What Is Sizing Like At Dancing Leopard?

By Ella Blake – Senior Fashion Stylist & Founder | Tellar – Always honest, unbiased, & unsponsored post

Dancing Leopard runs broadly true to your usual UK size, so your everyday number is the right starting point – but the fabric does most of the talking here, and the silky, non-stretch styles are the ones that catch people out by sitting closer than you’d expect.

I’ve styled a lot of women into Dancing Leopard over the years, usually for holidays, festivals and the kind of summer wedding where everyone else is in beige and you want to be the one in a print. It’s a brand I genuinely love recommending, but the sizing isn’t one flat rule across the whole site – it shifts depending on what the piece is made from and how it’s cut. Let me walk you through exactly what to expect, garment by garment.

The Short Answer: Order Your Normal Size

Dancing Leopard uses a standard UK size run from 6 to 18 (and XS to XL on some styles), and for most pieces your regular high street size will be spot on. Their size guide is honest and, helpfully, a lot of individual product pages carry their own little fit note telling you whether that specific style runs true, small or generous. Read those – they’re the single most useful thing on the site and most people scroll straight past them.

Where it gets interesting is the fabric. Dancing Leopard works across floaty viscose, slinky satin-feel weaves and stretchier jersey, and each behaves completely differently on the body. So rather than a blanket “size up” or “size down,” here’s how it actually plays out.

Style-By-Style Fit Notes

Wrap & stretch dresses

The most forgiving thing they make. Wrap styles adjust to you, so your normal size is almost always right.
If you’re bustier, the tie gives you room to play with – pull it a touch tighter at the waist and let the top sit where it’s comfortable.
Jersey and stretch-blend dresses are similarly easy-going. No need to size up unless you like a very loose drape.

Silky & satin-feel pieces

This is the category to watch. The smoother, non-stretch fabrics sit closer and can feel snug across the bust and hips if you’re curvier through there.
If you’re between sizes or carry more on top, take the larger of your two sizes here.
A satin slip dress that pulls slightly across the hip will only get more obvious once you sit down, so judge it standing and seated.

Jumpsuits, playsuits & harem styles

Gorgeous, but built for a fairly average-to-tall body length. If you’re petite, the body or leg can swamp you.
Width is usually fine – it’s the length that needs a steamer, a heel or a quick hem.
The harem and tie-waist jumpsuits are the most adaptable thanks to their adjustable waists.

Trousers & co-ords

Some run snug at the waist where there’s a fixed or elasticated band, even when the leg fits beautifully.
If you’re a defined hourglass, size to your hip and accept a slightly relaxed waist rather than the other way around.

Shirt dresses & structured styles

The one consistent complaint I see is tight upper arms on the shirt dresses. If you’ve got fuller arms, size up one for comfort through the sleeve.

My Honest Take From Styling It

My own Dancing Leopard lesson was a satin midi I ordered in my usual 12 for a garden party, convinced “true to size” meant true to size. It fit everywhere except across the hip, where the lack of give turned a beautiful dress into something I kept tugging at all afternoon. The 14 would have been perfect – and that’s the whole point. With this brand you size to the fabric, not just the number on the label.

The flip side is when it’s right, it’s right. The same client I once over-thought sizing for now owns three of their wrap dresses and reaches for them more than anything else she owns, because a good wrap forgives a big lunch and a long day in a way structured tailoring simply won’t.

If Dancing Leopard Isn’t Quite Right, Try These

Dancing Leopard sits in a lovely niche – bold prints, holiday-ready colour and flattering, occasion-friendly shapes at an accessible price. If you love that energy but want a different cut or a wider size run, here’s where I’d send you on the high street:

Never Fully Dressed – the closest match of the lot. Signature wrap dresses, bold prints and a genuinely curve-friendly fit.
Monsoon – beautiful print-led occasion dresses with a slightly more grown-up, structured finish.
Joe Browns – quirky, colourful and unafraid of a statement, with a generous, comfortable cut.
Nobody’s Child – sustainable, print-heavy and brilliant for floaty midi dresses that photograph well.
Sosandar – flattering, polished and excellent if you want bold colour with a more tailored line.
Roman – affordable, easy-wearing print dresses with a forgiving, true-to-size fit.
Yumi – vintage-inspired prints and tea dresses with the same playful, feminine spirit.

If you’d happily spend a little more for a piece you’ll wear for years:

Rixo – the gold standard for hand-painted, collectable prints. Pricier, but unmistakable.
Ghost – dreamy bias-cut satin and crepe slip dresses that drape beautifully on a curve.

Two Independents Worth Knowing

And if you want something more under-the-radar – the kind of label nobody else at the party will be wearing:

Lucy & Yak – the independent, ethically made cult favourite for bold print, dungarees and joyful colour, with an inclusive size run and a real personality behind it.
Traffic People – a small London label doing romantic, vintage-leaning prints and slip dresses with proper individuality and lovely fabrics.

Whichever way you go, the rule with Dancing Leopard stays the same: start with your usual UK size, read the per-product fit note, and respect the fabric. Get those three things right and you’ll be the best-dressed woman in the room – which, with prints this good, is rather the point.

Never Order the Wrong Size Again

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