Shopping

How to Do Black Tie on a Budget

Actually affordable evening looks.

By Cory Baldwin Dec 5, 2016, 11:09am EST

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model with a bob wears a light pink velvet dress

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If you're getting ready to attend a black tie event, unless you've got a closet full of evening gowns ready to go, odds are you're gonna have to go shopping. And as anyone who's tried to do this before can tell you, it's a frustrating game. You'll probably only wear the dress once or twice, so you don't want to spend a ton of money; but as the occasion requires, you don't want to look cheap. Scan any department store or sort a site like Net-A-Porter by price and the options at the lower end of the spectrum are shamefully few, or even worse — boring.

But more recently, retailers like ASOS, Zara, and Missguided have stepped up to fill in this major gap in the market. It is possible to find a formal dress or jumpsuit for under $300 — and in some cases, well under $100 — without looking like a prom queen or a mother of the bride. Shop our favorite affordable evening looks for the season below.