From our contributor Zenita on Fashion.
Amazon has many independent suppliers who post their own ads on the site. One of them, Zanzea, has unfortunately attempted to sell the impossible
Strapless dresses have no straps. They hug the curves of your figure so they stay on all by themselves.
Spaghetti straps are thin straps that quite logically look like spaghetti, and they are commonly used to hold up dresses that would otherwise gradually inch downward until disaster results.
After reading these two definitions, you can see that a dress cannot be both strapless and have spaghetti straps. But in September, 2017 Zanzea offered to sell you such a creation on Amazon! The picture in the listing shows a spaghetti strap dress.
Now, you actually can combine these two styles as an option on a strapless dress. Some sundresses and even some prom gowns will be designed as strapless dresses, but have “insurance” spaghetti straps that are normally tucked out of sight inside the bodice. If your figure isn’t providing enough support for the dress to stay up, voila! You pull out your emergency spaghetti straps and you’re all set. Designers refer to such items as “strapless dresses with optional straps” and similar terms.
Sorry, Zanzea, the picture on your ad is not a strapless dress with emergency straps as an option — it’s a lovely spaghetti strap dress that will never stay up by itself. There is No Such Thing as a Spaghetti Strapless Dress!