I recently wrote a post about the 5 wardrobe essentials you never knew you needed and one of the items on that list was a Wrap Dress. Putting mine on to shoot it for that post was in fact, inspiration for this post! It reminded me how amazing my Sacha Drake wrap dresses are and I simply had to let you all in on the secret!!
Ok , so I know I keep going on and on about this label but until someone finds me a better one I’m not going to stop (ok, even then I probably wont!) As I may have told you a few times, Sacha Drake – the person and the label – is so much of the reason why I am passionate about helping women dress for their shape!
For years now, Sacha and her staff has worked to the mantra that it’s about dressing for your body shape rather then your clothing size and lucky for all of us, Sacha can deliver!!
One of the most successful frocks that Sacha has produced is her Reverse Wrap Dress – it has been a staple of both her basics collection and her fashion ranges for the last 8 years in many different prints, but the fundamental style and design of the garment has never changed.
So the “reverse” in the name of the dress kinda gives it’s versatility away a little, but wait – there’s more! When I was trying one of my wraps on for a previous blog post, I couldn’t work out which way best to wear it (or even which one to wear for that matter – I have 6…..) so I thought, what better way to explain it’s versatility than to show you ALL the ways to wear it!
(So I’m wearing basically the same dress in all three ways, just in different fabrics – this dress is ALWAYS available in black, and then seasonal colours and prints are also available – click here to see what colours and prints are available now)
1. V-neck to the front

The Etta wrap dress from Sacha Drake (click here to buy)
This is the most classic of all wrap dress styles – The deep neckline helps to minimise a larger bust (for our lovely Hourglass and Apple-shaped ladies out there in the crowd) but because it is a wrap, the V can be pulled higher to suit a smaller bust of a Pear or Column gal.
The tie around the middle defines an already tiny waist of the Hourglass and Pear, but also gives definition to the Column looking for a waist. For your sweet, juicy Apples out there – just tie the tie a little looser around the middle so as not to cut yourself off (or wait until way number 3 – it’s going to blow your mind!)
Part of the magic of this particular wrap dress (and part of the reason you can reverse it) is that is has no seams around the skirt – this allows the fabric to hold a bit of volume and drape over the body without clinging.
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SIDEBAR: of course, the right underwear is important – no normal Bonds undies here sorry girls, make sure you wear something that eliminates your VPL – BUT that does not mean you have to squeeze into your Spanx – it just means find yourself some seamless undies. Target for all the Aussies and The Warehouse or Farmers for the Kiwis are both great options for affordable seamless undies – just what we need here but also great under skinny jeans, ponte pants and fitted skirts and dresses.
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Ok, where was I? Oh yeah – no seams mean incredible drape. More generous hips? That’s ok, the fabric will just drape over your largest point and flow from there – it won’t cling back in under your bum. Slimmer hips? That’s ok too – the fullness of the fabric will balance out your shoulders.
2. Reversed (V-neck to the back, or boatneck)
This way is PERFECT for our Pears and Columns, but Hourglass and Apple gals can partake in the fun too.

This is the STRETCH SOLUTIONS black wrap dress (click here to buy)
Basically, you put the dress on back-to-front.
Again, the construction of the dress allows you to do this. As well as being no seams in the skirt, there are no shoulder seams either so the dress fits to YOU rather than you having to fit into the seams of the dress. You put your arms into the dress and tie it the same as you would the other way around, with a v-neck shape now at the back.
The boatneck will broaden a Pear’s narrower shoulders, and the tie around the waist will give the Column a more feminine silhouette. For the Hourglass and the Apples, a statement necklace (like I’ve done) or a contrast colour blazer over the top to create vertical lines and minimise your bust will allow you to wear the frock this way too – genius!
3. Ruched tie at the front
Now this is truly my favourite way to wear this dress, because there is no front and back side of the fabric, it works slightly better when you tie it.
This style requires you to wear something underneath – that can be a more fitted dress, or pants and a top (I’m wearing a Just Jeans basics singlet and my trusty SpencerLacy leggings but not as pants!! There will be a dress over the top I promise)
Here is how you tie it:
- Put dress on as normal
- DON’T wrap the ties around your body
- Instead, tie the ties in front of your body
- Pull ties up to under your bust
- Either wrap around your back and bring back to tie in front, or just tie and add a big, drapey bow in front.
This style creates a few features;
- A deeper v-neck is created, therefore working well for a bigger bust
- By tying the ties under the bust, you create ruching over your tummy – ruching is your tummy’s best friend – no one knows if the folds in the fabric is you, or the dress!
- By pulling more of the dress into the ties, you make the shape slightly more fitted around the hips – great for Hourglasses to show off their curves, or Columns and Apples to show of their slender hips and thighs
So there you have it! Three ways from one dress! I think it’s really important to build your wardrobe up with pieces that are VERSATILE – pieces you can wear different ways, or on different occasions (just by styling it differently). You don’t always need to have heaps of clothes to create different looks.
Do you have a piece in your wardrobe that you can wear in different ways? Tell me what it is and how you wear it in the comments below!
Cait xo
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Hi Cait. I remember you from Sachas store in Paddington. Love this post! I have that exact dress that my good friend Tracy (who I’m sure you remember) gave me. I am definitely going to wear like this! Great to see you doing styling. You definitely have a flair for it
Hi Liz!!!!! I remember you!!! We got you into those killer skinny pants didn’t we 🙂 I’m still touting Sacha Drake around the world! In fact, I have samples coming over to NZ to start selling here! Glad you love the blog – it’s so much fun to do xx
Yes Cait! I ended up buying them also in grey and cropped. They are still a big part of my wardrobe. I love reading about styling and your blog is great. I’m enjoying reading all your back posts.