The new rules of party dressing (for grown-ups)
Even if you’ve had decades to perfect the art of party dressing, every year presents new challenges. Roughly summarised, these are: how to look partytastic when you have come straight from the office/PTA meeting/a very long drive via a puppy trainer, and your trusted fallback LBD is no longer going to cut it – not even with the sparkly sandals. So what are the new rules (ie shortcuts) that we all want to know? Well, rule number one is this: Look Just Party Enough. No question, the key is getting the balance between, ‘This is my moment and look what I’ve bought!’ and ‘Easy-breezy, sexy you’. As we all know, this is a fiendishly hard note to strike. I have a black lace jumpsuit hanging in my wardrobe. It’s super-flattering. It’s fancy but not too fussy. It really should hit the spot. But it’s too party: in it I look like Ivana Trump’s mum at a Spanishthemed jolly in Florida (the trousers are a bit matador-y), so it remains unworn. The secret of successful party dressing (or getting somewhere in that zone) is to look like you have tried Just Enough, and are wearing something that could fit in anywhere … with a few subtle adjustments. Never overdressed, never underdressed — just somewhere comfortably in the middle. Unverdressed? Let’s go with that.
Here are some tips for pulling it off …
Black — but only if it’s extreme
It’s tough, but face it: the LBD is no longer enough. (Admittedly, actress Patricia Clarkson does look pretty good in hers in recent film The Party, but that dress is just a backdrop to better show off her fabulous blonde hair (see later, The two Gs: gloss and glamour). These days the general rule is that black is ageing and safe and to be avoided unless it’s, a) got serious wow factor (eg a striking jumpsuit, and we’re talking the likes of an Emilia Wickstead), or b) it’s a tux. You cannot be underdressed in a slightly oversized tux jacket, and it’s very now. (It won’t do for the white-hot peak of Christmas parties, but in the lead-up you could do worse than slinging on Me & Em’s pinstriped, satin-lapelled jacket over black jeans and some heels). The way to wear the new tuxedo is boldly. With a cracking choker, a trailing scarf, or earrings designed to frighten the horses. The full tuxedo is unverdressing gold because you can play it Hollywood smart with immaculate make-up and velvet sandals or a bit cool-casual, with a skinny lurex top and ankle boots.
The poetry dress
It’s soft and silky, it finishes anywhere from mid-calf to the top of the ankle, it fits in the right places and flutes in the others. It’s got a wild print, or a shocking deep-V neckline — or both. And it has long sleeves (this is very important). I have a Rixo dress like this, covered in stars, which is perfectly pitched for unverdressing. It’s easy and is as smart as you want it to be. You can dress it down (ankle boots and tights), up (ankle-strap sandals, sheer stockings). Bingo. The test of whether a poetry dress is divine is in its simplicity. Could you get on a bike if you had to? Can you dance with your hands in the air like you just don’t care? Do you feel comfortably you? (The opposite of this is a party outfit that you feel you have to explain: as in, ‘Oh God, this halterneck thing? I’ve had it for years … It is quite tight, and green.’) The beauty of these dresses is they come in three degrees of sexiness, from prairie-girl modest (avoid) to slashed and thigh-split (the secret to pulling this off is opaque tights or, if you dare, a tight-to-the-leg suedette thigh-high boot … seriously).
Party top, jeans, heels
Remember that three-step combo in the 1990s? The special top, your best jeans and killer heels? Oh joy, it’s back, and is as easy as it ever was. Only now you can also do it with sharp ankle boots. But the PT must be batwing glorious as it’s the main event. You want trailing ties, whimsical floatiness, a pretty print. You don’t want a high neck and mutton-chop frills because that’s the top made for your teenage daughter. (If this look sounds a bit too casual to pull off, wide-leg, ankle-grazing velvet trousers will fix it for you.)
Weaponise your shoes
A Gucci-esque gold pump with cropped velvet trousers (fashion and fun!). A chunky velvet sandal with a pretty dress (one step more edgy). Be wary of an elegant suede court for parties: they are super-flattering but have a way of making dresses look smart daytime (though go ahead and wear a mean stiletto with trousers). Ankle boots are the unverdresser’s number-one weapon… if you want to take a pretty dress down a peg and make it instantly more, ‘I really haven’t sweated this’, it’s ankle boots. Red or silver, if you want to take it to a new level.
It’s all about the fabric
You can’t hit a party at this time of year wearing your favourite wool trousers. Party clothes must be slippery or sheer, soft or embellished, and prints need to be similarly night-time friendly — meaning exotic and bold. Beware grey or navy (unless it’s midnight-blue velvet), cream tops (too officey), and Christmas clichés such as burgundy velvet and pink sequins. Also, lace should be approached with extreme caution. If I had to pinpoint one reason for not wearing that jumpsuit, it’s the slight Havisham-ness of lace post 45. Note: the way to wear sequins now is sparingly dusted over a top — but a great sequin skirt can still hit the spot.
One sharp shock
Is it the dazzling print? Is it the south-ofthe-sternum neckline? Is it your peep-out shoulders or your silver heels? There’s got to be one in there, otherwise you are stuck in meet-the-parents territory. Unverdressing means never having to say, ‘No actually, I didn’t come straight from the office.’
The two Gs: gloss and glamour
As of now, we are luxing up our hair like we’ve only ever done on our wedding day. It doesn’t have to be big, but it does have to be glossy and as schwimmy as you can go. And finally, step away from the Mongolian-lamb scarf (it feels like that ship has sailed) but a faux-fur wrap can be a useful security blanket if you’ve gone for short sleeves or no sleeves — and it adds instant, effortless, strokable glamour.