Pearl Lowe Peacocks 'Cherry' Dress

First up from my Pearl Lowe Peacocks Christmas dresses is 'Cherry', the beaded black tea dress. It features large fabric covered buttons all down the centre front (with elasticated loop fastenings) and no other opening, personally I find it easy enough to pull on without undoing any buttons. The shoulders feature a light smocking detail and inside there is a padded, quilted strip of fabric to give a little lift to the shoulders (a similar idea to a shoulder pad, but not as defined).
My camera would only allow me to take photos if my hand broke up the black image! Above shows the beading around the sleeve. Below, the large buttons and beading down the front and the lower image shows the smocking detail on the shoulder. The video I took probably shows the details better.
Down the centre front, you'll see rows of black beading which is echoed around the bottom of the short sleeves. The dress has a real heavy feel to it, in part due to the beading. It's a shame it's 100% polyester, but it does hang beautifully and really flatters. There are several seams (under the bust, at the waist) and tucks (under the bust) to provide that perfect fit. I must admit I had some doubts about purchasing this due to the fact it cost £45 seeing as I felt it was very similar in style to the green and lilac floral tea dress from the Spring collection which if I remember correctly was around £25. When it arrived though and I saw just how much beading was involved in it, I realised it was worth that little bit more. This is one of these dresses, that I'll wear time and time again, as it's such a classic. The length if I remember, just hits my knee (I'm around 5 ft 5"), so it'll look great with tights or bare legs.