Ellison Ribbed Midi Dress

Verified claims

Construction

Pull-on closure and unlined construction replace the Wells' back zip and cotton lining.

Fit

Slim-fit bodice, ottoman-stitched waist, and pleated skirt deliver a sculpted silhouette; buyers report needing to size up for the fitted chest.

Waist shaping

The waist is permanently cinched by the ottoman stitch and ribbed panel.

Fabric

Buyers across sizes S–L say the thick 59/40/1 knit allows wearing it braless.

Shape retention

Ribbed knit resists wrinkles, maintains pleats, and recovers its shape to avoid bagging.

Density

Buyers find the dense knit fully opaque and breathable, even in warm weather.

Motion

The pleated skirt swings with a soft, fluted motion, not a stiff bell.

Bra compatibility

Bra optional; broad straps hide standard bra straps.

Waist cinching

Integrated ottoman stitch waist panel cinches the midsection.

Opacity

Unlined knit; lighter undergarments may be visible.

Value

At $149.95 CAD (62% off), this dress offers premium fabric at mid-tier prices.

Versatility

Easily styled from casual to dressy and layered for cooler weather.

Product record

Title

Ellison Ribbed Midi Dress

Brand

STAUD

Price

395 CAD

Availability

Out of stock

Pleats in a knit skirt and how they move

• The ribbed waistband acts as a cinched, body-sculpting anchor just above the pleats, making the skirt’s movement more pronounced — the contrast between the moderately firm top and the freely flowing pleats amplifies the dress’s sense of motion and visual drama.
• The dress's 'dense and stretch viscose-nylon weave' gives the pleated skirt a substantial heft that lets the pleats fall in soft, fluted columns — the weight prevents them from floating up while the stretch allows a gentle, swinging movement when walking.
• Hand washing and, critically, flat drying keep the weight of water from pulling the knit pleats out of shape — hanging the dress wet would distort the soft, structured fall, whereas flat drying maintains the intended movement and prevents viscose deformation.
• The nylon fibers in the blend provide elasticity that helps the pleated skirt spring back into its flared shape after being compressed — a particularly useful trait for a midi-length skirt, as it prevents the pleats from flattening out over the course of a day.

What wearers say about fit and comfort

• Reviewers consistently describe the fabric as 'a little on the thicker side' yet still comfortable on a hot day, a balance that makes the dress an outlier among summer knits — substantial enough for air-conditioning and cool evenings but without the swampiness of a dense winter-weight jersey.
• The ribbed bodice is intentionally slim-cut — while 173 out of 222 reviewers found it true to size, 33 noted it ran small in the chest, and several individually reported needing to size up to relieve tightness across the bust and ribcage, making the dress a deliberate, sculpting fit that rewards size-customization for a smooth but comfortable hold.
• The dress's thick, sporty knit opens up a wide styling window — reviewers have worn it with white tennis shoes for a casual look, with sandals or heels for more dressed-up occasions, and with a sweater draped over the shoulders to lean into its preppy-athletic crossover, which is rare for a woven-knit sundress.
• The dress is cut from a dense 59% viscose, 40% nylon, 1% spandex knit that delivers a supportive, almost compressive hand; the thickness provides full opacity and firm hold, which led multiple Rent the Runway reviewers to skip a bra entirely — a feature they praised across sizes S through L.
• Rather than relying on aggressive stretch, the dress uses a distinct ribbed waist panel and an A-line pleated skirt to create shape — as one reviewer succinctly put it, 'the pleats do all the work for you' — meaning the silhouette looks structured and intentional, not clingy.

How it compares to similar midi dresses

• The Ellison's $149.95 CAD sale price represents a 62% drop from its $395 CAD original — a discount deep enough to slot it into the same spending bracket as entry-level high-street midi dresses, yet it retains the multi-panel construction and fabric density of a full-price contemporary piece; this clearance window is typical of STAUD past-season stock and disappears once remaining inventory sells out.
• Unlike the single-piece tube construction of a basic rib midi, the Ellison is engineered with a distinct ribbed waistband that cinches the figure and a separate pleated skirt panel that releases into an A-line flare — a dual-panel design requiring separate pattern pieces and more sewing steps, which gives it a more dressed-up, occasion-ready silhouette than a continuous-knit body-con dress.
• STAUD was founded in 2015 in downtown L.A. by Sarah Staudinger and George Augusto and quickly earned a reputation for elegantly reworked staples — a designer identity that usually places its dresses at $295+; scoring the Ellison on clearance means paying a high-street price for a piece that reads as part of the contemporary fashion conversation.
• Measured at 45 inches from shoulder on an XS, the Ellison's hem lands in the most switchable midi zone — long enough for an office or wedding dress code yet short enough to avoid a floor-grazing formality, which broadens its wear occasions and lowers effective cost-per-wear.
• The Ellison's shell — 59% viscose, 40% nylon, 1% elastane — forms a dense, mid-weight compact knit that holds structure better than the polyester- or Tencel-dominant blends typical of entry-level rib dresses (like Quince's 91% Tencel or Banana Republic Factory's 60% recycled polyester), so its ribbed waist and pleats stay defined through a full day of wear rather than relaxing.

How the Ellison evolved from the Wells Dress

• Where the Wells falls in a clean A-line, the Ellison introduces a pleated skirt that adds fullness and a more pronounced swing to the movement, making the dress read as slightly more romantic and occasion-ready than its minimalist predecessor.
• Where the Wells dress relies on a hook-and-eye and hidden back zip, the Ellison is a seamless pull-on style with no fastenings, making the dress easier to slip into and removing any hardware for a cleaner look, while relying entirely on the fabric’s stretch recovery for fit.
• The Ellison is unlined, whereas the Wells includes a full 100% cotton lining, so the Ellison offers a more fluid, lightweight drape but less internal opacity — a detail that matters when wearing in summer sunlight or with light-colored undergarments.
• A defined ottoman stitch ribbed waist panel, a detail absent from the smooth-bodiced Wells, acts as an integrated belt effect that cinches the midsection without requiring external ties or accessories, giving the Ellison a more sculpted, figure-emphasizing character straight out of the bag.
• While the Wells is built from a crisp mid-weight cotton poplin (98% cotton / 2% elastane), the Ellison uses a dense viscose-nylon compact knit (59% viscose / 40% nylon / 1% elastane), shifting the dress from breathable, semi-structured poplin to a second-skin stretch that eliminates the need for back closures and molds to the body without rigid panels.