Midi party dress in velvet, lurex knit and pleats

A midi party dress lets you sit, dance and climb out of a cab without thinking about your hem once. Party means different things on different nights, though. So we’ve sorted ours by where you’re going.

Dinner at a restaurant, with family or friends

For a long table and a few toasts, we’d start with velvet. Our burgundy velvet midi keeps the neckline round and the arms covered to the wrist, and it looks festive without showing much. That matters at an anniversary where your older relatives sit across from you. Since the top is closed, you can go bolder with earrings.

Want a little more edge? The lavender and burgundy velvet styles add a leg slit. Everything above the knee stays covered, and the slit only opens when you walk. It also shows your shoes, so wear the good heels. Our V-neck in deep blue velvet is the quiet option for the theater or your daughter’s graduation party, and a thin chain with a pendant sits well in that neckline.

A night with a dance floor

Pleats were made for this. Our pleated midis, most of them velvet, move with every step, and the skirt flies out in photos. We sew them in white, red, blue, beige and powder pink. The white one has a three-quarter sleeve, which leaves room for a bracelet.

If you want sparkle, look at the lurex wraps. Take the blue wrap midi, a knit shot through with metallic thread that catches candlelight and string lights. It stretches, so it won’t dig in after dessert, and the belt lets you reset the waist whenever you like. There’s also a black lurex midi that bares the shoulders and adds draping and a slit. Put your hair up with that one.

Office parties and summer celebrations

Work events need a dress that survives the walk from your desk. Rib knit does it, in a midi that has a turtleneck collar plus a slit on the leg. The red one goes to the office under a straight gray blazer, then loses the blazer and gains stilettos at six. Easy.

What about July? For cocktails and birthdays we sew a sleeveless pink midi that’s ruffled along the waistline. Satin wrap midis in chocolate and beige belong to the summer collection, so expect them in the catalog again when it’s warm out.

We cut each style in XS to XL. Fitted velvet and rib go by bust and hips, and pleated skirts by bust and waist. Narrow it down by fabric in velvet midis and midis that sparkle, or see party dresses of every length and the minis.