blue and white long dress Wedtrend Women Elegant Tiered Maxi Flower A Line Spaghetti Straps Print Wedding Party Dress, White Blue Flower / US10 Product Details Polyester A Line Sleeveless Floor Length Cleaning Instructions Blue and White Midi Dress

Logistics prevent me from hiring a frock living 500 miles from London has many implications for fashion! Now when it comes to dresses I recently reread one of my favourite Grace Kelly quotes which I think applies particularly well to evening dressing: your dresses should be tight enough to show youre a woman and loose enough to show youre a lady. With that in mind, here is my selection of Christmas party dresses for women over 40

Floor-length gowns feel classic and formal, especially for traditional dances

The shoulders sit wide, the trouser breaks at the wrong point, and the pinstripe runs slightly off because the seams were never placed for your body

Floral patterns are especially lovely for spring and summer celebrations

And finally, I use ranch dressing to drizzle on top