what to wear

swillybabe

ok ladies... for a "black tie" ball..... do i need a full length dress or is a short dress acceptable?

Ickle Magoo

Moved from tLL.

This is the forum for all things/queries relating to fashion and appearance. :cool:

jokettle

I've seen plenty of women at black-tie events wearing short, cocktail-style dresses. Full length is definitely acceptable as well.

convert

I bought a knee length dress for a black tie dinner. Most of the girls that night were in short dresses, so if you'd rather opt for a shorter one then do so - you won't look 'out of place'. Enjoy the event!

This was the dress:

lainey316

Traditionally it would require a long dress - well, a gown to be precise - but it's less clear cut these days. Judge based on the event - if the organisers are more conservative, go for a gown. Anything media or music for example would be less fussy than a hunt ball or some charities.

swillybabe

convert wrote: »

I bought a knee length dress for a black tie dinner. Most of the girls that night were in short dresses, so if you'd rather opt for a shorter one then do so - you won't look 'out of place'. Enjoy the event!

This was the dress:

love this dress!

aristocat

CONVERT Love your dress. Where did you get it? The rusching around the waist is great for hiding an after dinner bulge! Unusual colour too. What acessories did you choose?

swillybabe

aristocat wrote: »

CONVERT Love your dress. Where did you get it? The rusching around the waist is great for hiding an after dinner bulge! Unusual colour too. What acessories did you choose?

is this a coast dress in aubergine?

Naomi00

If it's a proper 'black tie' code then full length.

But they might just mean it as formal, so either that way.

convert

I got the dress in Coast - it was expensive, though - €195 full price (thank God for student discounts! :P)

It's kind of a burgundy/maroon wine colour - it doesn't look as dark in real life as it does in that photo - because it's satin it seems to catch/reflect the light.

Because it was a last minute rush job I didn't have time to do a 'proper' accessories shop for it, so had to just go with what I had at home. I just paired it with a silver pair of stiletto sandals I got in Shoe Rack years ago, 2 bracelets - pearl and silver - and a silver necklace and earings. If you're someone who likes gold, I'd say it would look lovely with it, too.

One of the images on the Coast website pairs it with light black tights and a pair of black shoes.

convert

I was at a hunt ball over the weekend and opted to wear a long ball gown (simply because it's probably my 'once a year event' where I can actually wear a ball gown and not look out of place! ) and I can tell you that only about 60% of the ladies there wore long dresses - the others were all in shorter dresses (knee length or just below the knee). So what ladies wear to 'black tie' events does really seem to be changing and it's now more acceptable to wear shoter dresses to these events.

Malari

My mom got this dress too for a party, in the same colour and it was gorgeous on her! She paired it with gold accessories and nude shoes, clutch and wrap. Apparently very comfortable to wear, even sitting down and eating for a couple of hours.