Hi Fabbers!

I have now received both Kimono jackets I ordered of
Ebay.

Both jackets I recognised as being Zara designs, however
they were not advertised as Zara and my assumption was that they were
Zara-esque or similar, as you might find in the bricks and mortar stores.

Well it appears that they perhaps fit best into the category
of ‘knockoffs” with the tags reading “ZAPA Woman” (and I don’t think Frank Zappa has launched
his own clothing line)!

So, I thought I would give you a bit of a review along with
my conclusion.

#1 - #5 is actually quite lovely. It’s is reasonably well made but having checked
the measurements of all the garment segments it’s not quite ‘even’. The fabric is a cotton / poly blend but is
quite nice to the touch and I think I am going to enjoy wearing it. The neckline has been difficult to keep in
place, despite pressing – I don’t think the lining ‘fits’ the jacket perfectly.
The colours are great and exactly what I was expecting.

#6 - #8 is more disappointing. Upon pressing it, I discovered that there is
additional fabric in areas i.e. it you press the arm flat, the fabric doesn’t
fit flat, there is extra that would create a fold if pressed that way. (hope
that makes sense). The blue is almost a teal toned blue and not the darker navy that I had been expecting.

I can return but would have to pay return post and I don’t
think it’s worth it. I will keep them
both and wear them as I had intended for casual wear. I had the idea to wear them with light weight scarves
(explore my boho side lol) which will help to hide any imperfections. Having said all this, the faults were not
obvious, I did have to look for them.. but they weren’t hard to find.
Worn and in movement, I think they are ‘ok’.

It was an interesting exercise, and I do want to say that
the Zara vest I bought on Ebay recently appears to be the real deal and I am very happy
with it.

I don’t think I would buy like this again. Angie has been such a good teacher of the
value of quality and fit that an appreciation for well made garments, at any
price point, has become a very important part of my purchasing reasoning.

I have also confirmed in the process that the kimono style, particularly the wide sleeve design is not the best for me. I did know that, but sometimes I find myself so easily seduced!

Thanks for reading and I hope you can forgive my shopping transgression.

xxx Deborah