Cocktail Dresses
 

I have been scouring department store sites, Amazon, Zappos, and pretty much every other website under the sun and I am having the WORST time finding a cocktail dress for the BF's 40th birthday party in mid-October. Everything I have seen so far is either too frumpy or too whorish, or it's too casual or too formal. I'm not much of a dress person anyway, and I find it extremely difficult for a thirtysomething like me to find the right style of dress for my age range.

I enjoy looking at the Preference Round dresses on the recruitment threads, but those outfits are geared more for the younger crowd; however, I see that many of you have a great eye for fashion! So who's willing to help a semi-fashionably challenged person like me find a fabulous LBD (or little silver dress) for under 150 bucks? (I should mention that I wear anywhere from a size 10-12, and I have a big butt/large chest so sheath dresses and the like look terrible on me.)

I'd suggest White House Black Market, Ann Taylor, Banana Republic, or J. Crew. You may be able to find something cute in your price range at Macy's or Nordstrom, as well.

Check out Rent the Runway. The rental prices are definitely in your price range. You can experiment, they send you two sizes. I have many friends who have used them and have been satisfied.

I shop those stores and their websites frequently - those were the first places I went before posting this thread. I am looking for ideas from some of the lesser-known, "diamond in the rough" websites.

Check out some of these too from Torrid. You would be a size 0 there, but their dresses are made for curves and a lot of them have built in bras that are so good you don't need a bra with them. They have brick and mortar stores in Fort Wayne and Noblesville. I have gotten some great deals with dresses on clearance in the brick and mortar stores too. Size 0! That sounds appealing, doesn't it? LOL

Forgot to put the link: http://www.torrid.com/torrid/Clothing/Dresses.jsp

I got this dress for our Convention and it had a great built in bra.
http://www.torrid.com/torrid/Clearan...ess-508710.jsp

Have you checked out bluefly.com? They have really pretty dresses and you should be able to find some in your price range or thereabouts. I have gotten some great things from them.

Bluefly was at the top of my go-to list, too. Nothing stood out to me...yet. I check them regularly

Since you've got a little time left, you might want to browse RueLaLa and Gilt Groupe regularly--flash sale websites and they often have great brands for less!

Thanks for the link! While some of the dresses are cute, they looked kind of "clubby" to me.

(Yeah, I'm picky. This is why I'm desperate for ideas!)

I plug RTR all of the time, as I have happily rented from them. If anyone wants to rent from them, PM me, and I think I can pass along a referral code w/a discount.

Mango has great dresses http://shop.mango.com/US/m/mango/clo...=CocktailParty

I really love the fit they offer, and I'm about the same size and body type.

Ooh, may have found a winner here! Thanks! I hadn't considered Modcloth because I've only looked at sundresses from this site.

What has been your experience with their sizes? Do they run larger or smaller than normal, or are they just right with the fit?

I just ordered from ModCloth for the first time! For no reason at all!

It all depends on the item itself! I would say definitely read the reviews, and if there aren't any, use the chat function. They answer immediately and have been able to give me specific measurements when they weren't provided!

Yeah, Modcloth sizing is really dependent upon the dress. I have a *fantastic* shirtdress that I wear all the time...I'm a XXL in it. Normal dress size? 12. Yeahhhhh...

But it's so, so pretty and so work appropriate and so comfortable.

If you wanted something completely different, my favorite splurge place is House of Fraser, a UK based department store. Definitely a little different style.
http://www.houseoffraser.co.uk/women...ix&sz=200&spcl

To be honest -- I've never once ordered something from Modcloth and have it look like I expect it to look. Either the sizing is wonky or the fabric is totally off...I always end up returning. But their customer service is very good and their return process is really easy. I've ordered maybe ten dresses and returned them all.

I'm with you on Modcloth. I have one dress that is knock-your-socks-off awesome, and the rest have been just as you said.

I love Saks FashionFix (FashionFX?) and Neiman Marcus's Last Call site. I'm a big Nordstrom Rack fan (mentioned it today to someone on the site), but not for nice dresses. Shopbop and Revolve expensive, but sometimes you get lucky with sales.

There's also Ebay -- you could get a DVF wrap dress for the same price as stuff from WHBM, although I'd proceed with caution if you're not sure of your size in that specific line.

Saks FashionFix
http://www.saksfifthavenue.com/fashionfix/home.jsp

Last Call
http://www.lastcall.com/