Paisley is a print that J. Crew does well (For those of you who are interested, here’s a post from J. Crew’s blog that delineates how a print comes into existence) and I have been eager to get my hands on one after seeing the No. 2 Pencil Skirt in medallion paisley (also available as a top) in person a few weeks ago.
What I hadn’t anticipated is how inconsistent the cut across different prints would be. I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised since J. Crew is a large retailer that caters to a clientele of all shapes but I had hoped that their “classic No. 2 Pencil Skirt” would be as consistent as they are supposedly classic.
In any case, the No. 2 Pencil Skirt is sold in an array of fabrics, weights, colors, prints, and lengths. I’ll only be comparing the three in print that I own: the medallion paisley, the leopard, and the feather paisley.
Disclaimer: I should note that all three skirts are 00P and I don’t know how, if any, inconsistency manifests itself for other sizes.
The paisley prints, both medallion and feather, felt thicker and stiffer than the leopard. They don’t conform to one’s body particularly well but their thickness makes up for the fact that they unlined.
All three skirts are unlined. I find that the thicker cotton blend of the paisley skirts disguise panty line well but are more wrinkle prone than the leopard (an issue that the No. 2 Pencil Skirt in Double-serge Cotton also suffers from but prints are better at hiding wrinkles). The darker and more enigmatic print of feather paisley is probably the best option of the three shown here for people who hate wrinkles but love cotton skirts.
The skirt in leopard print is the longest of three that I own at around 22 inches. The paisley prints are (just) above-the-knee length for 5’2 me at about 19 inches. The waist measurements also vary slightly with the leopard being the smallest fitting of the three (12.5in wide; a notable .5 inches smaller than the medallion paisley print).
The takeaway, if there is one, is that J. Crew No. 2 pencil skirts are worth trying when they are returnable. There are simply too many inconsistencies to them to buy on final sale.
Do you own a No. 2 Pencil Skirt?
