Help a fashion conscious, early 20's woman pack for a trip to Vegas!

October 2, 2007 8:40 PM

Help a fashion conscious, early 20's woman pack for a trip to Vegas!

I am finally going to Vegas at the end of October and I need help in regards to what to pack, what to wear, etc.

A few questions:

1) I hear anything goes in Vegas, but for a fashion conscious young woman, what types of clothes should I bring? I don't want to look like a tourist, but I also don't want to be walking the strip in 4 inch heels either. My style errs on the classic/elegant, yet youthful side. Think BCBG and Nicole Miller with a dash of Betsey Johnson. :)

2) How are people dressed in the bars, clubs, and casinos? (As a side note- I am also looking for a couple bars or clubs where I can go for a great time (nothing too stuffy!- any suggestions appreciated!)

Some things I have in mind (BONUS points for links to actual clothing items on the following):

- day dress
- dress for fancy dinner or club outing
- classic skirts
- fashionable 'tourist' wear when sight seeing
- poolside/beach wear (bikini, wraps)
- accessories
- a sweater wrap for cold casinos or chilly evenings
- dressy looking jeans
- comfortable day and night shoes

Any suggestions are greatly appreciated!

posted by 20something to clothing, beauty, & fashion (17 comments total)

Sounds like you dress fairly similar to me, and I usually wear platform sandals, and black pants or a skirt with a dressy tank/cami or tube top, matching power jewelry and a blazer that I can lose at will.

Most girls in their mid twenties are wearing skintight minidresses.

If you want to be casual, you won't look the least out of place among the general populace, but if you're there with fancy sorority girls for a bachelorette, you might look underdressed then...

There is a pretty big gap between clubs with huge cover and/or expensive drinks and lots of douchebags (imo) and dives, and hell, I love a dive, so I can't recommend places for you to go, but I can tell you i was unimpressed with Tangerine, 54, V, Hogs N Heifers, and Cowboy Ugly. We got in free to Ghostbar, and that was a fun time, but we were far younger than the average guests.

I prefer to settle in wherever the bartenders are friendly (like good ol' Blaze at Slots A Fun) and the drinks frequently comped.
posted by Ambrosia Voyeur at 8:53 PM on October 2, 2007

By putting any thought at all into your outfits, you will automatically look better than 80% of the people in Las Vegas. Most people are on vacation and could give a care about what they look like, let alone what other people look like. I personally took my Vegas vacation as a chance to experiment with some serious tacky clothes. What's the point of throwing your pearls to pigs?
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 8:56 PM on October 2, 2007 [5 favorites]

ha! Love the comment 'why throw your pearls to pigs'....this site is always good for a laugh!

I should have emphasized that I am going with my boyfriend and we are also looking for low-key bars, friendly, unpretentious crowd...but at the same time not a shithole. It is vacation afterall. ;)
posted by 20something at 9:02 PM on October 2, 2007

No matter how you dress, you're going to look like a tourist. Stop worrying about it and enjoy yourself.
posted by Steven C. Den Beste at 9:07 PM on October 2, 2007

There's nothing that says Vegas quite like a pink satin pantsuit. Preferably with sequins.
posted by ikkyu2 at 10:00 PM on October 2, 2007

Tha dangers of dressing down in Vegas.
posted by Brittanie at 10:18 PM on October 2, 2007

nice jeans are good. comfy walking shoes are an absolute must. a sexy dress won't steer you wrong clubbing. in vegas you can get away with flashier jackets and sunglasses than most places. if you turn out to be dressed totally wrong, re-equip at fashion show mall, across from the wynn. oh, and while you are there, do tapas on the patio at cafe babareba.
posted by ilsa at 10:22 PM on October 2, 2007

I went to Vegas for a work-related conference in 2002. Everywhere we went, regardless of whether it was for business or for fun, we encountered the entire spectrum of "dress" (i.e. people wearing T-shirts and tube tops sitting next to people in tuxedos and ballgowns)... I wore sundresses during the day, and jeans and/or walking shorts at night (we did the touristy things at night), but I never felt like I was "under-dressed" OR "over-dressed" anywhere... Just wear whatever makes YOU comfortable, and you'll be fine. Have fun!
posted by amyms at 10:48 PM on October 2, 2007

I can't emphasis the point that amyms made. Almost everywhere you go you will see a great mix of clothing style. I would assume that at the most high end of restaurants and clubs this isn't true but I didn't get to attend any place of that sort.
posted by mmascolino at 11:09 PM on October 2, 2007

Let's put it this way... the majority of Vegas locals rarely hang out on the strip unless they're working there. So don't worry about looking like a tourist. Vegas is one of the few places in the world BUILT solely FOR tourists. When you're there you will be surrounded by people there from all walks of life, from the highest to the lowest in society. They are ALL drawn to Vegas. So no matter what you wear, you will be probably be fine. Just be comfortable. If you want to go to a fancy place, wear what you would wear in to a fancy place in any cosmopolitan city. And otherwise you'll see a lot of people in jeans & t-shirts. Also, Fremont Street is decidedly more casual than the Strip. With certain Strip hotels (Bellagio) being fancier and catering to far more upscale customers than others (Excalibur).

And you're in the desert, so if it's warm don't forget to bring lotion & drink a lot of water. And otherwise, the best tip I can give is about Club cards, and I pretty much covered it here.
posted by miss lynnster at 12:27 AM on October 3, 2007

One weekend in Vegas:

• 1 pair comfortable yet sexy designer jeans, for the smug strut walk up to the money cage with your blackjack winnings in hand
• 1 strappy dark day dress (that can double as a cover up at the pool or be converted into a nighttime look...hence the dark color). With big sunglasses to match, nobody will know that you're famous — and you can finally get that peace in the sunshine.
• 1 flashy tank top. Sparkles, sequins, beads, or pattern all good. Funkier the better. No matter how hard you try, you just can't get too bright, crazy or show too much skin in Vegas. Redefine rockstar.
• 1 silky, flowy skirt. Something light with movement and style. There aint no breeze as you walk down the runway strip at 1 in the afternoon. Let them sexy legs swish that thang!
• 1 swimsuit that matches your smile and your margarita glass as you float away from the pool bar on an innertube.
• 1 fun, form-fitting, deep scoop or v-neck sleeved top that can be either A) thrown over the day dress, B) worn alone with the jeans or skirt, C) worn over the tank. It's still fashion over function, but at a 60/40 split.
• 1 wrap/shawl/scarf that can A) be used as a coverup/skirt/wrap at the pool, B) be thrown around the day dress to turn it into a night-dress, C) be sashayed over the tank top. This is where you get creative and work it in a newfangled way that you wouldn't dare attempt at home.
• 1 pair of low heals that go with the jeans, skirt AND day dress. These shoes should be able to say "fuck me now", but only to the wonderful man you're with.
• 1 pair of flipflops — for the other 23 hours.
• 1 something ridiculously fuzzy and/or luxurious to crash in at the end of the never ending buffet day.

All that said, the reality is this: you're going to pack all these fabulous things, but actually wear one outfit for three days straight. The catch: you just don't know what that perfect look is until you get there. You must bring the options. And a credit card.
posted by iamkimiam at 1:04 AM on October 3, 2007 [1 favorite]

Going to Vegas requires waay more walking than you think. The casinos are huge and walking even from the valet to... anywhere, is a long walk. And if you decide to check out that cool casino across the street? It's another half mile. No bueno in stilettos. Wear super-comfy, long-walk capable shoes whenever you can. You're still going to come home with blisters.

I love Vegas!!!
posted by clh at 1:26 AM on October 3, 2007

bring a tutu. that's a vegas must.
posted by Stynxno at 8:14 AM on October 3, 2007

Pretty sure this goes without saying, but it's Britney Spears' favorite place, and we all know how she dresses. I think as long as your hair, makeup, nails, and jewelry are appropriate, you can rock whatever outfit you are comfortable in because you will already feel pretty. You'll need a cardigan that looks good over a t-shirt and jeans or a dress in case you get cold, good sunglasses, a swim suit, practical underwear (i.e., stuff that's invisible under anything and a neutral color), your favorite pair of jeans with three tops: 1 plain t-shirt, probably a solid color would be best; 1 fancy top, like a drapey-bright colored bebe type; and one tank top that looks good under the cardigan where you've got some cleavage going on but can cover it up, too. Bring a dress for the nightclub or shows only; you'll be sitting in a lot of casinos or walking around, do you want your skirt to get blown by the wind or hike up uncomfortably while you're sitting? And if it's fall, why not boots instead of heels? They go under pants and with dresses and give you more stability when you're staggering back to the hotel room drunk with an ice-cream cone, your purse, a hurricane, your room key and probably some weird toy a gross dude gave you because you were cute and helped him win a game of craps.

I dunno, for me, it's all about the accessories. When I go out of town and want to fancy up my regular clothes, I bring things like a clip-on fake fox tail, metal cat ears, a pair of New Rock 5-inch flame-and-metal kiss boots, a custom-made latex minidress... I like to stand out. Even in the disco ball of insanity that is Vegas.
posted by Unicorn on the cob at 8:31 AM on October 3, 2007

1) Everyone else is a tourist. Just look good. It's nowhere special, but there's a comforting quality to the aroma of desperation in the air.

2) They look like the people in the clubs in your neighborhood. A nice upscale but casual evening dress should take care of any clubbing you want to do. The people in the casinos are generally dressed like they're visiting their local 7-11 for a cup of coffee, but you might want to pack a bikini/swimsuit if you're planning on hitting the pools.

Vegas is a lot of fun, but it's not a magical land where everyone looks different. Most people in Vegas at any given time are visiting from somewhere else, anyway.
posted by MaxK at 10:06 AM on October 3, 2007

Bunny nuptual discussion.

Are you meeting Elvis?

This is what MetaChatters wear in Vegas.
posted by theora55 at 12:55 PM on October 3, 2007

Thank you to everyone for your help. Just when I didn't think I could possibly get more excited about my trip! ;)

I have found some new inspiration to add a few 'crazy' wardrobe pieces in my suitcase.
posted by 20something at 3:38 PM on October 3, 2007