A milestone birthday is one of the few occasions where a woman is the subject rather than a guest, and it is usually photographed. Luna covers the fortieth through the seventieth with 65 pieces: 42 dresses, 8 jumpsuits, 7 blouses and 6 coats.

The brief is different from a wedding or a gala. You are not blending into a dress code, you are setting one, and the photographs will be looked at for a long time. That argues for structure over trend, and for a cut that flatters standing, sitting and being embraced repeatedly across an evening. The Rina floral maxi dresses and the Melisa short corset dresses sit at the two ends of that range, formal and confident respectively.

A jumpsuit is worth considering, and eight are held here. It photographs cleanly, it moves, and it does not need managing across a long evening. Sizes run 0 to 16, with complimentary two-day US delivery, free thirty-day returns and free exchanges.