#1 is by far my favorite. You look polished and pretty!

Thank you all for your advice (and compliments!) did keep the #1 dress. Krishni, I really liked your interpretations of the "message" of each, and agree with it. I have a tendency to go for kick ass over warm and approachable, but I was sorry that the pink dress did not suit me as well as I would have liked.

I also have a pair of "sea crystal snake" Stuart Weitzman pumps that are the same color that I may sub in for the Okala ankle straps. Bringing both.

I'm chiming in a little late here, but I wanted to relate that my DH and I once hosted a dinner party for someone from the Middle East (I believe it was Saudi Arabia, as my DH had visited there, but I can't remember). We were told not to serve alcohol, and that he couldn't eat the chicken because it has to be killed and bled a certain way. So we bought seafood for him, as I had already prepared a delicious Southwestern style chicken casserole for everyone else. As for the alcohol, well, dessert was Strawberry Tequila cake, with tequila in it, of course. We just didn't tell him it was in there. What he didn't know didn't hurt him. What can I say? I didn't get the news of his dietary restrictions until after I had prepared the casserole and baked the cake.

#1. No competition in my eyes. Have fun.

Way too late - I hope you had a wonderful time. Just wanted to say these photos are a wonderful illustration of the power of owning a decent pair of dressy nude shoes.

I guess I'm late, but I wanna say how much I love #1, and how retro and stylish #4 looks. Very nice choices.

Very late, but these are terrific dresses. I'm glad you are probably back and the decision was already made because I like both 1 and 3. They are both fab, and you look beautiful in both. I hope you enjoyed the event!

Way late to the party. would you share with us all how you felt wearing your choice? I would have worn #1 and carried a clutch that had a little design and/or color to it. What are your observations on how other women dressed for the occasion and what the ranges in style were? did you notice, in short, others wearing dresses like #2, 3, or 4?

The dress was just right for the occasion. No one did short or sleeveless -- we all knew what was appropriate. There were a lot of people in midi dresses. The mother of one of my childhood friends attended and I liked her dress the best; it was a midi, short sleeve, beige sequined dress. It wouldn't have suited me but it was excellent for her.

I wore Stuart Weitzman blue crystal snake high heeled pumps that matched the dress, and I had a small shoulder bag (clutch size) in a well matched lighter shade of blue. I also wore a substantial amount of 22k gold jewelry (earrings, bangles, necklace, rings) because that is a Saudi thing to do.

I wish the coral pink dress had suited me a little better. It was one I had high hopes for when I ordered, and I really liked the jersey knit.