What is "Evening Business" attire, and how do I cobble it together?

December 27, 2019 1:58 PM

This is for a company event a few days into the new year, which includes a cocktail hour, buffet, program and awards. I am a woman. (Bonus points for what men should wear.) My wardrobe is fairly limited for dressier stuff right now. Is this suit/dress territory? Are separates okay? I have:

* gray heathered trousers
* palazzo trousers in gray
* wide-legged, cropped, high waist culottes in a b/w houndstooth pattern, shown here

* a black turtleneck
* a few sweaters in various quiet colors
* these tops
* a couple of dated blouses I don't particularly love
* open knit cardigans in black, gray, soft pink, sparkly pink/gray
* basic layering stuff

* a sheath dress in dark teal, hits 3-4 inches above the knees (I'm tall; all my "knee-length" buys do that)
* a short, sparkly, loose-fit, one-shoulder black dress (kind of dated?)
* a bulky wool "knee-length" skirt, with wide, muted stripes in black, gray, & brown
* a black jacquard "knee length" skirt

* these oxfords
* these boots (black)
* these Mary Janes, in a similar color, kind of wide and clunky and not my style
* these "combat inspired" boots in black, which are fun but probably out

* no jewelry to speak of
* a super-skinny black silk scarf (tie width)
* a large, woven, double-sided gray/purple scarf
* opaque tights (black, gray)

* access to an Amazon Prime account

What can I use? What do I need to buy? I need stable footwear with a bit of heel lift, so pumps etc. are out.

posted by moira to Clothing, Beauty, & Fashion (22 answers total)

I think the dark teal sheath dress is your best bet. I would take “evening business” to mean “darker-colored suits and dresses.” (Don’t know if it has a formal definition, but that is how I would interpret it.)

You would need some sort of dress shoes to wear with the dress. Out of what you already own, I guess either the Mary Janes or the black boots (not the combat boots) would be best, though neither is really ideal. If you can buy shoes, I’d look for something in black that approximates the sleek look of a pump while fulfilling the physical needs you have for shoes — maybe a low wedge heel would work, or a comfort flat?
posted by snowmentality at 2:13 PM on December 27, 2019 [3 favorites]

I 100% agree that the sheath dress + knee-high Miz Mooz black boots will be the best combination of “evening business.” Maybe add a statement necklace, if you can, but don’t stress about it.
posted by samthemander at 2:26 PM on December 27, 2019 [1 favorite]

Definitely the sheath dress. The boots could work in an emergency but this might be a good time to buy a pair of heels or - more comfortably - booties with heels. Amazon should have plenty of options, amazon prime yourself multiple sizes and return the ones that don’t fit. Some even have the “try on before you pay” options.
posted by lydhre at 2:36 PM on December 27, 2019

Response by poster: It was kind of buried: I can't wear heels, would need the next best thing.
posted by moira at 2:37 PM on December 27, 2019

Response by poster: I'm being told that it may make a difference that this is a bunch of engineers, and not ad execs?
posted by moira at 2:40 PM on December 27, 2019

Would something like this be stable enough?

or this

that is if you feel like buying something. The second one would be easily worn with lots of things, including your tights

I think your teal dress would work great - if you are looking to add a little something to make it feel move "evening" i would go with the idea of a statement necklace, earrings or bracelet.
posted by domino at 2:43 PM on December 27, 2019

ok - with your two qualifiers, the shoes i showed might not work, but you could find even flatter ones.

and if they are anything like the engineers i work with, noone will care if you aren't super flashy and err on the side of business instead of the side of evening.
posted by domino at 2:46 PM on December 27, 2019

oh lawd even flatter shoes with the same style. i mean.
posted by domino at 2:47 PM on December 27, 2019

Evening Business is not a real thing that exists, so it is not surprising you are finding it confusing. I suspect that the dress code is an attempt to keep the engineers from showing up in t-shirts and cargo shorts while also keeping any of them that have an outgoing lifestyle from showing up in nightclub dresses.

I would go with the teal dress and a black cardigan with black tights. The tights negate any concern about the length of the dress (which doesn't sound to short for a tall person anyway) and the cardigan gives you a piece that softens the look a bit or that you can take off if people are more cocktail -adjacent.
posted by jacquilynne at 2:57 PM on December 27, 2019 [10 favorites]

N-th-ing the teal sheath dress with the black non-combat boots, if you can't wear heels. Get a statement piece of jewelry, could be a necklace or some big dangly earrings.
posted by Weeping_angel at 2:58 PM on December 27, 2019

If you feel more comfortable in pants, I think that any of your pants would work fine. You can pair them with a sweater that matches nicely - a black sweater would be great, but a light pink would also look really nice.

I do think you probably need new shoes. Maybe a low-heeled boot like this?

Pair the sweater with a long necklace, like this. Depending on the sweater, you could add a collared blouse under it for contrast?

My thought is that the sheath dress is a bit short for "business" anything, so I'd steer away from that. But I also believe that you'll be most confident in something you are comfortable in, so choose accordingly.
posted by hydra77 at 3:57 PM on December 27, 2019

Teal dress and heels or ballet flats. Those awesome oxfords would be okaaay if you can't manage proper dress shoes- but heels would be better.

My second choice is the culottes, paired with the black turtleneck (or maybe the heather grey sleeveless top? can't tell if they'd actually match) - and oxfords. It's a bit too funky / casual but you can maybe pull it off if you wear more sparkly / festive accessories, so I'd add big earrings and-or statement necklace and a chunky bracelet, and maybe red lipstick.
posted by nouvelle-personne at 4:17 PM on December 27, 2019

As an alternative to the sheath, if the palazzo pants are made from a nice flowy material, pair it with the black turtleneck (if it is a thin knit that fits close to the body), wear your hair in a french twist, buy a pair of pearl earrings at Marshalls/TJ Maxx. Black flats. It's all in the styling.
posted by TWinbrook8 at 4:21 PM on December 27, 2019 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: I just tried the teal dress on without a bunch of bulky stuff underneath; it is a bit longer than I originally thought.

1000% I am more comfortable in pants and funkier stuff, but definitely don't want to be underdressed. Dressy pant stuff is probably a hole I need to fill in my wardrobe.

I am guessing flats similar to this would be more appropriate than the Miz Mooz boots? (I do have a Zappos account.)

Here is the palazzo/turtleneck combo.
posted by moira at 4:36 PM on December 27, 2019

Both of the outfits you're modeling will work, I think! If the shoe issue is alleviated by wearing the pants, I'd go with that one, and add a necklace.
posted by merriment at 4:44 PM on December 27, 2019 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: Borkened link and I don't want to bug the mods: palazzo/turtleneck.

Thanks, everyone.
posted by moira at 5:17 PM on December 27, 2019 [1 favorite]

I am generally happier in pants, and work in the software industry where fashion and glam-dresses are not going to be most peoples' things. I'd wear the palazzo pants ensemble, I think it looks nicely polished, warm, comfortable, and dressy enough that you're not going to stick out.
posted by Lyn Never at 5:19 PM on December 27, 2019 [3 favorites]

Long time (male) software engineer. Either the sheath dress or the palazzo/turtleneck combinaton are great. Attractive on you, and very appropriate.

For your male, slacks and a dress shirt with leather shoes should be fine. (I'd suggest dark slacks, and dark shoes.) It's dressier than the normal t-shirts/shorts/jeans outfits, without going overboard.
posted by blob at 7:00 PM on December 27, 2019

I think the pants/turtleneck combo looks great. It reads a bit more winter to me. A nice colorful scarf would look great with it. Add some understated silver jewelry and a bold lip and you'd look fab!

Now I want to put an outfit like that together.
posted by kathrynm at 7:37 PM on December 27, 2019 [1 favorite]

The palazzo outfit is fine. This sounds like a conference dinner type event and slightly dressy pants, boots or wedges and a nice sweater/ modest blouse are my go to outfits for those.

Wear some make up and hair up or hair down/ scarf combo and you'll look great.
posted by fshgrl at 8:42 PM on December 27, 2019

If you go with the dress id wear a cardigan over it and match the shoea to the cardigan. The black boots you have would look good with that dress and a black cropped or long line cardigan. But I'd wear the pants personally.
posted by fshgrl at 8:44 PM on December 27, 2019

For males, I think "business" means "suit and tie" or at least "jacket and tie." No white socks.
posted by underthehat at 7:19 AM on December 28, 2019