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No weird shapes. No peplums, gores or peculiar sleeves. No shoulder pads, visible pockets or extra-deep cleavage. Choose a simple style that flatters you, but that isn't tailored or overly structured. It should accent your body without revealing too much.
You may want your LBD to accentuate your figure. Don't go overboard! Choose one area you are most proud of, and pick the dress that shows it off to its best advantage. Great legs? Go semi-formal. Beautiful bust? Choose a gown with nice decolletage, but definitely not too much. The goal is to accent, but not to put it all out there.
The fabric must be perfect, classic and lasting. Ideally, it won't invite static cling, which will make it more wearable even in cases of pet hair. It may be silk, linen, wool jersey, or cotton. No rayon, nylon, polyester or acrylic. No cutout or burnout fabrics. Solid fabrics are preferable, but if you find a subtle pattern you really love, it may be all right. If it's hand or machine washable too, you have found a real treasure.
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Matching your formal wear to the social occasion is a matter of understanding the difference between lasting elegance and modern trends. If you're dancing at the hottest club in the city, being up-to-the-minute in your clothing may get you inside the velvet rope. But if you want to know the perfect thing to wear to a bridge luncheon, you should consult a book on etiquette and fashion. If you appear at the races at Ascot, England without a hat, the right dress and proper shoes, it won't matter if you have tickets; they won't let you in. But most of the time, the fashion rules are a little bit looser, and you can make your own interpretations.
Holiday wear for formal occasions is generally lush: winter holidays and candlelight occasions make velvet particularly beautiful, and its warmth is an added benefit. Victorian women often wore silk velvet gowns; modern velvets are often made of cotton which is more easily washed. Velvet should never be stiff: otherwise, it gives the impression of being more upholstery than fashion. Look for velvet with a fluid drape and a bright sheen.
Modern satins are usually a bad idea for formal occasions: being all too often made of polyester, they are shiny, slick and cheap-looking. But classic silk-satins are gorgeous; lustrous, gleaming and very expensive, a bias-cut silk satin sheath is the epitome of timeless formal wear for women.
Fancy clothing tends to be black, but for some people, black isn't appealing. Black worn next to the face can age you ten or fifteen years since it doesn't provide any reflection and may tend to point up wrinkles and muddy complexions. Dark skinned people may not like black, which can make you look sallow; people who are especially pale may look even paler, or even ill, in black. After five clothing doesn't have to be black (unless your host or the occasion specifies it): you can certainly find evening wear in a range of beautiful colors and glamorous styles.
In some social sets, the cocktail gown is still a vital part of a woman's wardrobe, but in most of American society, the true cocktail party died out two decades ago. Still, if you're invited to a friend's house for cocktails, it's the perfect excuse to put on a full-skirted dress in some light fabric. Cocktail dresses, although often confused with cocktail gowns, can be distinguished from cocktail gowns by the length and form: cocktail dresses are intended to be more playful. They show off the legs and are often short sleeved or sleeveless. For outdoor cocktail parties, fabric designs with floral or tropical motifs are highly appropriate. Cocktail gowns are longer, more elegant and less frolicsome. Lacking in leg, they tend to emphasize the bust instead, and they are often sleeveless to allow for tight quarters and long gloves. Cocktail parties that take place in the early afternoon or evening are usually made for cocktail dresses: cocktail parties that occur after dinner time are more formal and may require cocktail gowns. If you are attending a cocktail party that's in a public place or is a fund-raiser, your invitation will probably tell you whether dress should be semi-formal or formal.
You don't have to be rich to assemble the right wardrobe for formal or semi-formal events. Contrary to what the fashion magazines would have you believe, you don't have to buy a designer gown to attend museum openings, musical soirees or other hoity-toity bashes. Whatever the occasion, if you don't have a little black dress, you will need one. The perfect LBD can be dressed up with heels and gloves, dressed down with ballet flats and a scarf, or just dressed with your favorite necklace when you have no idea of what else to wear. You can buy terrific formal gowns at second hand clothing stores or at vintage stores, providing they carry a decent size range. With women getting significantly taller over the past hundred years, and with the loss of corseting as a means to keep women small and breathless, many women can’t fit into vintage fashions.
For new evening wear, consult the plus sized clothing stores that specialize in elegant, full-figured fashions. To keep it timeless, choose elegance over fashion, concealing over revealing and quality over trendiness.
Read more size clothing information on
Plus Size Wedding Dresses
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