Cocktail Dress

[lucy1210]

Going out for social occasions often means dressing up. Events that call for cocktail dress usually occur during the evening rather than during the day. However, it's important to distinguish evening cocktail dress from other categories of evening attire. Although the categories of attire for evening social occasions overlap to some extent, there are distinctions.

Cocktail dress refers to dress-up attire for social occasions. Events for which cocktail attire is suitable range from holiday parties to singles get-togethers to upscale nightclubs. Cocktail dress is sometimes called "festival attire" or sometimes "creative black tie." Accessories, women's hairstyles and jewellery for cocktail dress are typically more flashy and distinctive than for other types of dress-up attire.

Cocktail dress code is often comparable to semi-formal attire; however, there are differences. For men, semi-formal attire is a suit or jacket, often with a vest, and a tie. Cocktail attire for men consists of a jacket with or without a tie, and slacks. The cut of cocktail attire for men is often more fashion-forward, and with bolder colours and patterns than semi-formal attire.

Cocktail attire for women has more emphasis on appeal to the opposite sex than semi-formal attire. Semi-formal attire for women calls for dresses below the knee but above floor length. Cocktail attire for women calls for knee length or shorter dresses, with more body-conscious fitting than with semi-formal dresses.

Formal attire is either black tie or white tie. Either category calls for tuxedos or morning coats for men, and floor length for women. Formal attire is much too dressy for an occasion calling for cocktail attire. Men would almost never wear a tuxedo, nor would women wear a floor-length dress.
Cocktail dress is typically not suitable for business social occasions, unless it's toned down. Women should be especially careful about showing too much skin. Men should also concentrate on somewhat subdued colours and styles when dressing for an occasion that's a mix of business and socialising.

[Roxy Tart {PL Team / Comm. Mgr}]

Thank you for this informative post, but from now on please try to keep it more in the Pinup theme. Most of us adore our cocktail dresses... but we don't wear the types of things you posted. I'm sure our members would be much more interested in a lifestyle related post. Thank you.