, like the movie character he hadn’t been anywhere interesting or noteworthy but I was about to change that. I then bought a gorgeous bag for him that I named Cheryl Melhoff because she is Walter’s love interest. I have totally fallen in love with the Santiago Kaftan in Sea from the Adrift Spring 2014 range. Good luck everyone, what a wonderful prize.

  • His name was Edwin and he was an abandoned orange duster that looked a little bit like a scrawny echidna. He hung out with us at lunchtime in Year 12 and, with his calm, sympathetic silence, he saw us through the vicissitudes of highschool life. He was a good listener.

  • That dress is gorgeous on you! If only I had your height, I could wear a maxi dress. I have named my new car “Foxy Loxy” but only because of the number plate – it had to happen! My 4yo wants to call it “Turtle Wurtle” instead – um yep, a ninja turtle fan.

    I would love the Bella dress in Navy – I don’t venture out much in dresses but this looks like the perfect summer dress! Thanks for the opportunity.

  • My first car was called Roger. Because the number plate was RJU. I don’t get it either.

    And I LOVE the Cuba dress in Ocean. Take me to the Cuba dress in Ocean… whoa whoa whoa!

  • I love love LOVE this dress! It is perfect.

    I have named my slow cooker Slovenly. Because it’s a lazy way of cooking really delicious food. Slovenly isn’t really slovenly – he does all the work while I can be slovenly!! Slovenly has produced the most amazing morrocan lamb, veggie mama’s Mac and cheese, red wine beef bourgenon (or however Julia Child spells it) and spaghetti bolognaise. Slovenly is heavenly.

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