What Is Sizing Like at Elliatt?

In short: Elliatt is broadly true to size, but it shifts noticeably from style to style, and their structured, non-stretch occasion pieces are the ones that catch people out. If you're between sizes, or you're buying a fitted bodice, a lace style or anything with boning, size up. If it's a floaty midi or a relaxed slip, stick to your usual. That single nuance is the whole game with this brand, and it's why so many returns happen for no good reason.

I've dressed clients in Elliatt for weddings, race days and black-tie galas for years now, and I've learnt the hard way that you cannot treat it like a high street label where one size carries you through the whole rail. So let me save you the faff.

The Elliatt fit, decoded

Elliatt is an Australian occasionwear label, and that matters. Their cut is designed around event dressing — proper structure, clean lines, fabrics that hold their shape rather than cling. Here's what that means for sizing in real life:

Bodices and waists run fitted. The dresses are nipped through the midsection by design. If you carry a little more on the waist or you simply want to breathe at dinner, go up one.
Lace and jacquard styles have zero give. I once put a client in her "normal" size in a lace column gown two days before a wedding — couldn't lift her arms past her shoulders. The fabric doesn't stretch, full stop. Size up on anything textured or boned.
Slips, satins and floaty midis are more forgiving. These genuinely run true to size, sometimes a touch generous, so resist the urge to over-correct.
The bust suits A–C cups beautifully. Fuller busts often need to size up purely to clear the chest, then have the waist taken in — a five-minute tailor job that's worth every penny.

Elliatt cut their patterns in Australian measurements, so don't panic if the number on the label isn't the one you expected — focus on your actual bust and waist, not the digit. And whatever you do, ignore the urge to memorise a conversion chart. It'll only mislead you, because the fit changes per style anyway.

Stylist's tip: buy the dress that fits your broadest measurement, then tailor in. A taken-in waist looks intentional and expensive. A bodice that won't zip looks like a panic-buy — and feels like one all night.

My honest take on the quality

This is where Elliatt earns its place. The fabrics are weighty, the linings are proper, and the construction holds up to being worn, danced in and dry-cleaned repeatedly. I have a navy Elliatt midi I've re-worn to four weddings and it still looks box-fresh. For the mid-range price point, the cost-per-wear is genuinely excellent — which, as someone who built a career telling people to buy less but better, is the highest compliment I give.

Where to shop if Elliatt isn't quite right

If you love the Elliatt look — structured, feminine, event-ready — but the fit or the price isn't landing, here's exactly where I'd send you. I've picked these for occasion dressing specifically, not just because they're famous.

High street

Coast — the UK's most reliable occasion specialist. Structured bodices, embellishment and a fit that's forgiving without being shapeless.
Whistles — clean contemporary tailoring and slip dresses with the same grown-up restraint as Elliatt.
Oliver Bonas — quietly brilliant for printed and textured occasion dresses at a gentle price; their fits run true and flatter real bodies.
Anthropologie — romantic, detailed event pieces with a slightly bohemian edge if you want softer than Elliatt.
Mint Velvet — relaxed-luxe separates and dresses that translate the Elliatt elegance into something more wearable for daytime events.
Jigsaw — for the understated guest who wants impeccable cloth and a timeless silhouette over anything trend-led.
Me+Em — polished, considered design with clever stretch built in, ideal if Elliatt's no-give fabrics put you off.

Premium

Reiss — sharp, modern tailoring and column dresses with a slightly more architectural fit; superb for a chic city wedding.
Self-Portrait — the lace and crepe occasion dresses that compete directly with Elliatt's dressier end, with real wow factor.
Ghost London — fluid bias-cut satins that drape gorgeously; the antidote if you want elegance without structure.

Luxury & designer

Zimmermann — fellow Australian house, the natural step up; lavish, romantic and built for a statement entrance.
Rebecca Vallance — Aussie occasion royalty, all sculpted bodices and bow detail, made for the front row of a wedding.
Roland Mouret — when you want engineering-level tailoring that flatters every figure; the dress that does the work for you.

Two independents worth knowing

I always like to send clients somewhere a little off-radar so they're not in the same dress as three other guests:

Significant Other — a small Australian-New Zealand label doing beautifully cut, modern occasion dresses with proper attention to fit. Exactly Elliatt's world, far less spotted.
Acler — independent Adelaide design duo making sculptural, contemporary event pieces with gorgeous tailoring; the insider's pick for someone who wants to look quietly different.

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