The fabric of this dress was completely unexpected in a wonderful way! I was looking for a light-weight dress for an outdoor wedding that I could also wear to church. I have seen a couple of ladies with this flowy style of dress, so when this one came up, I had to try it. It’s not your gathered-style dress from the 1980’s, it is so much nicer. I am 5ft2in, 193 lbs, 42C chest and I ordered an XL. It fit just as I expected. It is comfortable whether you are sitting or dancing. I washed it in cool water and tumble dried it on permanent press for about 10 minutes. I wore it with a denim jacket in case the weather turned cool and received several compliments.