Good shoes are important. VERY important. If you must skimp, don't skimp on the footwear!

Professional environment? Or political activists? If the former, I'd say a cardigan twinset, a nice pencil skirt, hose, and low-heeled pumps. The latter, I have no idea.

...and eyeglasses. They make you look smart, cute AND often enhance your smile!!!

Good shoes are important. VERY important. If you must skimp, don't skimp on the footwear!

Uh, yeah. Twice, even.

What's the battle? Who are you up against? Is there a jury involved?

Something cute.

Idk. I'm only able to confirm if a given outfit is cute or not.
So this thread is useless without pictures.

If you are going to war, "cute" is not the look you're after.

You want to appear able to smite your enemies in righteous wrath, to wreak havoc on the side of the angels, and to banish all friends of foes to fires and oblivion. Jeanne d'Arc did not put on a pinafore to contend for her voices, she strapped up in breast plate, and carried a sword she could barely swing.

Gird your loins, and have your armor blessed. Polish your shield, and belt your mail. And if you can get a horse in the room, don't forget your destrier. Nothing says "I'm serious." like a fully accessorized destrier.

Yeah, I'm with paulsc on this one. I had a suit I wore on just such occasions. It was pinstriped, even, and though I'd not paid much for it it looked smart and wore well. I'd match it with very good shoes with high-ish but walkable heels and a tribal-looking cast-iron necklace. The idea was that I looked businesslike, serious, put-together, and taller than them ;) In my experience, if you're going into something like that you want to look as well-dressed as the higher-ranking people in the room. This can be done on a budget--just go with simple lines, a bit severe, and absolutely yes make sure the shoes look good. Polish them tonight. However, don't wear anything you don't feel comfortable in, as it will show. Nothing you have to fuss with or pull at to keep it looking good, nothing that wrinkles immediately or shows perspiration, nothing that you don't feel confident in. Try your outfit on tonight, walk around in it, practice what you have to say in it. Make sure it works. Then go in there and kick some serious ass ;)

Dittoing paulsc and elizard. You gotta look like you mean business.

(((Grace)))