It takes a pretty special dress to elevate a fashionista to the exclusive pedestal of iconista. Only a handful of women - Audrey Hepburn, Jackie O and Marilyn Monroe, to name a few - have ever done it. Most owe style immortality to a sensational party dress; one that oozes glamour, sex appeal, attitude, and encapsulates the fashion zeitgeist as well as their own highly individual feminine traits. In some cases it’s been possible to witness the very moment when mortal became goddess - when fragile fabric met human flesh - frozen in time in a movie, TV show or single paparazzi shot that went on to inspire a thousand copies. What does it take to create a dress with timeless appeal? Is it something to do with the cut, the colour, or the choice of accessory? Or simply who wears it, where? Here, we pay homage to those responsible for creating the most memorable party looks ever - not just the designers but the women who rocked the party frocks we love, love LOVE.

Picture: clockwise from top left; Princess Diana, Julie Christie, Audrey Hepburn and Kate Moss.

Don\'t miss our top 100 essential party pieces special. Go shop!

Check out our A-Z for the must-have beauty products and make-up buys to see you through the party season ahead.

Audrey Hepburn in the LBD worn in Breakfast At Tiffany\'s

With beehive hairdos, long evening gloves, ropes of pearls, big earrings (Rihanna\'s wearing them) and false eyelashes having a bit of a \'moment\' we feel a run on Holly Golightly\'s LBD is imminent this Christmas. But then again, when is it not? The sleeveless, backless, floor-length Givenchy number worn by Hepburn in the movie version of Truman Capote\'s 1958 novella is without a doubt the most famous, perfect little black dress, ever. Endlessly referenced and copied at the time, this style, with its front slit and plunging cut-away back, was considered rather raunchy. However, Holly was a racy character and required a saucy frock (in Capote\'s book she was, in fact, a call girl, but finer details are blurred over in the 1961 quintessential chick flick.) Hubert de Givenchy created three versions of the dress; one was sold in 2006 for a whopping £467,200. The opening sequence of the movie, where Hepburn clambers out of a taxi, wearing oversized sunglasses (fabulous!) and the black dress from the previous night\'s party and casually window shops at the most famous jewellers in the world, take-out latte and croissant in hand, remains an iconic fashion movie shot. Would this be the case if - heaven forbid - Audrey Hepburn was not rocking the frock or indeed it was something other than Givenchy haute couture? Er, we think not.

Mia Farrow in a white babydoll frock at Truman Capote\'s masked ball

The über stylish American author\'s black and white masked ball of 1966 is still referred to as \'the party of the century,\' it was that glamorous. Staged to celebrate the success of his gruesome blockbuster, In Cold Blood, it drew every living legend to Manhattan\'s glamorous Plaza Hotel. Masks failed to conceal the most high wattage couple present: newlyweds Mia Farrow and Frank Sinatra. The 21-year-old actress\' white butterfly mask in fact drew more attention to her dramatic gamine crop, newly cut for her breakout role in the horror flick, Rosemary\'s Baby (the film that would ultimately result in her 50-year-old husband, Frank Sinatra, serving her divorce papers for refusing to quit and join him on the set of another). Although this was the party Cecil Beaton and Richard Avedon spotted model Penelope Tree and vowed to make her a covergirl (which they did), and despite facing heavy competition frockwise from Lauren Bacall, Candice Bergman, Lee Radziwill and the Maharani of Jaipur dripping in diamonds, it was Farrow\'s short white Directoire frock which evidently shone the brightest. The girlish, empire line dress became impossible to ignore as Farrow danced the night away in full view of the glitterati, including Andy Warhol, securing her a place in fashion history henceforth. The Mia Farrow \'look\' to this day never strays too far from the fashion radar. Emma Watson is so channeling her right now.

Bianca Jagger in a red Halston gown at Studio 54

By far the most iconic image to come out of the most infamous nightclub in living history is one of Bianca Jagger, wearing a sheer, red, off-the-shoulder gown riding a white horse (being led onto the dance floor by a painted naked man!). Staged as a publicity stunt a week after the infamous New York discotheque opened in 1977, legend has it that co-owner Ian Schrager was persuaded by fashion designer Halston, who had created the red dress, to give It-girl of the moment Bianca a special birthday present (she had just turned 30, or 27 depending on who you believe). The \'present\' sealed her fate as a fashion icon but scarred future attempts by the Nicaraguan-born beauty to be taken seriously as a political human rights activist. Although she will always be remembered for her down-to-there white jacket and floor-length skirt she wore to tie the knot with rocker husband, Mick, in 1970, it\'s outfits like this gypsy number with its pleated skirt and sensuously draping jersey top which epitomised the excess and glamour of the time and which made her an iconista. She was later photographed in the same red dress with Mick Jagger hanging off one arm and a seriously cute Mikhail Baryshnikov on the other, under the watchful eye of Andy Warhol. If dresses could speak, we feel this one might say, \"You had to be there.\" Don\'t you wish you had?

Kate Moss in a vintage sequinned gown worn to her 30th birthday party

Hard partying is par for the course for Kate Moss - along with looking spectacular. She surpassed both at her 30th birthday party held at Claridge’s hotel in London in 2004. Having chosen the theme of F. Scott Fitzgerald\'s novel, The Beautiful And Damned, we expected something glamorous, possibly vintage and definitely ‘20s in feel. No-one was quite prepared for the fabulosity of this particular birthday bonanza, however. Kate\'s choice of a midnight blue sequinned floor-length gown, with its plunging front and matching batwing sleeve cape and bag, made her look every inch the walking fashion plate she is. Putting her own spin on ‘20s debauchery, she opted for tightly coiled ringlets, which were rather Stevie Nicks 1970s in feel, along with mermaid-blue eye shadow. Turns out Kate\'s vintage dress was originally owned and worn by another great beauty of her time, the ferocious party girl, Britt Ekland. Young and old friends joined Kate at her party bash, including Stella McCartney, Naomi Campbell, Grace Jones, Sam Taylor-Wood and Sadie Frost, but not one managed to outdo her frock or stamina (the party finally allegedly wound down around 7.30 the following morning). We don\'t blame you Kate. When you look that good in a dress you want the night to last forever.

Princess Diana and the \'Revenge\' dress

That wise British designer, John Galliano, once said about the late Diana, Princess of Wales, \"I always felt she really understood how to use fashion as the silent language and let clothes do the talking for her when she couldn\'t; the way a movie star in the silent films did.\" How true of the dress created by Greek designer, Christina Stambolian, and worn to a Vanity Fair dinner party at the Serpentine Gallery in 1994 by Princess Diana, on the evening her husband admitted his adultery in an unprecedented TV interview. With its off-the-shoulder-style cleavage, figure hugging ruched silhouette and eye-catchingly short hemline, the frock signalled a new assertive era for the Princess. From then on the gloves were off, the legs were out - in sexy sheer tights - and the killer heels were on. Legend has it, that day she had enjoyed a character-building pep talk from her brother, Earl Spencer, and was in fighting spirit. Instead of returning home to Kensington Palace, she went shopping at Stambolian\'s boutique. Minutes later, Diana emerged with the dress which would knock Prince Charles off the front pages. Ask yourself, has a dress ever served its purpose so well?

Jane Birkin\'s white lace dress

Gap-toothed sexpot Jane Birkin sums up what the 1960s were all about in this white lace dress slashed to the navel. Her racy duet, Je t\'aime...moi non plus, performed with her lover, the popstar and poet Serge Gainsbourg, got to number one in the UK charts in 1968, the year they married. Previously, Birkin had appeared in cult ‘60s films, Blow Up and the trippy Wonderwall. The doily-effect party dress, reassuringly sheer, flowing to the ground and worn with revealing white hipster briefs, ticked all the right boxes for trends of the time. It required minimal accessories; the yawning cleavage casually holding in bee sting breasts is cinched together with a tassled brooch; straight hippie hair and a fine gold chain necklace provided the finishing touch. Of course the other legacy Birkin leaves to fashion besides stylish daughters - Lou Doillon and Charlotte Gainsbourg - is the bag Hermès named after her. Yes, as in, it\'s not just a bag - IT\'S A BIRKIN!!!!

When Jackie Kennedy became Jackie O - signature Pucci babydoll

When Jackie Kennedy became Jackie O, her signature style blossomed into something really exciting - a little sexy even. Being whisked away from the goldfish bowl existence of Camelot into the arms of Aristotle Onassis, one of the most powerful men on the planet, who shielded his wife from prying paparazzi meant Jackie could finally relax. Being married to a Greek billionaire required a re-think. What came next - black bug-eye sunglasses, floppy sunhats, sexy Capri pants, polo tops, Pucci print dresses and flat sandals - set a new uniform not just for Jackie but for the entire jet-set and summer fashion for years to come. Years of having to wear formal gowns for Presidential affairs and neat Madison Avenue-type suits had rubbed off however. The result was a sort of polished luxe Mediterranean chic more suited to a life spent island hopping in Greece or slumming it in St Tropez and Monaco. Her short yet chic party frocks, mostly worn with simple flat sandals, like this Pucci dress she was photographed in leaving an Athens nightclub at 7am having danced the night away on her 40th birthday in 1969, became her new signature. With its distinctive print and babydoll sleeveless style, the only accessories required were a tan, a long string of pearls and hubby Ari as arm candy.

Marilyn Monroe\'s \'Happy Birthday\' dress

Besides the white halter-neck dress from The Seven Year Itch and the pink gloved ensemble worn for the famous Diamonds Are A Girls Best Friend song and dance routine in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, the dress that gave Marilyn maximum impact, not to mention exposure - literally - was the sparkling jersey sheath gown worn to sing Happy Birthday to John F. Kennedy at Madison Square Gardens in May 1962. Extremely racy, the gauze, flesh-coloured, virtually transparent, full-length gown was encrusted with 2,500 rhinestones, which clung to every curve of her legendary body. The story goes the actress was sewn into the dress, which was so tight she could barely walk in it. Oh, and that night, as usual, she went commando, wearing no underwear. Created by Jean Louis, who made Rita Hayworth\'s incredible wardrobe for the fashion fest movie, Gilda, Marilyn\'s Happy Birthday dress, as it became known, would have merited a place in the fashion hall of fame because of its gravity-defying construction alone. Its sensuality coupled with the occasion to which it was worn - a rally for the US President - hinted at the cosy relationship allegedly going on between Monroe and Kennedy. Ultimately, this dress became notorious as the last outfit worn in public by the iconic Hollywood legend; she would die three months later in mysterious circumstances.

Julie Christie\'s black sequinned gown in Shampoo

As a young actress, this British Oscar-winner had the kind of heart-stopping beauty and sex appeal that meant she could wear a black bin liner and still look brilliant. Not that she ever needed to. Happily, she got some of the best outfits in the most visually arresting and fashionable films of the ‘60s and ‘70s: Billy Liar, Doctor Zhivago, Darling, Don\'t Look Now and Shampoo. Off-screen, Christie dated heartthrobs like Terence Stamp and Warren Beatty. On-screen she was often cast as a feisty woman (which by all accounts she is) who brought characters - and clothes - to life. Most memorable in the party dress department was the black sequin-encrusted polo neck, backless midi she wore as the bored housewife, Jackie Shawn, in Shampoo, opposite Warren Beatty, as George Roundy. The gown, with its roomy sleeves but tightly fitting torso, was so low at the back it revealed Christie\'s builders’ cleavage. This was offset by a fierce looking power bob Anna Wintour might approve of but in a dazzling ash blonde shade. The iconic dress, which Johnny Depp allegedly had recreated as a present for Kate Moss for her 21st birthday, and the rather naughty things it made Christie do in the movie, no doubt contributed to the actress ranking 9th in FHM magazine\'s 100th sexiest women of all time poll.

Carrie Bradshaw\'s naked dress in Sex And The City

Where would you start? How might you pinpoint the definitive party dress of Carrie Bradshaw? This woman is not only responsible for putting the party frock back on track but re-acquainting us with the art of getting dressed-up. Designer-heavy and accessorised to the max, each experimental ensemble created by the genius stylist Patricia Field revels in the spirit of the party girl. Although some might argue Carrie\'s signature is the mini prom-style - which shows off both her diminutive form and Sarah Jessica Parker\'s great legs - the Carrie frock that did it for me was the ‘naked dress\'. Remember her first date with Mr Big? Carrie had been allowed to keep a figure-hugging jersey Alaia-ish number following a photoshoot. Previewing it to her three BFs that night she is congratulated by all except Charlotte. \"Honey, it\'s fabulous, bravo,\" drawls Samantha. \"It\'s tits on toast baby,\" chips in Miranda. \"It\'s a naked dress!\" shrieks Charlotte frowning disapprovingly. \"You are obviously going to have sex with him tonight!\" Nonplussed, when Mr Big\'s limo arrives, Carrie grabs her Fendi fur jacket, shoves on Manolos, throws back another flute of champagne and wobbles into the night wildly overdressed. But Carrie never needed a party to go to, to dress like she was going to one. And we love her for it.