A Wacky Sequin Skirt for Your Next Holiday Party

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Things I love about November and December: The haze of restless, fidgety languor that descends over offices when no one is in the mood to work, and the holiday parties that abound. It’s the only time of the year when it’s perfectly acceptable to turn up at events resembling a (tasteful) Christmas ornament — nay, tree, even.

For inspiration, I like to maintain an ongoing bookmark folder of photos of people genetically and financially more blessed than I am (ie. celebrities) in Good Sequin Looks. Some highlights include Mindy Kaling’s custom sequin skirt on The Mindy Project, made by the show’s costume designer, Sal Perez; Katy Perry in stripes that are also sequins; Viola Davis in yet another sequined confection of a skirt; and atop it all, this bonkers Gucci gown of my dreams that Nicole Kidman wore to the SAG Awards in January. She resembles an anthropomorphized palm frond en route to the disco, accompanied by the two bedazzled sequin parakeets perched on either shoulder.

Since I’m also fully aware that I neither lead a life that will ever bring me in proximity to Gucci nor have I been invited to any holiday parties that require me to own a gown, I’ve found myself the ideal in-betweener: this pencil skirt from Miss Selfridge, covered with sequins in that same shade of leprechaun green, decorated with sequined birds in aquamarine blue, gold, and purple.

The material has enough stretch to flare and sit comfortably over my hips, and the waistband doesn’t dig into my flesh, even after a vigorous birthday dinner. It’s made sturdily enough that it won’t leave a trail of green sequin crumbs if you wear it on a raucous night out, and — second-most importantly — it looks fantastic when Instagrammed. I’ve worn it so far with a fleece turtleneck, but the other things I plan to pair it with include a Daffy Duck sweatshirt, a baseball tee (a look stolen from Mindy!), and a bell-sleeved lace blouse at a July wedding next year.

I’m often ribbed by friends about my magpie-esque adoration for useless things that serve little purpose but shine with nuclear intensity. But see, when the deathly cold is sapping away at my will to function as a person, being occasionally kitted out in outlandish traffic-light green and covered in iridescent tropical birds is one of the smaller respites in which I (or anyone!) can reasonably indulge. This hill of sequin-covered impracticality is one that I am content to allow myself (and dollars from my entry-level salary) to perish on. So while there may a pitch-black void of dark at 4 p.m. out there, do remember that the skirt also comes in equally delightful shades of pink and blue.