What to Wear to a Christmas Party: Office, Home or Out

What to wear to a Christmas party comes down to one rule: wear one thing that feels like a party and keep everything else simple. It holds for the office party, a holiday party at someone's home and a late night out; what changes is how far the one thing goes. At work it might be sequin trousers with a plain knit. At a friend's house, a satin-finish dress with flat shoes. In a bar, both at once. Decide where you will be at eleven o'clock, then dress for that room.

What to wear to a Christmas party at work

The office party is the only one where the audience sees you again on Monday. That is not a reason to dress down. It is a reason to choose one festive element and keep the rest of the outfit recognisably yours.

• Put the shine on the bottom half. Sequin trousers with a fine knit or a plain shirt read festive without reading like a costume. The Sophia Sequin Wide-Leg Trousers work exactly this way.
• Choose a set over a dress. A trouser set looks deliberate from desk to dinner. The Frances Lapel Long Sleeve & Pants Set is sharp enough for the afternoon and needs only an earring and a heel for the evening.
• Add a jacket to a dress. A black dress under one of your blazers. The jacket comes off when the speeches end.

If the party starts straight after work, dress for the evening and adjust for the day, not the other way round. Adding a blazer at nine in the morning is easier than finding sparkle in a desk drawer at six.

A holiday party at someone's home

A house party is closer, slower and involves more sitting than standing. You will be on sofas, in the kitchen, possibly asked to leave your shoes at the door. That changes the brief.

• Pick a dress you can sit in. A satin-finish dress moves well and looks considered at close range. The Aila Satin-Finish Cami Dress, with opaque tights and fine knitwear over the top, covers both the early drinks and the late kitchen.
• Keep the shine small. In a living room, a sequin top looks like far more than it does in a bar. A sequin bag or a bright earring gives the same signal at house-party scale.
• Think about your feet. If shoes come off, the outfit has to work with tights. If they stay on, a loafer or ankle boot will outlast a fine heel on a hard floor.

Out for the night

A restaurant, a hotel function room or a bar booked out for the evening is where you can go furthest. The lighting is low, the room is loud and nobody is studying detail. Sequin, satin-finish and lace all earn their place here, and a mini dress with opaque tights is as right as a floor-length one.

The coat matters more than people expect. You will queue outside, stand on the street at the end and travel home late. A long coat that clears the hem keeps the outfit intact in every photograph taken at the door. There is more on this in what to wear over a dress.

The one accessory worth changing

If the dress is already in your wardrobe, change the bag. A small evening bag turns a work outfit into a party outfit faster than anything else. The Sophia Sequin Clutch Bag holds a phone, a card and a lipstick, and does the festive part so the rest of the outfit does not have to.

What to avoid

• Novelty knitwear at the office party — unless the invitation asks for one, in which case commit completely.
• Several statement pieces at once — sequin trousers, a sequin top and a sequin bag cancel each other out.
• Anything you will adjust all night — a strap that slips is more noticeable than the outfit itself.
• New shoes — Christmas parties involve more standing than anyone plans for.

Common questions

What is the dress code for a Christmas party at work?
Unless the invitation says otherwise, assume smart with one festive element: what you would wear to an important dinner, plus some shine. If it is held in the office in the afternoon, stay closer to your usual workwear.

Can I wear black?
Yes. A black dress becomes a party outfit through the shoe, the bag and the lip. Our guide to styling a black midi dress has combinations that suit December.

Is a casual outfit acceptable?
At a house party, yes: good trousers, a knit and one bright or shiny piece. For a work do at a venue, go one step further than you think you need to.

Dress or trousers?
Whichever you will still be comfortable in at midnight. Trousers are easier for dancing and the journey home; a dress is quicker to make festive.

The dresses for all three rooms are gathered in Party Dresses, for everything from the office party to the last one before New Year. Narrow it down with Christmas party dresses, red dresses and New Year's Eve dresses.