TIP #3

#3. "Don't wait for an invitation to buy an evening dress.
When you see something you love, buy it!"

—Isaac Mizrahi in How to Have Style

I don't have many occasions to wear fancy dresses, but when I spot one I love for a price I can afford, I always pick it up.

Why?

It's a lot harder to find a great affordable evening dress than you might think (or hope); heck, it's hard just to find a great evening dress that fits well in the first place. So when you do find one that works, you should snatch it up.

Inevitably, we all wind up attending a wedding, dance, charity dinner, or other formal event over the course of a year. (Or, if you're lucky, your guy takes you on a really nice date!) And such events are often the ones where cameras are out in full force, so you don't want to wear the same fancy dress every time you go to a formal event. Who wants it to look like they've only ever been to one fancy event? Or to look like they only own one dress? Not me!

But if you wait to buy evening dresses until you're invited to events, you'll have a much harder time finding one that you love and can afford, and you'll often wind up settling. (I know; it's happened to me more than once.) To save yourself the frustration, buy dresses you love and can afford when you find them, especially if they're versatile enough that they could be worn for a wedding, dinner, or charity event. Then, keep them safely tucked in the back of your closet, and you'll be ready to pull them out at a moment's notice.

Who knows, maybe having some beautiful dresses you love stashed in your closet will inspire you to create more occasions to wear them.