A Black Tie Guide For Ladies

A black-tie invitation is a rare thing now. For women, it is wonderfully open, asking only that you dress for the evening with intent. The floor-length gown remains the most graceful answer, but it is far from the only one.

Begin with the dress, if a dress is what the evening calls for. The Serena Circle Dress is our perennial favourite: a scoop neck, three-quarter sleeves and a satin belt with a bow, above a full circle skirt that moves beautifully on a dance floor. In Midnight silk georgette with sheer sleeves, it is quietly dramatic. In Magenta, as the Serena Longer, it is anything but quiet. For a more architectural line, the Josephine Dress in Navy Reverse Plain Shantung, woven in Italy and finished with a tulip cap sleeve, is a study in poise.

Serena Circle Dress Moss Plain Georgette

£1,020

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Swing Jacket Green Melford Silk Velvet

£1,450

Westminster Coat Dark Green Hengrave Silk Velvet

£1,450

Whitehall Coat Dark Green Latimer Silk Velvet

£1,600

Cigarette Trousers Evergreen Silk Douppion

£550

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Waistcoat Single-Breasted Evergreen Silk Douppion

£270

For a lower-key kind of glamour, the Camisole Dress in Black Heavy Crepe Satin is long, slinky and endlessly versatile. Wear it on its own, or with a dark blazer or cropped jacket over the shoulders for an evening that might yet run late.

Silk separates offer the most freedom of all. Pair a bias-cut camisole in Ivory or Hay Gold Silk Crepe Satin with our fluid, wide-leg Palazzo Pants in Ivory Georgette, and you have something that rivals any gown for elegance, with considerably more ease. Alternatively, the Cigarette Trousers bring a sharper line. First introduced by Christian Dior in his H-Line collection of 1954, they remain one of the sleekest expressions of modern femininity, here in Black Silk Douppion, Pewter Gold, and a stunning fuchsia pink velvet among others.

Double Breasted Dinner Jacket Black Navy Nene silk velvet

£1,170

Coming Soon

Palazzo Pants Midnight Plain Georgette

£790

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Lounge Trousers Navy Cotton Velvet

£650

Coming Soon

Palazzo Pants Black Plain Georgette

£790

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Kemi Jacket Black Gold Sheringham Silk Velvet

£1,300

Double Breasted Dinner Jacket Iberian Wine Cotton Velvet

£790

Coming Soon

Cigarette Trousers Iberian Wine Cotton Velvet

£550

Can't see your size, please enquire

Trafalgar Jacket Black Green Nene Silk Velvet

£1,350

Library Jacket Black Clyde Silk Velvet

£1,200

Then there's the tuxedo. Ever since Yves Saint Laurent introduced Le Smoking in 1966, a well-cut dinner suit has been one of the most compelling choices a woman can make for black tie. It is assured and faintly subversive, and it suggests you would happily lead the dance rather than follow. For a touch of shimmer, our Single-Breasted Waistcoat in Oyster Mini Sequins, cut especially for a feminine fit, is designed to be worn beneath a blazer. Add the matching Lounge Trousers and you have a modern alternative to the little black dress.

Camisole Dress Black Heavy Crepe Satin

£590

Carnaby Coat Black Stotfold Silk Organza

£1,850

Camisole Dress Emerald Saona Crepe Satin

£590

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Carnaby Coat Teal Bawdsey Silk Satin

£1,450

Whichever route you choose, the principle is the same. Black tie is not about following a uniform. It is about rising to the occasion, then making it your own.

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