Women's cream long dressing gown with contrast trim

Start with what the garment is for: a dressing gown is for the hours either side of sleep: the kettle at seven, the sofa at ten. Cotton is the natural fibre everything else is measured against: it breathes, it takes a hot wash, and it does not hold on to smells the way a synthetic does. That is the difference between a cotton robe and one that only looks the part.

In use it shows up as one thing: it breathes properly — no clamminess after twenty minutes, which is what makes it the sensible choice for a warm bedroom. In the same vein, have a look at our off white dressing gown.

Women ask about the cut through the shoulder and where the belt sits at the waist before anything else, and they are right to — it is where most robes fall down. For more on this, browse our womens cream dressing gown.

• It takes a hot wash — 60°C when it needs it, without the fabric giving up
• It stays comfortable against skin all day — the reason it is the default for anyone with sensitive skin
• Cut to the ankle — cut to the ankle, it keeps the draught off the legs when you are standing at the kettle at seven in the morning, and it reads as a proper robe rather than a cover-up.
• A contrast trim — worked at the collar and the cuffs, where the eye actually lands

Cotton creases, and it takes longer to dry than a synthetic. Neither matters much on a dressing gown, but it is worth knowing before you buy. Machine wash at 40°C. Treated that way, a cotton dressing gown lasts five winters rather than one — the difference between a robe you keep on the back of the door and one you replace every autumn. The same need shows up in our cream dressing gown.