This article is based on an expert interview with Ashley Kahn, conducted by wikiHow Staff Editors. Ashley Kahn is a Wardrobe Stylist based in Houston, Texas. With over 10 years of experience, Ashley styles women both in-person and virtually and is passionate about empowering women through the art of personal style. She believes every woman deserves to feel comfortable, classy, and confident every single day. Ashley holds a business degree from Sam Houston State University. She has been featured on KPRC's Channel 2 Houston Life and ABC 13's Check This Out Houston and in the Houstonia magazine. Ashley has also hosted Macy’s “The Wardrobe Edit” and the “It List” fashion shows.
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A clear cut dress code for an event makes everything so much easier, but sometimes we’re forced to guess how formal or informal an event is going to be. Should you go with a formal outfit and risk looking overdressed, or is it better to underdress and hope the event is casual? In this video, fashion stylist Ashley Kahn has the answers. She’ll walk you through how to put together the perfect outfit for a gala when you don’t know the dress code so you can feel confident in what you're wearing.
Key Takeaways
- When in doubt, go with a dressy-casual look.
- For example, you could pair a nice blouse with jeans, a blazer, and heels.
Video Transcript
So if you're not sure how formal an event is, dressy-casual is the absolute way to go. I'm wearing like a nice little blouse right now—a lot of people might think of this as a work blouse, but if you were to put it with jeans and heels and maybe a blazer, you've got a dressy-casual look balanced out by dressy pieces and casual pieces so that you're perfectly attired for wherever you are, no matter if it's casual or dressed up. You're right in that middle and you can't go wrong.
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