Sloane on the striped dress she makes for women who quietly gave up on summer dressing
A Letter From Sloane · Founder of Sloane & Pearl
Brooklyn · July 2026
Sloane on the striped dress she makes for women who quietly gave up on summer dressing
For the woman who has stopped buying for herself, in earthy green and mustard stripes that feel like something she would actually pick out.
I write to the woman who has quietly settled into the same three safe pieces every warm weather. You know exactly what I mean. The closet full of things that almost felt like you, until they didn't.
I started Sloane & Pearl in Brooklyn in 2002, and most of the women I hear from are not complaining about one dress. They have stopped browsing for themselves. They wear what does not pinch, what washes clean, what nobody has to talk about at pickup.
I made the Bertha Striped Breeze Dress for that woman. Soft, breathable stripes in earthy green and mustard, the kind a woman in her fifties or sixties would actually reach for on a Saturday morning when there is a graduation lunch and she does not want to think very hard.
A cloth that actually breathes
I insisted on a soft, lightweight weave that holds its shape wash after wash and does not cling in July. I made this decision because most summer dresses for women our age are sold on a hanger and forgotten by noon.
"I wore it to my sister's backyard birthday and forgot to check myself in the hallway mirror on the way out. First time in years."
A V-neck that flatters without trying
I chose a relaxed V-neckline that draws the eye up and gives the dress a real shape, without being young or revealing. I made this decision because too many relaxed dresses just drape and call it a day.
"My daughter said, mom, you look like yourself. That is the nicest thing anyone has said to me about clothes in a decade."
Stripes that feel calm, not loud
I picked earthy green and mustard over the usual brights so the dress reads like something from a real wardrobe, not a costume. I made this decision because most warm-weather stripes are designed for a twenty-something, and they show it.
"It does not shout. I wore it to a school assembly and felt like I belonged there, which is the whole point."
A silhouette that forgives a real body
I insisted on a flowy, relaxed cut through the middle that skims instead of squeezing, so a woman can eat the barbecue. I made this decision because nearly every woman over fifty has been pinched by a 'flattering' dress.
"I sat through a long dinner and never once thought about my stomach. I didn't know that was still possible."
A dress you can dress up or down
I made sure it works with the flat sandals she already owns and the small earrings she forgot she had, and just as easily with a low heel for a wedding. I made this decision because the right dress should not need a whole new wardrobe.
"I wore it to the farmers market with my Birkenstocks and again that night to my niece's rehearsal dinner. Same dress."
A fabric that survives the wash
I chose a material that holds its softness and shape after every wash, so she is not afraid to actually wear it. I made this decision because most of us have stopped buying nice things because we know exactly what the dryer will do to them.
"I have washed it three times and it still looks like the day it arrived. I am almost suspicious."
The Bertha, against the summer midi dresses you have been buying
$120 to $220 at the department store, often on a hanger she passed three times
Sleeves she has to keep tugging, neckline that pulls, fabric that needs a special wash
Buys it, wears it once to the wedding, feels slightly off, donates it by fall
Soft breathable weave, relaxed V-neck, earthy green and mustard stripes
Washes clean, holds shape, dresses up or down with what she already owns
Kept, worn on repeat, photographed in without untagging herself
I forgot to check myself in the hallway mirror on the way out. First time in years.
Why it is on clearance, honestly
Every year around our anniversary we clear a small batch of pieces to make room for the next season. The Bertha Striped Breeze Dress is part of this year's Anniversary Sale. It is the same dress we have been selling for weeks, at the price we are clearing it, until the pieces run out.
I would rather tell you the real reason than pretend there is a countdown. There is a small run left in the stripes and sizes you see on the page. When they are gone, this price is gone with them.
I bought it on a sort of dare, wore it to a graduation, and three women asked where it was from. I just handed them the phone. I am fifty-seven and I have not handed anyone my phone in years.
I will be honest about money because I think you would rather I was. We are a small boutique in Brooklyn, twenty-three years in this November, and I write these letters myself. The Bertha Striped Breeze Dress is $59.95 during our Anniversary Sale. At our store, on a dress like this, that is a clearance price I stand behind.
There is a 30-day money-back promise if it does not feel like something you would actually reach for. Read the 842 reviews from women like you, four point eight stars average. Then decide.
If the Bertha Striped Breeze Dress sounds like you
- Check your size and the stripes on the product page
- Add it to the cart at the Anniversary Sale price of $59.95
- Wear it once, wash it, see if it stays in the rotation
If you have ever paid $140 for a department-store occasion dress you wore once, this stack adds up fast.
See the dress and your sizeAbout the writer. Sloane is the founder of Sloane & Pearl, a small women's boutique she opened in Brooklyn in 2002. She still writes the founder's letters herself.
Testimonial quotes from real customers of Sloane & Pearl, used with permission and lightly condensed. Star rating and review count as of publication. The Anniversary Sale price is available only while Anniversary Sale inventory remains.