Prom dress cost

[Promdressquestion]

Please could I ask how much your DD’s prom dress cost either this year or last year (to get the most up to date prices)?
I’m trying to figure out a budget and yes, I know it’s been left very late 😩

DDs was around £350 which I didn’t think was bad considering some in the shop were £750!

Still need shoes and a bag but I don’t think those will be too much.

I took my daughter to 2 shops the first they cut the labels out and treated it like a bridal shop (it was a sister shop of a bridal shop) and they did not tell you the cost until you said which dress you liked the one she liked was £500. The second shop we went to specific prom dress shop and they all had labels and prices they had the same dresses as the bridal shop. Anyway my daughter found one she liked and we called the local stockiest (as they order them in and you have to go collect at a later date and was an hour away from me) to see if they stocked the dress, they didn’t but could order it in if we knew the size. The cost in prom shop was £450 🥴 the ordering it to local bridal shop with just the here is the name/code/colour/size and payment £220…. I was over the moon with the saving. In reality though the dress is worth about £100 at most.. in total her prom cost is about £400 with dress, hair, shoes, nails and contribution to car with friends. I know some of her friends spent that on the dress alone.

Approx. £400 for DD’s!

I think it was less than £20 from ASOS
She looked beautiful.

She borrowed shoes and didn’t have nails done.

£25 from a vintage shop. Paid £45 for alterations. She took my handbag. Shoes from primark. She looked stunning.

A lot around us hire dresses for approx £70 although that may be too late now.

Ordered my daughter's last month from vinted.. including delivery costs it was £45, will still need to pay to get it shortened

£25 from our local preloved clothing store!

They had racks and racks of worn-once prom dresses. We found two really lovely dresses that fitted DD. She well pleased not to have to feel guilty about the cost, and to know no one will have the same frock.

And this was after the local schools had swooped in to add to their collections that they loan to girls without the funds to buy new.

£65 from an online shop

Add in the share of the limousine fare.......

Tenner for the dress from a local charity shop that put out a display of their prom dresses and suits. Spent similar on a dressy jacket and again on shoes.

DDs was £175 from JJs house and it was lovely and fantastic quality.

Is there anywhere near Manchester that hires dresses? We found the perfect style and colour in Leeds on a day trip but sadly not in her size which meant the lace up back detail was lost and even at its tightest it was still too big. She’s a size 4 and there weren’t many dresses in that size. Dd is very particular on what she wants but we can’t seem to find it. It’s taken around a year to settle on what she likes and now time is very short.

Lots on vinted, some unworn from these poor kids who bought them then it was cancelled due to covid! Also Facebook market place and I also found a group called 2nd hand prom dresses for sale uk

Vinted, JJ House or ever pretty would be my recommendations

Who's paying £100s for a dress a teen will only wear once.... that's crazy. Look at vinted!

We're in Ireland so it's debs here but the dress is the most important aspect. Dd went to four debs in a year including her own. For three of them we bought dresses off Shein. Love and Lemonade label, beautifully made and very good quality. About £40 each. Dd is a size 6 ,ordered an xs and didn't need altering. For her own we bought a dress in a boutique that was closing down so it was half price, still cost £350 but it was her dream dress.

There’s nothing on vinted or eBay so far that match or are similar to what she wants. We are going to a dress agency tomorrow and I’m praying there’s something she will like and that’s the right fabric. It’s got to be a sweetheart neckline, corset back and satin with a semi-fitted skirt. The one she liked was boned and had sequin flowers on the bodice.

Agreed. Its absolute madness.

It's relatively easy to add lacing to the back of a dress, especially if there's a zip there. Plenty of brides replace the zip with laces when they've not lost the planned amount of weight

DD was £150 custom made (Stacees). I was very skeptical but their customer service was great and it fits her perfectly. Shes doing her own hair and make up. Shoes and bag from Primark.

I never had to fork out for one as DD prom was cancelled because of covid, but I'm staggered by how much they are now.
When I went to mine in the 90s, we all got ours from places like Topshop, or in my case, a random shop in Carnaby Street for £20. They were more party style dresses than ball gowns -nobody wanted an actual princess dress. How times change! I know a few of the fellow mums who got prom dresses for their younger ones the year after DD prom was cancelled and they spent anything from £100 up to a ridiculous £875.
I'd also suggest looking for 2nd hand on Vinted and similar sites. Do you know what she wants?

Coast, £60

DDs was a couple of years ago, it was the year after Proms had been cancelled due to Covid so there were a load of unsold dresses.
DD's had been £600 and we got it for £300

Got dds from Quiz it was around £85.