Good, Bad & Ugly: Velvet Evening Dresses

The Velvet Good, Bad and Ugly series wouldn't be complete without discussing one of the most precarious applications of velvet - evening dresses. Since velvet is so inherently luxurious, it can provide the perfect touch (or canvas) for a wintertime evening dress. And as this series has established, simplicity is the requisite feature for an elegant velvet ensemble.

The Good
I hate repeating myself, so I'll keep it short: simple. Elegant. sleek. emphasis on fabric itself. Velvet dresses are best worn when they are little dresses (relative to your body), otherwise the heaviness of the fabric will make the dress bulky and flatten all of your curves. While the simplicity of the dress compliments the velvet, the sash embellishes it just enough to add some flair and ffurther define the flattering, body-clinging cut of the dress.

The Bad

This looks like someone made a bikini top out of velvet, and when they realized no one would wear it at the beach, sewed on some chiffon and called it a dress. The velvet top will make small breasts look flat and larger breasts look saggy and separated. And the just-under-the-breasts continuation of chiffon diminishes the curvature of the hips. The velvet trim that cuts through the middle of the dress is distracting and geometrically cuts it in half, drawing the eyeline downward (and you want eyes looking up at your jewelry, makeup and hair when at evening parties).

The Ugly
I think it would be an insult to your intelligence to explain what is wrong with this dress. It does illustrate the importance of how unflattering a heavy cut can be with velvet. Flowers and wings are always a major mistake too.