The SIR Aries Dress: Every Style, Fit and Colour Explained

The Aries is SIR the Label’s best known dress family: bias cut silk with lace at the neckline, the bust and the hem. It comes as a slip mini, a cut out gown, a one shoulder dress, a long sleeve gown and a halter gown, plus a matching cami and short. If you have searched “SIR Aries dress”, this guide sets out every shape, how each one fits, and which to buy for which occasion.

What makes an Aries dress

Every Aries piece shares three things. The fabric is 100% silk with a satin finish. The cut is on the bias, which means the fabric runs diagonally across the body, so it drapes and moves rather than sitting stiff. And the lace is the signature, set as cut out detailing at the bust on the gowns and the slip, and as a panel at the hem on the long sleeve and one shoulder styles. The colours change by season. Bitter Chocolate is the current core shade, with Butter as the lighter option and Black in earlier drops.

Every Aries shape

Aries Long Sleeve Gown

The Aries Long Sleeve Gown in Bitter Chocolate, $960, is the most covered of the family. It is unlined 100% silk, cut on the bias, with lace at the hem and a side split to the knee. SIR. describes it as a relaxed fit that slips on, with no zip. This is the Aries for an autumn wedding, a winter dinner and anyone who prefers a sleeve.

Aries One Shoulder Dress

The Aries One Shoulder Dress in Bitter Chocolate, $870, takes the same silk and lace hem and puts it on a single strap. It is a relaxed bias cut that slips on. The asymmetric neckline keeps it modern, so it works for evening events where a full gown feels like too much.

Aries Cut Out Gown

The cut out gown is the style most people picture when they say “SIR Aries”. Lace cut out detailing frames the bust, the silk gathers under it, and a long bias skirt falls below, designed to drape off the body. Coveti carries the Aries Cut Out Gown in black, and the brand also makes it in Bitter Chocolate and Butter, where the butter silk pairs with a soft blue lace.

Aries Slip Mini Dress

The slip mini is the easiest Aries to wear. It keeps the lace cut out at the bust, fixed shoulder straps and the bias cut, but stops above the knee. Coveti stocks the Aries Slip Mini Dress, and the current season adds Bitter Chocolate and Butter colourways.

Aries Halter Gown

The Aries Halter Gown has a halter neck and an open back, in silk with delicate floral lace and the same bias cut. It is the most formal shape in the family and the one we would choose for black tie optional.

Aries Cami and Aries Short

SIR. also cuts the Aries silk and lace into a cami and a short in Bitter Chocolate. Worn together they read as an evening set. Worn apart, the cami goes under a blazer and the short goes with a knit.

How the Aries fits

The brand describes the Aries as fitting true to size with a relaxed line. Because it is bias cut, the silk follows the body rather than holding a shape of its own, so it skims the hip and moves when you walk. If you are between sizes, choose the larger one for comfort through the hip. On Coveti, SIR 0 is UK 6, SIR 1 is UK 8 and SIR 2 is UK 10, and the full table is in our SIR the Label size guide.

Most Aries styles are unlined. Bitter Chocolate and Black are opaque in normal light. The Butter shade is paler, so we suggest a seamless nude slip underneath.

Which Aries for which occasion

• Black tie optional: the Aries Halter Gown, the Cut Out Gown and the Long Sleeve Gown.
• Evening wedding guest: the Cut Out Gown in Bitter Chocolate, the Long Sleeve Gown, the One Shoulder Dress.
• Cocktail party: the Slip Mini Dress with a strappy heel.
• Dinner and holidays: the Aries Cami and Short as a set, with a flat sandal.

For a day wedding, avoid the Butter shade, which can read as bridal in photographs. Our SIR wedding guest guide sorts every dress by dress code.

How to style an Aries dress

Let the lace lead. A bare neck, a simple gold earring and a thin strappy sandal are enough. Over the top, a soft oversized blazer works better than anything fitted, because it lets the bias cut fall freely. The Dylan Blazer in Chocolate, $930, matches the Bitter Chocolate tone almost exactly. For a cooler evening, a mohair knit such as the Marius Sweater in Grey, $680, worn over the shoulders keeps the look relaxed.

How to care for silk Aries pieces

SIR. lists the Aries silk as dry clean only. Do not bleach, do not tumble dry, and use a cool iron on the reverse if you need to. Store it folded in tissue rather than on a thin hanger, which can stretch the bias. For other SIR. silk dresses, see the SIR dresses guide.

Editor’s note: if I could own one SIR. dress, it would be an Aries in Bitter Chocolate. It is the colour that works at a wedding, a dinner and a party, and the lace means it never looks plain.

Frequently asked questions

What is the SIR Aries dress made of?

The Aries styles are made in 100% silk with a satin finish, cut on the bias, with lace detailing at the neckline, bust and hem.

Does the SIR Aries dress fit true to size?

Yes. SIR. describes the Aries as fitting true to size with a relaxed line. The bias cut skims the body, so if you are between sizes, choose the larger one for comfort through the hip.

What colours does the SIR Aries come in?

The current colours are Bitter Chocolate and Butter. Earlier drops included Black, which Coveti still carries in the Aries Cut Out Gown.

Is the SIR Aries dress lined?

Most Aries styles, including the Long Sleeve Gown and the One Shoulder Dress, are unlined silk. The dark shades are opaque, and we suggest a nude slip under the paler Butter shade.

Can I wear the SIR Aries to a wedding?

Yes. The Bitter Chocolate gowns are ideal for evening weddings. Avoid the pale Butter shade for a day wedding, because it can read as bridal in photographs.