Friday night—time to party. The exhaustion induced by a hard week grinding has finally come to a cathartic close, and you’ve made it to the pearly gates of the weekend. Sure, you may wrestle with the idea of staying in and cozying up with Netflix or a good book, but your best gals come knocking (through your smartphone, of course), and they’re ready to live it up. Are you?

Whether plans for a girls night out were planned weeks ago or your best pals made impromptu reservations at a restaurant downtown, you have to look the part of the night’s vibe before you step out the door. That means putting together an outfit, putting on makeup, mentally prepping for a night spent in heels, and eating enough so the drinks don’t hit too hard, or too quickly.

Using this guide, I’ll walk you through the five key steps to preparing for a night out with the girls. Seriously, it’s that easy!

Step 1: Confirm the details of the night

Before perusing through your closet to figure out what you may wear for the night, you need a solid understanding of where the night will take you. Will you be hitting the clubs to dominate the dance floor? Will you be satisfying your palate at a fancy winery? Will you be spending the night at a local dive bar? What you wear and how you prepare will play a huge part in defining your look.

Step 2: Turn up the tunes

There’s nothing quite like living out your music video dreams by getting ready and looking your best with your favorite pump-up tunes playing in the background. Whether you’re dressing to the nines or slipping into your go-to pair of boyfriend jeans, the right playlist will have you feeling like Beyoncé in your own right.

Not sure where to begin for your GNO playlist? Start with these top girl-power hits:

• Blow Your Mind by Dua Lipa

• Cool Girl by Tove Lo

• Run the World (Girls) by Beyoncé

• Hips Don’t Lie by Shakira

• Good as Hell by Lizzo

Step 3: Choose an event-appropriate outfit

Picking out an outfit may be the most enjoyable or stressful part of your GNO preparation. Sure, your wardrobe is chock-full of pretty, polished, fun, and flirty options you love, but choosing the right outfit for the event may leave your wardrobe looking like a tornado passed through.

Skirts and dresses are great for formal night or an evening spent in the company of significant others (or potential candidates), while jeans, leggings, and shorts are generally best reserved for more casual events. There are, of course, exceptions to these categorizations, but it’s up to you to gauge the vibe of the night’s destination and match it as well as you possibly can.

This goes for your shoe selection, as well! While casual shoes for women have upped their status as a fashion must-have as of late, they may not be the most appropriate footwear option for a night at an upscale eatery. You’ll never have to sacrifice function for fashion or comfort for chicness if you pick the right shoes.

Step 4: Accessorize accordingly

There are a million different ways to accessorize the outfit you choose, which means there are a million different ways to jazz up any otherwise bland outfit. It’s most important that you accessorize sensibly. If you’re going to spend hours on the dancefloor, you probably won’t want to have heavy, chandelier earrings weighing your lobes down. And if you’re going to an exclusive rooftop nightclub, you likely won’t be able to bring in a big shoulder purse.

Plan ahead and assess your needs for the night. What will you need to have on your person at all times? What touches of glitter and glam will elevate your outfit to the next level? Keep these questions in mind as you add the finishing touches to your outfit.

Step 5: Paint your face & style your hair

The final step toward perfect GNO preparation is putting on your face and styling your hair. Fortunately, you won’t have to anticipate the vibe of a certain environment to best assess how to do your hair and makeup, so the freedom to express yourself is truly limitless!

 Did we miss anything? How do you prepare for a girls night out? Let us know in the comments below!