Now that’s what I call a party dress. Allow me to introduce the showstopper of the season, the sweetheart neckline. The cutesy name is misleading, because this is one fierce look. A dress that turns heads so fast it can cause whiplash. Strapless and curvy with a deep plunge, the sweetheart neckline made a red-carpet comeback this year – a floor-length Saint Laurent black velvet number made no fewer than three appearances in the space of a few days at the Venice film festival in August – and is primed to race into pole position when party season hots up.
But … there’s a but. I wouldn’t quibble with this dress to its face, because a person who wears this dress would think nothing of emptying a drink over you should you step out of line. But, is the sweetheart neckline not a bit retro? A bit 1983 Fulham cocktail party? Are we getting hints of Poison by Dior and the acidic notes of Bucks Fizz?
I would even go so far as to say the word vol-au-vent. I’m seeing a large clip-on sparkly earring, which is not something I own.
