LORRAINE | Dense garden floral on a deep ground

I spilled coffee down the front at breakfast and nobody could tell for the rest of the day.

Pale prints are a commitment. You wear one to a lunch and spend the meal with a napkin across your lap doing defensive work, and the good blouse gets kept for occasions where nothing is being served. Meanwhile the dark half of the closet is all plain, because a dark ground with a real print on it is surprisingly hard to find.

Lorraine is a dense floral in violet, coral, marigold and blue worked over a deep ground, so there is no empty pale space for a mark to land in. The print is packed enough to carry the whole piece, which is why the cut underneath stays simple and loose: a relaxed open button front shirt in a light matte weave, with a gently curved hem, a point collar, tonal buttons and two hip pockets.

Why women our age keep coming back to them

• A deep ground forgives a lot. The dark base and dense pattern mean a splash at dinner does not end the evening.
• Dense enough to need nothing else. Black or white underneath and the outfit is finished, no jewelry or scarf required to fill it out.
• A print that holds up close. The florals are layered rather than repeated, so it reads as depth from across a room and as detail from a chair away.
• Loose through the body. The relaxed cut with a curved hem keeps a busy print from sitting tight anywhere, which is what would make it overwhelming.

Buy more, save more

• Buy 2 and save 10 percent
• Buy 3 and save 15 percent
• Buy 4 and save 20 percent

The discount is applied automatically at checkout.

How it fits

Lorraine runs on the small side, so size up rather than ordering straight. It comes in 8 through 22, and these are UK sizes, not US ones, so go by the measurements rather than the number you usually buy. The chart gives bust, waist and hips as body measurements in inches, so measure over a light top with the tape level. If you are between sizes, want room through the shoulder, or plan to layer underneath, take the larger one.

30 days to change your mind

Send it back within 30 days for a full refund. There is no restocking fee and no questions about why.

A few recent reviews

This is the one I take when we travel. It does not show a thing and it does not need pressing.
Alberta F., Naples

Darker than it looks on the screen, which is exactly what I hoped for.
Fern D., 63

I wear it open over black for dinner out. Feels like an occasion without the fuss.
Juanita M., Chandler