LIKELY makes color-forward dresses and gowns for the nights worth dressing up for. I am a sucker for a label that knows what the occasion is, so this edit is my short list of gowns and dresses I would actually think about.
LIKELY Dresses: Is It Worth the Occasion?
A dress label built for the camera
I have a theory that the best occasion dresses are designed with a phone camera in mind, and I say that with love. LIKELY started in 2016 under Jaya Apparel Group, the company Jane Siskin and Jalal El Basri founded in 2009. Crystal Slattery came up with it while leading the contemporary side, with color-forward dresses for photographed occasions as the first idea.
That could sound shallow, but I think it is honest. Clothes for a wedding, a birthday dinner or a rehearsal do have to read well in real life and on a screen. It also explains why this whole edit is dresses and gowns, since that is where the label began. I went deeper on a related idea in A.L.C. Dresses: Is the Sabine Gown Worth It?.
In my fashion dreams she chooses the navy Fallon Gown for a formal invitation, pairs it with a plain shoe and leaves the cutout to lead the evening.
A dress for the night on the calendar
LIKELY's point of view is occasionwear that still knows how to have fun. The Fallon Gown in navy is my starting point: a strapless maxi with a front cutout and a bow, and I would keep the shoes simple so the bow gets the attention. The Elia Faux Leather Dress is the sharper, edgier turn.
The Maddie Gown in black and the Morgette Gown in navy are two more formal options, and the Arissa Dress in navy and Dorothea Dress in black give you a couple of other shapes to hold up against each other. For a night that calls for shine there is the Sequin Andie Gown, and the Kiva Gown in scarlet changes the color story completely.
Picture her walking into a candlelit wedding reception in the Fallon Gown and feeling dressed before the first toast. My practical tip is to read the length and fit notes on each one, because a name alone never tells me how a hem falls.
The occasion is the useful test
LIKELY makes its best case when an event calls for color and a clear silhouette instead of a dress that disappears into the room. I would not pick between the gowns by name alone, and I would let the occasion, the hem and the way the fabric moves decide. Start with the Fallon Gown if the cutout and bow appeal, then hold the black Maddie Gown or the Sequin Andie Gown up against it for a different mood. The label began with a dress for a moment worth documenting. Although I think the better test is whether you still want to wear it after the photo.
