Amazon The Drop Smocked Zipper Dress Review

Some of the best purchases you’ll make are when things happen on instinct – see, want, find – kind of thing. That’s what happened to me when I bought a new dress from The Drop, an in-house Amazon fashion brand that needs to find fast, well-made, and not-too-expensive, on-trend pieces.

Everything I’ve purchased from the line has performed above and beyond in terms of construction and lifespan. These are not pieces that will fall apart after one spin in the washing machine, and they will go through the wash and wash cycle several times (at one point I found myself doing them all the time).

With this dress, I knew within three seconds of laying eyes on it that I had to at least try it on. Amazon Prime’s try-before-you-buy program makes that a complete no-brainer since I can have it shipped to my home without having to pay my credit card. (You have seven days from the date of delivery to make up your mind; once you’re ready, log into your account to say what you want to buy, exchange or return.)

So, what features caught my eye at first glance and what was the reality?

A versatile shape that can be worn almost anywhere.

I love midi, period. It’s comfortable, it looks great, and it lets you walk, run, sit, bend… you get the picture.

Other design details are adequate: the sleeves are puffy but not so impressive that they feel tired after a few months. The neckline tucks into a flat V, but it’s not deep and might not be appropriate in modest circles (hey, preschool fall). The ruching at the waist hits a really nice spot, and helps the overall shape – it gives elasticity and makes the shape work on your frame.

Featured in my final trifecta of solid color.

It’s my go-to little white dress for summer (I didn’t order this in a different color, but the pop-up encouraged me to add it to the try-before-you-buy box and I thought, “What the hell is this…”). Just like you can’t go wrong with a simple black dress, you can’t go wrong with it.

They went into my cart.

The third color is a perfect reddish-orange (Amazon calls it “flame”, but I’d definitely describe it as “tomato”). Red isn’t something I wear a ton of, maybe because I think it can read as well… hard? There’s something about the orange blend that makes this one a bit bolder and actually more expensive. I can’t explain it, so you’ll just have to trust me on this one.

Also available in black and white floral, but that one wasn’t my jam.

In man, cotton feels wonderful.

It is softer and thicker than you expect. It has a great weight to it – it’s not opaque or cheap – and it doesn’t feel like it’s shrinking in the drydown. Fabric is often a value proposition for clothing, so when buying new or lower-priced labels, I pay attention to how something feels. And this one, I’m happy to report, actually feels the same as the dresses in my closet that cost 3x the price.

There are also smart design elements.

I was surprised to try it at home and realized that it was lined up. This, I’m not kidding, is somewhat revolutionary (has anyone else tried on a $300+ dress and freaked out as much as they could?). And besides, the cover is glued to the inside so it sits instead of riding.

The most important pockets are available, thankfully, and the zipper is functional. You don’t need to unzip it, but you can say something about how well it’s built.

I wear it all summer.

I liked the others in black, FYI, but I’ve developed enough self-control to admit that I don’t need three of the same pictures hanging in my closet.