I have so many cocktail dresses it’s insane. I don’t wear many of them anymore, because they are out of style, or just not my style anymore, or I have worn them to death. I have invested in many cocktail dresses and keep them nice – beading, studs, sequins, rhinestones, satin, zippers and more.

Strange, then, that my favorite going-out dress is a $9 simple cotton tank dress from Forever 21.

But this dress is just perfect. The fit is great – it hits at the perfect part of my legs, making me look thin. The armholes are low enough to make my arms look skinny. The neckline isn’t too low to be very revealing, but there is definitely cleavage going on. And the side cutouts are strategically placed at the thinnest part of one’s waist. This is a key feature for nights where you go out drinking – you don’t want to look fat as you put more liquid in your belly!

The fun animal-ish print says “nighttime” and “going out” for sure, while the cotton material makes it casual and not like you’re trying too hard. The cutouts are a fun touch, and the tank top cut is timeless. There’s black, the traditional nighttime color, but also white, making it unexpected and making you stand out in dark bars and clubs.

Basically, if it wasn’t for photographic evidence, I would wear this dress every single time I went out to a bar or club.

I’ve paired it with silver sparkly sandals for a night of dancing, silver sandals with colored rhinestones for nights when I was going to be walking a lot and my giant black suede wedges for Girls’ Night Out. The shoe possibilities are (almost) endless, and the best part is that the dress is so fun already, you don’t need to worry about accessories. In fact, adding jewelry would be overdoing the casual vibe.

What is YOUR go-to going out outfit when you are heading out on the town? Let me know in the comments!