A New Year’s Eve party, any party, has a different feel to the ones in the lead-up to Christmas. In these post-Noel days, the dressing-up mood subtly shifts from festive and frivolous to sophisticated and elegant.

Minutes ago we were looking for some fizz and buzz, now we want an easy party look – the sort that will work for lots of occasions in the year to come and, most of all, one that avoids those end-of-the-year dressing-up cliches.

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It’s sad but true that party clothes at this time of year can, if you take the wrong turn, make you look instantly very middle-aged… and while that’s exactly what we Fifty-Plusers are, we aim to look younger, and certainly not every inch our age.

So, here are eight tips for New Year’s Eve dressing – some things to avoid, some to adopt and some styling tips – which should shave off a decade… if the lighting’s good.

Sweaters over blouses

A three-quarter-sleeved soft sweater or top scores far fashion points now than a pretty blouse. Besides that, a chiffon or satin blouse – with or without a necktie – can nudge you into Old Lady Ambassadress territory if you’re not careful.

Inject some fun

A very good way to inch a smartish outfit into something with party energy is by adding some sparkle. Not a lot, just enough to signal we’re in special territory. A foil shirt could be too much, sequins can be good (if worn below the waist and grounded with something plain on top) but some starry embellishment on a sweater strikes just the right note of champagne-sipping fun without looking OTT.

Chinti & Parker does a constellation gold-embroidered sweater that fits the bill (now £97.50, chintiandparker.com). It isn’t cheap but is an instant party uplifter, with a midi skirt and boots or some high-waisted wide-leg trousers and a small heel.

… and a bit of glimmer

Instead of satin or silk, try fabric shot with metallic thread or a lurex and wool blend, then mix it up with simple pieces to look modern. Mint Velvet’s sheeny crinkle midi skirt (£99, mintvelvet.com) or Chinti & Parker’s wool/lurex mix, pale gold midi skirt (now £60) have just the right amount of gloss.

Don’t wear all black

The fashion-forward, thus anti-ageing, party colour is pale gold – or try something trimmed with cream. If you’re determined to wear black, Zara’s cream lace-trimmed midi skirt (£65.99, zara.com) would be a good compromise.

Uplifting earrings

It’s worth exercising caution with earrings – too bedazzling and you enter fancy dress territory (bad for Fifty Pluses), too standard issue and you’re not maximising their uplifting potential.

Those trusty pearls on gold hoops that we’ve been wearing for a couple of years are still great for weekdays, but if you want to dial up the glamour, go for something dramatic. Cos (cos.com) has some lovely pearl and gold variations – ‘mismatched’ is the key to looking cool – and H&M has some good winged rhinestone earrings (£9.99, 2.hm.com).

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Go for faux fur, not sequins

This might seem like the opposite of an easy party solution but the point about a flick of faux fur is it does all the work and after that all you need is lipstick plus a pair of heels. Zara has a particularly glamorous marled faux fur scarf (now £25.19, zara.com) to wrap around the neck of pretty much anything. Feathers – Prada’s current favourite trim – are harder to find but they work the same.

Ditch the court shoe

Try something with an ankle strap – like Zara’s mock croc kitten heel slingback (£49.99) or a block heel with a T-bar, which is back in a big way for spring. So get ahead with something such as Marks & Spencer’s cross-strap burgundy slingbacks (now £30, marksandspencer.com). Both have a roughly two-inch heel.

Go for bold jewellery

One piece is often enough to reboot a trouser suit. Arket has a good rhinestone waterfall brooch (now £14.50, arket.com) if you don’t have something in the back of a drawer. If you wear a trouser suit, skip the blouse and wear it buttoned up with a lace-trimmed vest and either a brooch or Jigsaw’s simple gold cube chain necklace (£75, jigsaw-online.com). Happy New Year!

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