(rule one: don’t dress like either of these guys above)

You’ve been invited to an important holiday party, and you want to be prepared. What’s the etiquette? What to wear? What to bring? Fear not, GearCrave has the answers. Whether you’re contending with an office party at the Casa del Boss or just a casual gathering of close friends, we’ve got the dirt after the jump.

Holiday parties can be fun; they can also be social landmines that explode in your face with career-long repurcussions. Fortunately, you don’t have to handle them alone. Follow our handy guide to attending a holiday party in style:

Etiquette First!

It’s a safe bet that half the people who get invites with the phrase “RSVP” on them never bother. Don’t be one of those clowns. Even if you don’t know what RSVP stands for (”Répondez s’il-vous-plaît”) you should always send a response, even it it’s an apology for not being able to show up. This generates a ton of goodwill with your host, and they will be sure to return the favor when YOU send out the invites next time. Some other etiquette dos and don’ts:

• DO Read the invitation carefully. Any mentions of gifts, requests for covered dishes, games, or human sacrifices should be heeded to the letter.
• DON’T be late. Fashionably late isn’t fashionable anymore.
• DO bring a companion if the invitation suggests it. If you bring a date, make sure they don’t show you up OR punk you out in the attire department.
• DO bring a gift, especially wine or champagne. There are some caveats to this, which we’ll cover later.
• DON’T booze it up. Have a drink or two and take it easy.
• DON’T flirt with the boss’s 19-year old daughter, especially when SHE flirts with YOU.
• DO bring your business cards and be ready for a 30-second sales pitch if the moment is right.

We agree wholeheartedly with TheMoneyBlogs.com’s advice on party etiquette. The most important part of all this is showing up–with your party face on. Come prepared to have fun, leave your troubles at the door, and keep it light.

What To Wear

Your invitation should provide a clue to this classic dilemma. First check to see if there is any mention–”casual dress,” or “black tie” should be in there somewhere. It’s exceptionally bad form to invite someone to a black tie affair without specifying it in the invitation, but better safe than sorry. If you can’t locate any info, call your host and chat him or her up a bit. At the end of the conversation casually mention you can’t find your invite to save your life, and “Should I wear the Bond tuxedo or the Will Farrell Speedo?

• Formalwear is easy. A tux is a tux. Stay traditional and you’ll have no worries.
• If the party is a suit-and-tie affair, tradition wins out over fad-fashion. You can’t lose with classic black jacket/white shirt/silk tie combinations. A top-quality jacket and tie will hide the shortcomings of a not-so-great shirt, but it’s better to go for a mid-priced ensemble rather than mixing high-end and bargain-basement.
• A party is a great way to show off a new outfit.
• Assemble a hip casual or dressy Gap enseble for well under $200. The Gap is excellent in a pinch.
• Check out this helpful article byKristie Leong, called Do You Make These Four Holiday Party Fashion Mistakes? The advice on dressing well without showing up the rest of the crowd is excellent. Ignore that stuff about high heels and makeup, sport, you’ll do fine.
• Check out the fashion section of AskMen.com if you need guy-to-guy advice.

If you are still utterly lost about what to wear, take your invitation down to a hip clothing store, find an associate who looks like they know which way the fashion wind blows and say you want to dress to impress. Let the clerk pick your clothes–seriously. You might pay a bit extra, but you’ll look smashing.

What To Bring?

Another dilemma on the holiday party front–what to bring with you beyond what was requested on the invite. A nice bottle of wine or champagne is an excellent offering, but know your host. If you’re going to an alcohol-free party, there’s probably a very good reason WHY the bubbly isn’t on the menu. When in doubt, ask. The five seconds of discomfort you will feel now can spare you an evening’s worth of shame-faced disgrace when you learn your holiday party wine offering was recieved by a room full of 12-Steppers (quitters!).

• If you are confident that a nice bottle of wine would be warmly recieved, check out the excellent guide by the London Wine Academy on what wines go best with holiday foods.
• If the bash is appetizers only, check out FoodandWine.com’s holiday wine survival guide for additional help.
• Some guests bring a small gift for the host in addition to a bottle, and this is perfectly acceptable in most cases, but tread lightly if this is a co-worker higher up on the food chain than you.
• When in doubt, bring a gift that can be consumed or used at the party and doesn’t appear to be an attempt to suck up.
• Keep gifts appropriate to the occasion and don’t go overboard on price. For most casual events, the extra gift is not needed. If you are attending a black tie affair, you may do well to consider a token of your esteem.
• If you attend with a date, bring an appropriate bottle/gift combo as from the two of you. Don’t punk her out.

And there you have it. From the RSVP down to showing up at the front door, GearCrave has got you covered on the holiday party front. Show up on time, have fun, and don’t forget to use a designated driver.