An open back dress requires something worth looking at from behind, and lace delivers that better than almost any other fabric. The texture catches light differently depending on the room. It adds visual interest without decoration that feels overdone. And when the back of a dress is the whole point, lace makes that point beautifully. We think lace has occasionally suffered from being associated with wedding season and nothing else, which is a shame, because a great lace dress worn to a summer party or a rooftop dinner earns its moment just as completely. These are the dresses we picked for occasions where the open back is intentional, not incidental. Where the dress is doing real work from every angle. We looked for cuts that feel current rather than fussy, lace that has weight and structure rather than the flimsy kind that loses its shape by the end of the night. The back of the dress should be as considered as the front.