The story goes back to a Hamptons wedding. Rebecca Hessel Cohen, then an editor at Cosmopolitan, could not find sufficiently ethereal bridesmaid dresses, so she made breezy silk halter-neck gowns herself. The Zoe Report calls those dresses the seed that bloomed into LoveShackFancy, and Vogue adds the part that matters: her friends then asked for custom designs of their own.

That is why a LoveShackFancy dress dupe search is really a search for a feeling. The brand describes its look as an overflow of pink, prints, florals, ruffles, lace and bows, and it has leaned on vintage, Victorian and Edwardian references from the start. Plenty of people want that mood in a shape or a color the label does not make, or simply in a piece that is easier to find in their size this week. These are look-alikes from other labels that share the details, not the original, and I will keep the two apart.

The first set is the floral ruffle mini, the center of the whole idea. The AQUA Floral Lace Mock Neck Mini Dress is a white lace mini with a ruffled high collar, puff sleeves and a scalloped hem, and I would pair it with white sneakers and a denim jacket for an October lunch. The SUGARLIPS Surie in pink and green cotton has a flounced skirt, and the FARM Rio Floral Embroidered Short Sleeve Mini Dress adds scalloped cream embroidery in pink and green. For Love & Lemons brings the Scarlett with a ribbon waist tie and scalloped trim, which is the one I would reach for if bows are your thing.

My test for every one of these: hold the ruffle up to the light. A good flounce is cut full and hangs in soft waves, not in a stiff little frill. Add opaque tights and ankle boots for fall.

Vogue defines the prairie dress by a short list: ruffles, a high neckline, voluminous sleeves and a billowy body, usually in light cotton or linen. That is a useful checklist for the maxis here, because the fabric decides whether a long, tiered dress floats or just hangs.

The Petal & Pup Kelda is a pink and purple floral tiered maxi with short sleeves and a ruffled hem, and the Ashtyn from the same label is a white ditsy-floral maxi with a square neckline and tie straps. FARM Rio's Porcelain Birds is the most graphic version: a dark printed maxi with elbow sleeves, a ruched waist and a front slit. The Tularosa Jessalyn is pale pink with flutter sleeves and tiered ruffles, and the Bell Alexandria is lightweight blue and white voile with tassel waist ties.

In the fitting room, walk and turn once. Tiers should swing a beat after you do, and the seams between them should lie flat. Check that the lining, if there is one, is not shorter than the voile on top. In my fashion dreams she is crossing a gravel path in October with a cardigan over the shoulders and boots under the hem.

What I would skip: a dark sleeved maxi if you are shopping for a warm-weather trip. The FARM Rio Porcelain Birds belongs to fall dinners, not beach days.

Lace is where a dress goes from pretty to romantic, and the brand's own Heritage line is built around the founder's mother and her love of Victorian lace. A good alternative needs the same idea: lace that sits on the edge of a neckline, hem or sleeve instead of covering the whole garment.

Look at the Bardot Antonia first: dusty pink satin, mock neck, button placket, pintucks, lace trim and balloon sleeves, which reads very Edwardian. The ASTR the Label Sleeveless Midi Dress is a pink floral midi with lace inserts on the bodice, and the WAYF Isabelle is a blush slip mini with lace at the neckline and hem. Self-Portrait's collared mini in pink guipure lace is the dressiest of the set, with floral cutouts and a ruffled hem. For Love & Lemons has the Lillian in pink polka dot with scalloped lace trim.

The test is on the trim itself. Run a finger along the lace edge: it should be flat and fully stitched, with no curling corners. Tilt the neckline toward a window to see whether the lace is sewn onto the fabric or only tacked at points.

What I would skip: pink on pink on pink. If the dress is blush, give it a darker shoe, like chocolate suede or black patent, so the lace still has something to read against.

The ruffle and the bow are the details people recognize first, and you do not always need a full dress to get them. A blouse with a puff sleeve, worn with a long skirt or a pair of jeans, carries the same story. British Vogue says the most important thing, ahead of length, pattern and frill, is finding the right amount of puff.

That is my filter for this set. The Reiss Lerina is ivory with a smocked tie neck and puff sleeves, and the Steve Madden Lolanie is a dark floral sheer top with a tie-neck bow. The Lisa Says Gah Wimbledon pairs a velvet bow collar with long puff sleeves in an ivory garden floral cotton. French Connection's Maelys is a cream polka-dot top with three black velvet bows down the front, and the Free People She's A Romantic Top has a satin bow, pintucks and lace trim.

Check the sleeve head, where the puff meets the shoulder. It should hold its shape on the hanger and not collapse into a flat gather. Check that the bow ties flat too. Then pair any of these with a pleated midi skirt and loafers for a fall office day.

What I would skip: a sheer top with no layer underneath for anywhere with air conditioning. A simple camisole fixes it.

Smocking is the quiet workhorse of this look. Vogue describes the gathered, textured effect across the bodice or waist as the thing that gives the silhouette shape, with a flared skirt below. It is also why a smocked sundress is easy to size: the bodice stretches with you.

The Madewell Melody is the plain one, a navy smocked mini with a sleeveless crew neck. Caslon's tiered sundress has an ivory and blue floral print with ruffle straps. The Petal & Pup Darline is a cream midi with black polka dots and a keyhole neckline, and the Hill House Home Azalea is a blue paisley-floral nap dress with a smocked elastic bodice in cotton voile. Marine Layer's Carmen has tie straps, and the Pistola Ilona in black poplin has a bubble skirt.

The buying test is the stretch. Pull the smocked panel gently sideways and watch it spring back. The rows of stitching should be even and tight, and the straps should adjust or tie so the fit is yours. For October, I would wear one with a cropped cardigan and ankle socks, or a long-sleeve tee underneath.

What I would skip: a smocked dress in a thin, slippery fabric if you want it to hold shape over a long day. Cotton and voile do that better.

I would pick the detail first. If it is the flounce, start with the floral ruffle minis. If it is lace, go to the pink dresses with trim at the neckline. If it is the bows, buy the blouse and wear it with what is already in the closet.

Then check the fabric, the stitching and the sleeve, in that order. Light cotton or voile, even smocking, lace that is flat and finished. That is all the original asks of itself too, and it started as a bridesmaid dress made because nothing ethereal enough was on the rack.

The best part of a look-alike is that it is yours to style: the one with the ribbon waist tie, worn with boots, on the first cold Saturday of the month.