AatP's Poison de Lamour

So today I will be taking a look at the new series by Alice and the Pirates. This series is called Poison de Lamour (with an accent above the 'a'). It has 2 dresses, a skirt, a shirt, a bonnet, a headdress, a necklace and socks. Additionally, there is the Romeo items which include a vest, pants and a shirt.

 This is the Princess JSK. The bodice is very nicely fitted and has a good shape to it. At first, I thought I had gotten the dress pictures the wrong way around! The front bustle is nicely spaced out and the tiers look very even. The chiffon is not actually plain, but covered in little dots (you can see this better in the next picture). I am unsure whether I like this or not, but it is less noticeable on certain colour-ways.

Running down the side of the chiffon is this lace. This does help to soften the area where the chiffon meets the main dress. Whilst the lace looks like it is good quality, I think there could have been prettier fancier lace used here. The rose part of the lace is lovely though. The ribbon criss-crossing over the front is spaced out well. I dislike the way the neckline has that bit of material which looks like a very triangular bow. I understand that there needs to be a bit of solid material there at the neckline, I think the way it has been done looks a bit awkward. Maybe it just isn't the right shape. The straps are a good width. The lace continues along the straps, but I think this looks a little bulky. The back has a panel of shirring which is concealed really well by a ribbon corset. The skirt has a very beautiful bell shape to it, which has a good classic feel. With such a strong feature like the front bustle, I am pleased the rest of the skirt has been kept relatively plain. The bottom hem is finished off with some good quality lace. Overall, I feel this dress does have little hints of Tudor stylings, which is quite appropriate for a Shakespeare themed print.

 This is the Juliette JSK. The bodice looks well-fitted but I don't think the placement of the chiffon layers on this dress quite works. It elongates the bodice. Although the neckline has lace going along it, the lines look very harsh and pointed. I think a softer heart shape would have been nice here. The bodice has criss-crossed ribbon in the centre, but it is bunched quite close together. I think the ribbon could have been spaced a little bit wider to stop it looking like a random cluster of ribbon. The bodice also has 2 lines of vertical lace running up it, which is quite bold against the darker colours. The lace is pretty, but I am unsure if I like it or not. There is just something about it which doesn't appeal. The straps are a bit thin but maybe thicker straps wouldn't have suited this dress. I have already said that I think the chiffon layer is placed a bit strangely and maybe it could have been where the actual waist is. However, the chiffon itself does look pretty. Well, at least it does from on the front...

Sadly, on the back it is a different story. The chiffon just looks bunched up and baggy. The thin ribbon bows placed on top don't help either. The shirring panel is covered neatly by ribbon. Despite the chiffon part, the skirt has a really beautiful bell shape to it. The print is displayed well and the rest of the skirt is plain. The bottom hem is finished neatly with some good quality lace.

This is part of the print close-up. The print comes in Rose (pink), Rosario (red), Raphael (navy) and Noir (black). For a very long time now, I have been saying that there needs to be more Shakespeare inspired prints in lolita and I am very pleased that AatP has chosen Romeo and Juliette. I know there is another Romeo and Juliette print out there by a smaller brand, but it is great to see a bigger and wider-known brand is taking notice. I love the imagery used in this print. The balconies are decorated beautifully by trailing flowers and little birds. The poles are also decorated beautifully with flowers and there is a lot of detail that has gone in to this print. I think my favourite part of this print is Romeo and Juliette meeting by Juliette's balcony. And I never thought I would see the day that a donkey would be included in a print! It is hard to choose a favourite colour for this print because I think each colour has its own strengths. At a pinch, I would probably choose the navy colour, but I do appreciate the red colour with its rich golden colours too.

The bonnet for this series is very beautiful, but it is actually the headdress which caught my attention. This headdress does not come in different colours for each colour-way. However, if you have chosen the red colour-way then this could be a nice option. I like the luxurious appearance that the gold lace gives this headdress. I reckon that some will say that this headdress looks too period costume-like, but in this case I would give the headdress a chance.

Overall, I am very pleased to see Alice and the Pirates do a Romeo and Juliette print. It is a very beautiful print but to be honest, it doesn't really excite me in the same way that the Midsummer Night's Dream print did when that came out. That is not to say that I wouldn't get this series, because I think it has potential. Out of the 2 dresses I would probably go for the Princess JSK in navy, but I actually prefer the skirt. I really want this series to be a success because if nothing else, it might encourage AatP to do more Shakespeare prints in the future!