Next Level: Black Velvet Dresses

There is something so classic about a black velvet party dress—supremely festive in an appealingly throwback way. Here are four worth scooping up before you’re so desperate for something to wear. —erica

LEVEL I: My very favorite thing from a fall Dusen Dusen collection filled with SO MANY good things.

LEVEL II: Everything about this Carven dress is so Isabella Rossellini. Get that.

LEVEL III: Kimberly Ovitz’s take will make you wish you had stuck with the figure-skating lessons.

LEVEL IV: So prim…and somehow not at all. To Be Adored goes there.

There’s more “Next Level” just around the bend (or, you know, through this link).