Dream Dress: Five Little Black Dresses

My Hallowe'en outfits tend to be 'a nice dress with some stupid accessories'. I have all of these great ideas when I get an invite Facebook notification, but then I'm inevitably running about/hungover/in need of a nap in the afternoon and two hours late for the party so I cobble something together at the last minute. The result will usually involve a little black dress, but that's true of most of my outfits.

Sneaky leopard print. Just like Frances likes sneaky black cats, I like any opportunity to sneak leopard print into my outfit. This is from Oasis, it's £60 and she's hot. Wear with cat ears and suddenly your fancy dress outfit is sorted.

I really like the detailing on this black shift dress. It's a little bit 'I work for a secret space organisation' and that's always a good thing. It's from Joy and it's £65. You probably need some sort of space age eyewear to rock a last minute costume. And yes to those shoes, wherever they might be from.

There's no denying that black lace is a little bit of a Hallowe'en cliche, but the shape of this dress means you can get away with it. The hard work is done for you - just opt for dark red lips and excellent hair and you're sorted. This is £48 from Topshop.

Blimmin 'eck, not only is this pencil dress sex on a stick, it's got pockets! In this case, I'm thinking witchy spells and potions is a good idea (to go with your witches hat, obviously). It's £38 from ASOS.

Does this count as a little black dress? It's half little, the long bits are sheer, they don't count. The sequins carry on 'round the back and she looks excellent. You don't need anything with this, it's too fabulous as it is. It's £75 from Warehouse and it's my absolute favourite.

The best thing? Once you're done with witches hats, bats and black cats, you can probably wear all of these with sparkly tights and be sorted for Christmas parties.