help! dd needs to dress up for a formal music recital ,what shall she wear?

[brimfull]

she's 15 ,a size 8 and 5'2.No heels.She's been told to wear formal ,no idea what that means.It is a young musicians competition and appearance is also part of the judging apparently....wtf?
We haven't got a clue.

its on the left hand side, second row down, black with an orange ribbon round the waist

in fact forgot to say have never worn it, it still has the tag on

I have found THE dress I would definitely have worn to a recital at that age - your dd will probably hate it, but it would be the one that I would have chosen at 15 - here - I won't be offended if you hate it! It's very 'recital'ish imo, not glamorous, but definitely smart.

tortoise that is very nice

i forgot about laura ashley

I got all my recital clothes from there!

sorry nail,still can't see any dress with an orange ribbon.

the prom dress they have on the laura ashley site is lovely too - and only £35! what a bargain!

tortoiseshell,she says that's disgusting lol,I'm so sorry she's a typical fussy teen.

uch bugger ggirl

go to women

dresses

evening dresses

hth

sorry, didnt mean to swear

peachy-thank you so much for the offer but dd look ill in pastel colours.So kind of you though ,you should ebay it!

I've given up nailpolosh,can't find it.sorry

No worries, Hope it all goes well.

prom dress

Alas only size 18 though!

BHS teenage bridesmaid dresses are the business for this age - long and elegant but not strapless - wear with flats.

burgundy is the best one, but also gold and lilac

Or she could do the gig in full goth gear as per Nigel Kennedy...Might not please the teacher though I suppose.

What instrument is she playing?

When you say 'a young musicians competition' do you mean the BBC one?

lol,no not the bbc one,the local schools one.she's a flautist.

Trouble is it's the first time the competition has been held.The head of music has emailed all the contestants to say "it is very formal"
"there will be marks for presentation" and "tell your family and friends to dress smartly"

Dd seems to want to be smart casual,nice trousers and top.But I have a feeling the idea is for formal prom type dresses.I will need to talk with the other mum I know of whose dd is in it to collaberate.

Didn't really want to be spending a load of dosh for one event but I suppose she could wear it for her prom next year.Crikey it's next Tuesday so this is all a bit last minute.I love all the links btw ,dd has gone to dance class but I'll show her this thread later.

Well, surely they're not judging them on their family and friends??? I think they just want to make it an important event and they feel if everyone looks smart if will make it more of an occasion. As long as DD is neat in appearance, don't think it matters what she wears. Black trousers would work if she's not keen on a dress.
Good luck!

we have two family members ( teenagers) who often perform at recitals at music college. girl ( flautist & choir) wears long black skirt and black or white blouse and the guy (clarinet) wears a white shirt, black trousers and tie.None of the girls wear anything at all like a ballgown. Some of the girls wear smart black trousers