High on the list of life’s frustrations: people and things that overpromise and under deliver.

The realtor, for example, who spouts about a sweet apartment with a killer view but shows you a tiny box with a peek into the neighbor’s window. The new flame who bodes lifelong happiness but causes temporary insanity. Newbury Street blocks that suggest shopping bliss but (once you filter out the chain stores and stores you can’t even afford to look in) offer only a handful of truly interesting boutiques.

Dress, the latest shop to grace Newbury Street, may just be the exception. It carries a range of bona fide cutting-edge designers, including some you won’t find anywhere else in town. Among them: Alex Gaines, Vena Cava, Issa, Birkett, and Lauren Moffatt. Plus denim from Shagg and Rock & Republic. And accessories? Try shoes from Eileen Shields and jewelry from local designer Jane Elizabeth.

You’ll be gorgeous while hunting a new flame or — even more precious — that perfect apartment.

And given the damage you might inflict here, you’re going to need more than a shoe box-size closet.

Dress, 221 Newbury Street, between Exeter and Fairfield Streets, Back Bay (617-424-7125).