party dresses

When there's no dress code on the invite, guests are free to interpret the "party dress" with their own brand of styling. Such was the case at last night's iHeartRadio 20/20 Justin Timberlake album release party, where attendees like Nikki Reed, Jordin Sparks, and Emmy Rossum celebrated JT with their own take on eventwear. Nikki made a case for the classics, keeping it easy in skinny pants and a semi-sheer button-up, while Jordin worked a cool-girl angle in leather pants, sexy heels, and a moto-style jacket. As for Emmy, she adopted a more ladylike approach, arriving in a sweet floral-embellished Topshop sheath and white heels. For the rest of the party guests, just keep clicking — then be sure to cast your vote for the night's best dressed.

No Essential Wardrobe is complete without a stand-out, head-turning, meet-me-on-the-D-floor party dress. Yes, we know. separates feel fresher this year after the dominance of 'The Dress' in seasons past — but believe us when we say that you will never regret investing in one drop-dead-amazing frock for the festive season. Sequinned or studded, backless or sheer — pick on decorative trick then keep the rest super simple. Add a pair of no-fuss pointy-toed pumps and you're done. NYE, here you come!

It's the question every girls asks her friends. . . what are you wearing on New Year's Eve. The Sugar editors are no different, and after we sorted our work Christmas party ensembles, it was oh, about three and a half minutes before we started planning our NYE looks. No matter where you're spending the big night or what you've got planned, you are going to need something celebratory to wear! Get some outfit inspo via our team's top NYE picks. 2013 is looking good, already . . .

When it comes to fashion, there are usually no hard and fast rules. Style is subjective; everyone can do their own thing and that's what's great about it. But when it comes to the work Christmas party, a few little rules need to come into play. Why? Well, let's just say you don't want to be the girl everyone talks about for all the wrong reasons. . . And it can be easy to put a fashionable foot wrong in the eyes of a conservative boss or super stylish colleague. We've already shown you what we'd wear — here are some pretty pieces that you can make your own, or take style cues from. Click through and get inspired!

Deciding what you wear to your end-of-year work Christmas party is an important call. You want to something that says celebratory without jeopardising your professional cred. Our tip is to keep the silhouette proper, but have fun with colour and embellishment. A pair of punchy palazzo pants? Perfect. A pair of silver-foiled skinny jeans? You got the idea. The Sugar pod have kindly submitted their top two office-shindig selects for your perusal, so step inside and get inspired. Just for goodness sake, watch your champas intake and save your best dirty dancing for a GNO.

The silly season is near upon us, which means one thing to us; party season style. Our usual MO for special occasion dressing is to let our inner bower bird off the chain, but this year we're adopting a more tactical, more grown-up and — dare we say it — cooler approach. It comes thanks to one of our all-time favourite girl crushes — ex-Russh editor and now NYC-based stylist Stevie Dance. She lay down her rules to dressing for this time of the year, with rather strict instructions on how to not look like a Christmas tree. Here are our top five take-away tips and the pieces that will change the way you dress for special occasions — for the better.

Alannah Hill is known for her girlie-girl approach to dressing. Think prom-style dresses, nipped-in waists, full skirts, embellished cardigans and enough ladylike accessories to turn the Mad Men girls a minty shade of green. However, after viewing Ms Hill's current Spring/Summer '12 look book, we think the appeal of her latest offering will extend beyond those with a '50s fashion fixation. Slinky sequinned party dresses, sexy pencil skirts and punchy printed pants speak so some of this season's strongest trends, albeit all of the above mentioned have a distinctly feminine twist. The whole kit and caboodle is in-store and online now, so we suggest you get a-clicking!