So, over the Christmas and New Year period, I was set a shopping challenge. To find a perfect party outfit on the high street using just the One4all gift card.

Easy right?

Well in many respects it was, yes. But let me tell you, trying to find a suitable party outfit that wasn’t black, navy or burgundy was like trying to find a needle in a haystack! Some of you might recall that I had my ‘colours done’ back in November. It’s been a game changer – as I keep saying – style wise, but as black is absolutely not one of my colours (near to my face it just drains me), finding a frock that could deliver on colour was certainly tricky.

However, I’m a trier! Especially when it comes to dresses and after a disastrous first attempt (the first dress I ordered, arrived and looked utterly horrendous!) thankfully, I came up trumps with my second attempt and found this stunning green silk dress from Monsoon at House Of Fraser.

I’ve been after a gorgeous green dress like this for a while now after seeing pictures of the fabulous beauty writer Sali Hughes wearing something a little similar on her wedding day (check out her Instagram feed to see what a divine bride she was) and I reckon I’ve hit the jackpot with this lovely little number.

It has a delightful sheen to the fabric which is really flattering and perfect for the evening, ultra feminine balloon sleeves (can we all give me a round of applause for finding an evening dress with sleeves please!) and is the perfect length for me at just above the knee. Not too short that I’m showing things I shouldn’t be (!) but not too long that it drowns my figure either.

I teamed it with a really comfortable pair of high heels that I found unbelievably at Clarks. In dark chocolate brown featuring gold discs at the front and sturdy block heels, they’re the first pair of shoes I’ve purchased in my ‘colours’ and are surprisingly comfy! They’ve also got quite a seventies vibe going on about them too which I adore. Damn, I wish Clarks would make more high heels and cater more for younger women because when it comes to footwear that doesn’t destroy your feet, they really know what they’re doing.

Back to the outfit, and as it’s pretty bladdy freezing out there currently, I teamed the frock and heels with some ribbed grey tights from Boden (already owned) and although initially I was going to rock some statement earrings with the dress, in the end I opted for just a pair of simple and matching green studs (Christmas present from the husband) as to be honest, I think the dress speaks for itself.

Shopping with the One4all gift card was really a breeze. Yes it was ridiculously tricky to find a dress that suited my colouring (please high street, give us more choice than black!) but thankfully because the card can be used in so many high street stores, I wasn’t restricted and had much more choice than I would have had with a similar voucher equivalent.

Green dress and brown heels. What do we think? It’s a damn sight better than boring black isn’t it?!