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We know the party season is over at last, and it's time to put away the sequins and stilettos for another year (What, you weren't wearing sequins and stilettos?), but we thought we may as well start the New Year with a bit of a bang, so here's Zac Posen's stunning 'Cove' satin dress. Sure, it's £1,115, but if we start saving now, we can probably be wearing it by next Christmas. Get it at Net-a-Porter.
Want to see out 2008 with a bang? The Fashion Police present red-carpet favourites Marchesa, and their £2,600 layered ruffle dress. Sure, you'll be eating ramen noodles from now until Spring, and some people may look at you a bit funny, but you will be the talk of the New Year's party, we promise.
Get it at Net-a-Porter
This is our last Dress of the Day before Christmas (we'll have a couple of posts for you tomorrow too, though, so don't forget to check-in if you're bored at work!), so we thought we may as well make it something of a show-stopper.
Karen Millen describe this as their "dramatic ruffled" dress, and, well, we think "dramatic" is just about right, there. Again, it won't be for everyone, but those of you who're all about the drama can find it for £160 here.
If you really want to get noticed at the Christmas party this year, a short, metallic dress is generally a surefire way to do it.
If the words "short metallic dress" are conjuring up images of something not exactly "sophisticated", though, relax: there is a way to pull off this look, without looking like you're the evening's entertainment, or like you just dropped out of a Christmas cracker.
This dress by Oasis has a demure shape, particularly on the bodice, which offsets the shiny colour and (relatively) short skirt, making it that bit easier to get away with. Wearing it with opaque tights will make it easier still, although clearly this dress won't suit everyone's tastes, no matter how it's worn.
If you think it'd suit yours, though, it's £65 from Oasis .
Red. It's such an easy way to add instant impact to your outfit without trying too hard, and this is why The Fashion Police are such fans of the red dress. This one by Diane Von Furstenberg is a case in point:the design itself is actually very simple, but the vibrant colour, teamed with that big, swirly skirt, turns it into something special - and we like the way they've used bright red lipstick on the model, too.
This is $410 and you can get it at Nordstrom.
Coral. It's a colour we struggle with, to be absolutely honest, and while we think this Tibi dress deserves its place as Dress of the Day on grounds of the design, which we love, we have to admit, we'd be loving it a whole lot more if if was a different colour. Any colour.
That said, coral was very popular this summer, and if you love it and want to take it through to winter, this could be the way to do it. We like the retro feel of this dress,a and the big bow on the collar manages to appeal to our bow-love, without being too twee.
We suspect this won't be the most popular DOTD ever, but hey, variety is the spice of life, so if you like it, you can buy it for £275 at Net-a-Porter.
At first glance, this Oasis dress seemed a little bit out of season to us, because something about the floral print and shape of the dress says "summer" rather than "deep midwinter" to us.
At a time when we feel a little like we're drowning in a sea of party dresses, though, that's actually quite refreshing, and although the description says it's made of "light cotton", we can see no reason why you couldn't "winter it up" a little with some thick tights, boots and a cardigan over the top.
Failing that, there's always next Spring...
It's £45 at Oasis .
We're cheating a little bit (OK, a big bit) with this dress, because we actually featured the same design as a Dress of the Day back in August, when it was only available in navy.
Lots of you commented to say how much you liked it back then, though, so we thought you might be interested to see the "party" version, which is available in this gorgeous green. Going by the picture alone, it looks like the fabric has a slight sheen to it, which will make it good for evening wear - we're actually wishing it was more of a matt colour, so we could wear it all the time, because we're big fans of this 40s-inspired style, and we love it even more in green.
If you love it too, it's £44.99, and you can get it from River Island.
Notice anything familiar?
Well, it's not exactly the same, of course, but there are shades of Roland Mouret's Moon dress in this little tweed number from Dorothy Perkins, don't you think?
Not that we're complaining, of course: Dotty Ps are far from the only high street retailer to be bringing out Moon-dress-alikes this month, but at just £30, this is certainly one of the more affordable ones, and it'll dress up beautifully, whether for work or for any occasion when you want to look a little bit "posh". (We're speaking literally here - can't you just imagine Victoria Beckham in this?)
We'd wear it with black patent shoes and an oversized clutch. You can wear it anyway you like - get it here.
Once again we find ourselves cursing our tendency to ignore Principles, as we stumble across this lovely gold dress, and discover that it's almost sold out, at Debenhams at least.
If you like it, then, you may have to hunt for it in-store rather than online, and check out Principles itself as well as the department stores that stock the brand.
Should you manage to find it, however, your efforts will be rewarded, as this is a very stylish little dress which would be perfect for things like weddings, office parties or anything you need to get dressed up for.
It's £89.
This dress is also available in black and purple, but we think the red colour shown here is the one we'd go for, if we were buying a dress like this. The cap sleeved bodice makes a refreshing change from all of the strapless and spaghetti-strap styles we tend to see at this time of year, but the short shirt and nipped-in waist stops it being too demure, and leaves you with a rather nice silhouette. It's a simple little dress, but very cute, and you can buy it for £45 at ASOS.
They're calling this "floral print" over at Net-a-Porter, but don't be misled: just in case you haven't noticed, there's a big ol' leopard on the front, with mummy and baby leopard on the back, too! If we'd just read that sentence without seeing the dress, we'd probably be imagining a crime of fashion here, but actually, we think this works: it's a little bit quirky, and thanks to the long sleeves and simple cut, this is a dress you could probably wear during the day, too - always a good thing. This is £210 and is available from Net-a-Porter
We've been seeing a lot of purple party dresses hitting the stores this winter, but we happen to think that's no bad thing: the colour is festive without being garish, and anything that gives us a change from that party-season staple, black, has to be a good thing, no?
This dress by Ted Baker is short and sweet, and relies mostly on the stunning colour to set it apart, although we like the halter neck and contrast waist band, too. It's also available in black, and is £120 at ASOS.
Especially for those of you not currently looking for a showstopper of a party dress, this little jersey dress by Max C will be easy to pull on and wear anywhere you want - just add boots, tights and a cardigan to keep you warm for daytime use.
The bow adds a touch of "cute", and we reckon dresses like this are wardrobe staples during the colder months of the year. Get this one for £29.99 from Spoiled Brat.
On paper - and, indeed, at first glance - this dress probably seems too frou-frou for words.
We reckon that if you keep the accessories nice and simple, though, you'll be able to pull it off nicely - and there's something appealing about the thought of being able to swish around like a princess in that skirt, no?
The combination of ruffles and corsage makes this a super-feminine (too much so for some of you, we'll bet) dress, but the frills are offset by the plain top, and therefore win Fashion Police approval.
It's £45 at New Look.
There are lots of variations of this kind of style around at the moment, and we'd by lying if we didn't admit that £810 seems like a wee bit much to pay for it, but Derek Lam rarely does wrong in our book, and this dress is lovely enough to warrant its position as Dress of the Day, even despite the hefty price tag.
This is one of those dresses that, like so many black cocktail dresses before it, will see you through any number of parties, with nothing more than a pair of great shoes and maybe a bracelet or two to set it off to perfection.
If the price seems just right to you, you can pick it up at Net-a-Porter.
Who knew "smoke grey" could look so gosh-darned cute? Not The Fashion Police, but we're loving this sweet little Alice + Olivia mini dress, which possibly won't be the easiest dress to wear, exactly, but will be one of the cutest.
It's £370 at Net-a-Porter.
This is the latest in a growing line of what we've come to think of as "Serena Van Der Woodsen dresses". What that means, of course, is that this isn't going to be suitable for everyone - it takes a certain amount of attitude to be able to get away with all those studs and sequins, but if you have that in spades, this dress is for you. It's £100 at Warehouse.
The words "gold lamé" are generally enough to strike fear into The Fashion Police's beating hearts, because they make us think instantly of American Apparel hotpants, and it's taken years of therapy to get rid of those mental images so the last thing we want is to welcome them back with open arms.
With that said, we've managed to talk ourselves into both looking at and liking this black and gold lamé tuxedo dress by Nicole Miller, and now we're even liking it enough to make it Dress of the Day. Progress for us.
Of course, you may disagree, but we think it's rather cute, and the fact that it's gold rather than white will make you less likely to look like a waitress, no?
It's $350 at eDressMe.
We'll be honest: we're not 100% sure about this dress. It looks fabulous in the pictures we've seen of it on the model (but then, that's what we'd expect because, d'uh, she's a model!), and we love the colour, of course, but something about the frills at the bottom just doesn't sit quite right with us, and we think we'd have to try it on to really make up our minds about it.
For those of you who have no such qualms, though, and who think this would be the perfect dress to swish around in during the party season, this is £45 from Dorothy Perkins, even although it's new in this week, a lot of sizes are already sold out online, so you might want to get in quickly with your order.
Seeing as we were just praising Net-a-Porter, we thought it would be fitting to feature a Dress of the Day from there - also, we managed to catch Marc Jacobs at a good moment, and we like to try and encourage him anytime that happens, so here is his heart jacquard dress, £625 at the aforementioned Net-a-Porter.
We love this bright purple colour which is currently being described by many as "the colour of the season". (Is it just us, or does purple get described that way every year at this time?) This is a dress that looks quite different when it's actually on, mind you, with a little split to the front which isn't visible in this picture, so you may want to take a look at the other images of it before handing over your £625.
Yes, it's yet another Black Halo dress. We'll stop making them Dress of the Day when they stop creating dresses that make us wish we were richer so we could just buy then all and have done with it.
This is another one for the "simple but stunning" files. There's been rather a lot of these around lately, and the current economic climate is making many of us more likely to invest in something classic that will last for years rather than the kind of dress that will make jaws drop, but be so distinctive that you'll only ever wear it once.
This definitely falls into the first category: different accessories will give it a different look, meaning that even although the price tag is $385, you'll be able to get the cost-per-wear much lower than that.
It's available to order now at Chic Downtown.
For some reason, this dress makes us think of Mischa Barton. Normally that fact alone would be enough for us to send it straight to the Fashion Jail, without passing 'Go' or collecting $200, but we decided to make it Dress of the Day instead.
This is actually a style we've been seeing cropping up a lot lately, and we really like it. Yes, it's the old tulip-style skirt again, but this is smart enough for formal wear, but also something you'd be able to accessorize pretty easily to put your own stamp on it.
Or, of course, you could just spend the entire evening being mistaken for a waistress, you just never know, do you?
It's £65 at Warehouse.
Especially for those of you who have secretly always wanted to be Barbie. Or to look like a giant pink gift.
£145 from Coast.
The word "divine" in the title of this post refers to the name of this particular dress rather than our assessment of it, but although we prefer to reserve the word "divine" for certain pairs of shoes, we will concede that this is heading in the right direction. We like the bright blue and the bow detail at the bust, and if you do too, you can buy it for $328 at Shopbop.
Coming from a cold climate, The Fashion Police are big fans of the sweater dress, which keeps you warm, but can still be easily dressed up with some heels and a few pieces of jewellery, or a scarf. We also happen to love bell sleeves on simple, black dresses, so it will come as no surprise to you to learn that as soon as we laid eyes on this dress by BCBG Max Azria, we knew it was destined to be a Dress of the Day.
And here it is.
Floral print isn't something we generally associate with party dresses, because it tends to have something of a daytime feel to it. We'd make an exception for this Nicholas Millington dress, though: the silk-look fabric glams it up enough for evening, or special events, and the green colour is gorgeous. The skirt is the ubiquitous tulip shape, which we know some of you object too, but it's a little hard to avoid right now, unfortunately. This is £69 from Additions Direct.
As the Christmas party season starts to get into gear, any dress that isn't black tends to stand out and grab the attention of The Fashion Police. This dress from Oli was no exception: we're big fans of this mink colour, and with the right shoes and accessories, we think it could be a real show-stopper.
We're also fans of the fitted shape and sweetheart neckline, both of which help add a touch of glamour, with the stretch satin-look fabric being the finishing touch.
Finally, there's the price. We don't think £40 is too much to pay for a dress like this - now we just need to find somewhere to wear it!
Looks a little bit like the dresses The Fashion Police officers are wearing in our banner, doesn't it? God, we love it when that happens. We're also complete and utter suckers for it, which is why this black, bell-sleeved dress from Whistles is your Dress of the Day, folks: enjoy!
It's Friday night, and if you're looking for a show-stopper of a dress - preferably one with sequins all over it - then look no further.
This dress is by Stella McCartney, and will set you back £1,695, and while the price doesn't really bear thinking about, we've found ourselves drawn to sparkly mini dresses lately (no, we don't really know why either) and this one is definitely an attention-getter.
Does it get your attention in a good way, though? If it does, and you have the cash to splash, you can pick it up at Net-a-Porter.
This dress was nominated for Dress of the Day by Fashion Police reader Maddie, and we can see why she loved it, because as little black dresses go, this is one of the nicer ones we've seen. We love the cowl neck and wide skirt, and while it's very simple and elegant, it'll dress up very easily - it's great with the red lipstick and severe hair shown here, for example!
For more info, click here.
Sequins on dresses can go very, very wrong, but we think this dress from Miss Selfridge manages to get it right. At first glance it looks a little on the shapeless side, but once it's on, we have a feeling it'll cling to your body just enough to give it some shape without looking trashy. It also manages to look simple but glamorous, and could be a bit of a show-stopper with the right accessories. It's £85 at Miss Selfridge.
We know what you're probably thinking, and yes, you're partly right. This dress is mostly here because of the gorgeous green colour, but it's also the kind of classic, easy-to-wear shape that needs only a great pair of heels and a pretty clutch bag to be one of the most stunning looks of the evening.
Be ye not alarmed by the "open back" referenced in the title, either: yes, the back is slashed from neck to waistline at the back, so you're going to need those weird stick-on bras if you feel the need for some support, but the opening isn't too wide, or too trashy looking, and we actually think it adds an extra point of interest to the dress.
This is also available in a glorious purple colour, and we're hard-pressed to choose between them. If you can make your mind up, it's £195 at Whistles.
If you thought (or, indeed, hoped) the trend for bows on everything was drawing to a close, we hate to be the bearer of bad news, but: it's not.
No, the bows are still around, and they're out in force for the Christmas party season, which will be good news for some of you and not so great for others.
We like this purple asymmetric bow dress by Aqua Couture, which is also available in red. This is one that looks better when you watch the video of it on the ASOS website than it does in this picture, so we'd recommend doing that if you think you might like it but aren't totally convinced.
If, on the other hand, you are totally convinced, you can proceed straight to the checkout, where it'll cost you £75.
We don't know if the "blonde bombshell" look being worked by the model in this picture had any influence over our decision to feature Robert Rodriguez's Bow Strap Double Knit Dress as our Dress of the Day today, but we reckon it probably helped. A little.
That's not to say the dress isn't worthy of attention under it's own merits, of course, because we think it most definitely is. This is yet another take on the "little black dress with a bow on it" look, but Rodriguez has kept it fresh by draping the bow over the shoulder and adding a sexy, deep V back.
We like. If you do too, it's $385 at Nordstrom.
Black Halo are The Brand That Can Do No Wrong right now as far as The Fashion Police are concerned, and we really hope we're not tempting fate with that statement.
It came as no surprise to us, then, when we instantly focused in on this dress over at Shopbop, that it's made by Black Halo. It has that characteristic "classic-but-sexy" look to it, and although the plunging neckline is just a little too low for us to wear without wanting to tug it up all night, the gorgeous purple colour makes up for it.
If you live it to, it's $325 at Shopbop.
We love almost everything about this dress by La Petite S*****, but suspect the shininess of the gold fabric will give some of you pause for thought.
Net-a-Porter say it's " the perfect holiday party-package", and that's true, in that you'll look a lot like a gaudily packaged Christmas present -and a rather sexy one at that. If that doesn't put you off, the price might: this is £795, and is available from Net-a-Porter.
Ah, it's that lovely bright blue we've been seeing so much of this season! Such a nice change from black, and it alone would've been enough to draw our eyes to this Catherine Malandrino dress, but the cute little ruffled sleeves make it extra special. Well, we think so, anyway. If you think so too, it's $495 from Shopbop.
Maxi dresses don't tend to get much of a look in at Dress of the Day, so in the interests of diversity, here's Warehouse's nod towards the 70s vibe going on in fashion land at the moment. If you have the right occasion (and figure) for it, we think this could be a stunning and refreshingly different dress to wear - glossy lips and shimmery eyes will complete the 70s feel, just try and steer clear of the frosted lipstick and blue eyeliner...
This is £90 at Warehouse.
Sometimes simple really is best. This one shoulder pencil dress from Karen Millen is certainly simple enough to mean you'll get plenty of wear out of it (this type of dress will see you through many, many formal occasions), but with just enough detail to make it stand out.
The one-shoulder design and contrast fabric on the figure-hugging bodice give this something of a designer look, but at £160 it's expensive, but not so much that you'll have to mortgage the house to pay for it - always a good thing, we find.
Wear with the highest of heels and a swept-up hairdo for a polished look that never goes wrong.
Buy it online from the Karen Millen website.
A nice alternative to the classic LBD, French Connection's Cogs Dress has a lovely beaded neckline and a deep-V back that makes it much less demure than it may seem at first glance. We're fans of the cinched-in waist, and think this is the kind of dress you'd end up wearing again and again, but without getting bored of it. It's £140 from frenchconnection.co.uk
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Yes, yes, we know what we've said about tartan in the past, but The Fashion Police can be fickle, and although we still hate the traditional "Royal Stewart-esque" look (especially on trousers), we're not adverse to a large check, in a less "loud" colour scheme, and we find we're not adverse to this pink check shift dress from Dorothy Perkins, either.
The pink is certainly vivid here, but the soft grey helps mute it, leaving you with a look that's fairly modern and somehow perfect for winter. If you like the shape of the dress but not the colours, meanwhile, it's also available in more classic looking black and grey versions.
This is £35 at Dorothy Perkins.
Sequin-covered dresses are the kind of thing you have tread very carefully with. Many of them are fashion-criminals-in-waiting, and if you get it wrong, you can end up looking like a cruise ship singer or a Vegas showgirl. Which is fine if you're in one of those professions, of course, but otherwise not such a great look...
We think this simple tunic by Sara Berman represents the right way to wear sequins, though: the no-frills design makes up for the high-shine front, and the dress looks anything but cheap - which is a good thing given that it's £229.
We're still loving the 60s-inspired shift dresses that are cropping up everywhere at the moment and this polka-dot dress from the Marc by Marc Jacobs label is a great example of all the things we love about this style, from the simple neckline to the gathered sleeves and short skirt.
That skirt will, of course, be too short for many of us, although the fact that it's shown here on an undoubtedly statuesque model probably makes it look shorter than it would be on mere mortals. If you'd prefer not to have to worry about flashing your knickers all the time, though, a pair of opaque tights will do the job.
We're less enthused about the back of this dress, which is plain black with a cut-out at the neck, and we'd have preferred it if Marc could've resisted the impulse to be "clever" and just made the back as simple as the front, but if you're unfazed by the difference in styles, this is $378 at eLuxury.
This dress may not look like much to write home about in the picture, but we're willing to bet it'll look a whole lot better in person, especially when worn with a pair of high, high heels, and maybe some seamed stockings, to play up that 40s look.
It's the tailored, 40s style shape that attracts us to this, needless to say, although the deep berry colour is also a winner as far as we're concerned, and a great alternative to black.
The satin bodice, meanwhile, gives it a bit of sex appeal, the narrow belt nips in the waist, and as for the pencil skirt... well, we reckon its hard to go wrong with one, really.
This dress is by Betty Jackson Black, and is available at Debenhams, where it's £59. It's totally sold out on line, though, so if you like it, you're going to have to visit the store in person.
The Fashion Police are partial to the odd bit of flapper-fashion every now and again. So are Miss Selfridge, apparently, hence the appearance of this sequined flapper dress in their stores and on their website.
At £65, this is a little more expensive than many of the brand's offerings, but hey, if you need an excuse to buy it, Halloween is just around the corner - flapper girl costume, anyone?
Because sometimes you just want something simple, understated and classic. And that costs $3730.
(OK, maybe not that last bit.)
Ah, the colours, the colours! They're as refreshing as a long cold drink on a hot day, aren't they? They're also a really good way to make your dress stand out from all of the LBDs as the Christmas cocktail party, and that fact alone gets this dress from Warehouse the thumbs-up from us.
Jacquard always strikes us as a very "wintry" fabric, which makes up for the cool blues and greens of this dress, while the corsage detail on the sash dresses it up that little bit more. The thick fabric means you'll also be able to get away with wearing it with opaque tights if you need a little bit of extra warmth...
Fashion seems to be going through something of a 60s-inspired stage at the moment, and this is a movement that meets with The Fashion Police's full approval, especially when it means we get to look at lots of lovely little shift dresses.
This one is by Tory Burch, so as you can imagine, it's not the cheapest little shift dress around, at £310. We think it is one of the cutest, though, and we like the clover print pattern. The short length, meanwhile, is offset by the high neck, and will look great on those of you blessed with long legs. Or even on those of us with shorter legs because hell, why not?
Get it at Net-a-Porter.
This is a very simple little dress, but the rich purple colour, and the fact that you'll be able to dress it up and down so easily makes it nice enough for us to feature it here as Dress of the Day.
First the bad news: for reasons unknown to us, Dorothy Perkins have only released this as part of their petite collection. It's available in UK sizes 4 - 18, but is cut for the short of stature, so if that's not you, then this isn't going to be for you either.
If you love it, however, this will make a great party dress, and as mentioned above, you can easily dress it up with jewellery, a great pair of shoes, and even a waist belt if you want to make it look just a little bit different. It's £35 from Dorothy Perkins.
It's a dress designed only for those with supreme confidence in their figures, but hey, if that sounds like you, the Herve Leger bandage dress is a classic and it'll also have a "molding and sculpting" effect, making you look even better.
If we were going to be buying a bandage dress (which we're not, we hasten to add - no one panic), this would probably be the one, because we love the mix of colours used here. Both the price tag ($1250, seeing as you asked) and the nightmares we keep having about what our butts would look like in it will hold us back, of course, but if you want it, this dress is now available to order at Saks.
What does everyone think of the bandage dress? Would you wear one?
The words "heart print" can be a little alarming when used in the same sentence as "dress", conjuring up images of something too twee for words.
Not so with this belted dress from Oli, however: yes, that is heart print, but the hearts are so small they'd be mistaken for a small polka-dot from a distance. Up close, though, they provide a bit of extra interest, although we could argue that this dress doesn't really need it: it had us from the moment we spotted the boat neck (one of our favourite features), and the patent belt finishes things off nicely.
We think this is very chic, and looks like it's just begging to be worn with Jackie O style sunglasses and an up-do. If it meets with your approval too, it's £40 and available from Oli.
Given our love for forties-inspired fashion, this Karen Millen dress was always going to end up as a Dress of the Day, so here it is...
"Glamorous" is their word, not ours, but we can't disagree with it, and we love the nipped-in waist and sweetheart neckline, which add a sexy twist to the traditional tweed pencil dress.
Stilettos and seamed stockings will complete the ladylike look, but if you want to accessorize it further, Karen Millen have also created a matching tweed jacket and cape , the latter of which will help you look even more like a silent movie heroine.
This is £160 at Karen Millen.
We know it's not everyone who can get away with this particular shade of bright yellow, or, indeed, wants to. If you can wear it, though, and you happen to have a spare $1,800 going begging (eeek!), this would be a fantastic dress to twirl around in and watch that skirt fly! Zac Posen has called it the 'Flounce' dress, which we think is a suitably dramatic name for something like this. We just wish it was available in another colour. And for a few hundred dollars less...
Buy it here.
