Real stories · The party dress that floats

Party dresses either cling or crease — this one floats over everything, and the sleeves are a quiet miracle

The party dress that floats — that's what this one is. I'm 67, and every December the same problem comes out of the wardrobe with the decorations: party dresses. The fitted ones need breathing in from the soup course onwards, the floaty ones crease into a dishcloth in the car, and almost none of them have proper sleeves — so you spend the whole evening clamped inside a cardigan that ruins the dress anyway.

What I wanted was a dress I could eat, sit and laugh in — with my arms covered and no cardigan.

Then I found the Auterelle from a British label called York Boutique — a knee-length dress with tiered ruffle layers, and I chose the navy polka dot, which manages to be festive without a single sequin.

The floating is the whole design. The skirt is built in tiers — layer over layer — which is why it hangs away from the body and moves when you do: it floats over the middle instead of mapping it, and three courses in, nothing has changed shape. The sleeves are sheer and three-quarter length, so your arms are covered while the dress stays light and party-ish — no cardigan, no clamping. And it's knee length, which means tights and heels work, and you can get in and out of a car with your dignity attached.

The tiered layers hang away from the body and move when you do — the dress floats over the middle instead of mapping it, and the sheer sleeves cover the arms without a cardigan in sight.

I did wonder whether ruffles at my age would read as mutton — they don't; the navy and the dots keep it grown-up. And since you can send it back within a fortnight with free delivery, I ordered it the same evening I found it.

It has had its first outing already — a friend's ruby wedding do — where I ate everything, danced twice, and Malcolm reported that I 'looked like the invitation said smart'. It was £34.95 in the sale, half the usual £70.

If your December wardrobe also needs a dress you can actually live in, do have a look. The Auterelle is rated 4.6 out of 5 by more than 190 women, it comes in blue polka dot, black and green, in sizes S to 3XL — and with the party season coming, the popular sizes won't sit around.