Evening is the one part of a wardrobe where I think two of everything is genuinely useful, because you want a quiet option and a loud one. The slip dress is the quiet one, and it is the most useful dress I own. Thistle and Spire's Psyche in black is $148 and NORMA KAMALI's bias slip with lace is $280, and either works from a restaurant to something later. The black mini is the loud one, or at least the shorter one. superdown's Shay at $81 is the least you can spend and still look right, and Helsa's mini with lace in tech poplin at $278 has more structure. Then a satin skirt, which is my answer when a dress feels like too much commitment. Bardot's lace satin midi is $159 and Damson Madder's Delphia in lemon is $160 if you want colour. The embellished top closes the group, from CHAN LUU's beaded halter at $345 or AREA's crystal cutout at $341.

Separates are how you get more than four outfits out of an evening wardrobe, and they are what I actually wear most. A tailored vest is the piece I would buy first. MAJORELLE's Emil at $148 has gold buttons doing the work, and Alexandre Vauthier's satin tailoring vest at $276 needs nothing over it. A silk camisole is the piece underneath everything: For Love & Lemons' Babette at $129 or St. Agni's square neck cami at $139, both of which also work under a blazer on a normal day. Speaking of which, an evening jacket is not a work blazer, it is sharper and usually darker. ALL THE WAYS' Kourtney at $88 is remarkable value and EAVES' Filipa at $151 is the more tailored one. A trouser finishes it, and a plain wide black leg beats anything shiny: Enza Costa's Twill Everywhere Pant at $295 or COU COU INTIMATES' The Pant at $118.

The last four are all small and all disproportionately visible. A heeled sandal is the shoe I wear to most things, because it is the only heel I can stand in for a whole evening. Dolce Vita's Mylee is $140 and Schutz's Elodie is $138, which is about as fair as this category gets. A slingback or a pump is the closed alternative when it is cold: Tony Bianco's Cherry Pump at $161 or Steve Madden's Junie at $139. Then the clutch, where I would either go plain or go properly decorative. Loeffler Randall's Rayne pleated bow at $295 is the one people compliment, and olga berg's Betty metallic at $99 is the one that quietly works with everything. Earrings are the cheapest way to change an outfit entirely: SHASHI's Palmera in metallic gold at $96 and Roxanne Assoulin's Cubic Cluster at $185.

Evening wardrobes are where people overspend on the dress and underspend on the shoe, and then have a miserable night. Reverse it. A $148 slip dress with a sandal you can actually walk in beats an expensive dress you leave early in. The two picks I would call genuine value here are the ALL THE WAYS blazer at $88 and the olga berg clutch at $99, both of which look considerably more expensive than they are. One caveat: the embellished top slot is the least versatile thing on this list, so buy it last. Stock and prices are current at Revolve and FWRD as of publication.