Real stories · The dress that passes for suede

Suede dresses look wonderful and behave terribly — this one has the look without any of the fuss

The dress that passes for suede — that's what this one turned out to be. I'm 67, and winter dresses have always made me choose: the ones that look expensive behave like museum pieces, and the ones that are comfortable look like I've given up. Real suede is the worst offender. Gorgeous in the shop, then it's dry-clean-only, stiff as cardboard, and terrified of rain — which, in Yorkshire, is a character flaw.

What I wanted was a dress that looks like money but wears like a jumper.

Then I found the Arvielle from a British label called York Boutique — a slim midi with a suede-style finish, and I chose the brown, which is exactly the colour of every expensive thing in a country-house catalogue.

The trick is all in the fabric. The suede-style finish catches the light in that soft, mottled way real suede does, which is why it reads as expensive from across a room — but it's actually a soft, breathable stretch blend, so it moves when I sit, doesn't crease in the car, and doesn't sulk if the weather turns. And because the high neck and long sleeves do all the polishing for you, there's no scarf, no necklace, no cardigan committee — you put on one thing and you're dressed. Midi length, ankle boots, done.

From across a room it reads as suede — rich, expensive, autumnal. Up close it's a soft stretch you could happily do a full day in, and it doesn't need a dry cleaner on standby.

I did pause at buying a 'suede' dress online — that finish can look cheap if it's done badly. But you can send it back within a fortnight and the delivery's free, so I risked nothing. It arrived, I put it on, and Malcolm said I looked 'expensively warm', which for Malcolm is practically poetry.

It has since done a birthday dinner in town, two Sunday lunches and one very drizzly walk to the car without complaint, and Sandra has already asked where it came from — twice. It was £34.95 in the sale, half the usual £70.

If you'd also like the suede look without the suede fuss, do have a look. The Arvielle is rated 4.6 out of 5 by more than 210 women, it comes in brown, dark grey and light brown, in sizes S to 2XL — and at half price the middle sizes always go first.