Splurge: Prabal Gurung Lace Print Wool Dress

You know how sometimes you see a big trend and you think, "that's a great trend for other people, but it would look ridiculous on me"? Yeah, that's how I feel about this whole black lace thing that Lanvin started for Fall 2011. It looked amazing on the Lanvin runway, and I can totally see it rocking on other people, but traditional lace is just not for me.

Fast forward to this amazing splurge find. With this edgy lace-print wool twill dress, designer Prabal Gurung has made lace less, um, lacy. By taking the lace motif and turning it into a dramatic print, this dress is more wearable than the straight up black lace seen on the runway and less precious than the interpretations that are popping up in department stores.

While this Prabal Gurung dress is ideal for a cocktail party or night out, I think the wool construction and the fact that it's printed rather than actual lace make it eligible for daytime wear. Although it's not quite right for anything less than a creative office environment, I could see this dress at a daytime event or lunch with the girls. Either way, this dress is stunning and by far my favorite take on the Fall black lace trend.

→ Buy the Prabal Gurung Lace Print Wool Twill Dress, $2,495.00, at net-a-porter.com; shipping is free.