Looking good at New Year

by SUSANNAH CONWAY, femail.co.uk

To ensure your New Year's Eve celebrations go off with a sartorial bang you

need to wear something extra special and unlike anything you¹d wear any

other night of the year.

Glitz and glamour are the key words for your party look. Black may have felt

right for your Christmas party dress but for New Year you need silver, gold,

pewter or winter white with accents of colour in your accessories.

Sequins, satin, lace and brocade are all sumptuous fabrics that will catch

the light and make you look a million dollars.

If you¹re conscious of the amount of mince pies you¹ve eaten over Christmas

choose a tailored dress rather than bias-cut which will only accentuate your

curves. A classic V-neck will flatter the larger bust while strapless or

spaghetti straps will look great if you¹re smaller busted.

For something totally fashionable think about silk combats (the best we've

seen are in Warehouse and Topshop) and high heels mixed in with a slinky

camisole or kimono-sleeved silk top. This outfit is about as fashionable as

you can get but also extremely comfortable (depending on your heel height!).

If you fancy splashing out on a designer dress (but haven't got the cash to

spare) some of British fashion¹s best known names have created diffusion

lines for the brilliant Designers at Debenhams range.

Ben de Lisi, Jasper Conran and Maria Grachvogel have all designed exclusive

collections for the store alongside Pearce Fionda, John Richmond, Edina

Ronay and John Rocha.

We love de Lisi's sweeping chiffon candy-coloured

dresses for a cocktail party and Ronay¹s practical but no less fabulous

sequinned cardigans for keeping you warm in style.

For mid-range prices labels such as Episode, Karen Millen, Jesire and

Whistles all have beautiful dresses that will stand the test of fashion time

to last you many seasons to come.

Monsoon have a fairy tale selection of sequinned and beaded dresses in

colours ranging from bronze and black to cream and red. Also try East for

their glamorous fur-trimmed opera coat and crushed velvet separates.

Elsewhere on the high street are more beautiful ­ and sexy ­ dresses. We

particularly like the beaded halter-neck dresses at French Connection and

the black net dress with peacock feather beading that Anthony Symonds has

created for Marks & Spencer's Autograph line.

Finish off your special outfit with some luxurious lingerie ­ Chantelle, La

Perla, Elle Macpherson's Intimates range and Lejaby all have to-die-for

lingerie that will convince you to bin those tired faded knickers ­ check

them out at www.figleaves.com.

If you¹re feeling racy take a tip from celebrities such as Kylie and

Victoria Beckham and pick up something sexy from Agent Provocateur whose

lingerie can be bought on-line at www.agentprovocateur.com, or Myla

(www.myla.com) - your husband will thank you for it!

A satin or faux-fur wrap (try M&S), beaded bag (Accessorize, Oasis) and

glittering sandals (Ravel, Bertie, Dune) will complete the look. If you¹re

planning to dance the night away a good tip is to take a pair of bejewelled

satin flip flops or flat mules with you. You can wear your heels till

midnight then slip on your more comfortable ­ but no less glamorous ­

flatties and dance your way into 2003.