I like it! Good alterations.

Wow! I'm impressed with your skill in the alterations. I think it looks great on you. I second those who voted to see it styled with shoes, bag, etc. as you would IRL.

I was afraid you would take it in too much but the alterations look great. You could wear this dress dressed up or more casually. The knit should travel well

You have done a great job, it looks great. However, if you don’t feel good in it, I would pass it on. Sometimes even flattering items just are not right for us, I know that for me, the print of this dress would make me a bit hesitant too as I am not really a floral print person.

I started typing this about 5 hours ago, just sending now.

Zaeobi - our summers are very hot but not generally humid. This would be too hot for the hottest days - then I need more openness around the neck and, like you, natural fabrics. But it might be ok for slightly cooler days - like up to around 32. I've also wondered if it might fit a gap in my wardrobe for a camping dress - all my other summer dresses are too crushable. Although not sure if white is suitable! Otherwise I"d probably just wear it around the house or maybe casual outings out. I don't have that many casual summer dresses that an extra isn't welcome.

Thanks all for the alterations praise - it was very easy as the fabic was easy to sew and this dress has no zip - so I just took the side seams and the back seams in. I'm used to having to do this owing to my swayback, small bust and low slung hips so was no big deal, even with just a handful of bad quality pins! I don't know what country the dress comes from (The giver hasn't been in Australian all that long) but it's a size 3XL which I think would be too large for me on any scale, though perhaps it has shrunk.

Bijou - I do wear florals sometimes...

So, would love to hear more opinions on the hemming question

Anne, my guess is the dress is from China. When I visited Beijing I went to a dress shop and the lady serving me gently ran her hands down my body and declared 2XL. I was shocked because normally I am S in Australian sizes. Anyway XL was the right size for me, my travel companion was very kind and suggested it was because I am so tall.

Ah, China! I was a large in Japan in the 90's (when I was a little lighter than I am now) so I was using that as a gauge (as in, maybe I'd be an XL there, but perhaps not a 3XL) . Good to have that info!

My personal preference would be a slightly shorter hem line. O/wise looks good.

You did a great job with the tailoring - fitted but not tight. Haha I am an XL-XXL here in Hong Kong, so I understand the sizing issue - you can just cut the tag out completely, if it bothers you

I think part of why you may be hesitating is that, whilst it's a nice dress, I'm not sure if it's a 'wow' dress for you. Please don't take that as an insult - your alterations have certainly made the dress nicer, but the print seems a little plain to my eye. It's difficult to explain but the mass expanse of white with a non-overlapping floral pattern reads as 'safe' to me - a dress like this would do well in a conservative environment like a day wedding, baby shower or church but, since you're talking about wearing it casually or camping, you may want to consider whether this would be appropriate for you.

Of course I may be completely wrong once you style it up & feel like it fits well into your existing wardrobe & lifestyle (in which case feel free to ignore all of this ) but I'm wondering whether that level of dressing up would be feasible or realistic in the long run (since you mentioned wanting to keep it simple for summer, you'll need to see if a bag & shoes alone are enough for you). If you start to feel that you need jewellery & a belt or scarf etc to make it work, you may need to reassess how natural of a fit the dress is into your preexisting life.

(Again, I hope I didn't offend! I was just getting the vibe that you're still a little on the fence about the dress, & so was just thinking aloud as to why that might be).

I like the dress in itself and the alterations seem to make it work better for you, however if it does not make you happy, maybe move on ?

I really like it on you! I don't see why you couldn't style it to wear any which way! Sneakers or sandals for casual?

Looks great and very versatile to me-and I'd be happy to trade my side and back views with you!
*note to self never ever shop in Hong Kong*

Zaeobi, I am not offended in the slightest. I really had no opinion on this dress and no attachment to it. But I am also super critical and an under buyer - I never manage to get everything on my shopping list for a season. And I am not shopping at all right now and can't donate either, so seemed a good moment to try it out.

Haha @suntiger HK has definitely been a knock to my body confidence compared to living in Brazil, that's for sure But HK fashion is good if you have a petite, rectangular body type & like to surrender your waist.

@Anne That's good to know - I'm just always a little uncertain how honest I should be with my opinion on these forums, since text doesn't always accurately convey tone But yes, I suppose the stakes are low enough to warrant some experimenting - you could try it on with items you wouldn't usually wear with such a dress? And if you don't like it, you can still always put it in a holding area to donate at a later date - I know I'm always excited to find clothing with some seam allowance left over whenever I go to charity shops!