Prom outfits and where to get them - please explain!

[GardenAnarchist]

DD is going to Year 11 prom and was telling me how she thinks it works.

Apparently some of the girls in her year bought their dresses ages ago so she has left it late and the selection will be less, there are particular shops that sell said dresses, and they ask what school so they don't sell the same dress to somebody from the same school.

"What if you go to a different prom shop?" I asked.

DD wasn't sure but reckoned the different shops wouldn't have the same selection of dresses.

Is this right?

As an extra complication, DD doesn't actually like dresses - she's a baggy trousers and hoodie short-haired girl. I suggested a trouser suit but woe betide a middle-aged mum with fashion advice! If anybody has any ideas/links, I would be very grateful!

My daughter is firmly a jeans / cargos and trainers / docs girl. We went to fenwicks and got a simple midnight blue satin dress. Not a prom dress as such just an adult evening dress - simple, long and with a crossover tie back. It looked lovely and was about £110 so way cheaper than a prom shop.

Look at Vinted together! So many worn once dresses.
A jumpsuit could work?
it is usual that local shops wont sell the same dress but tbh we ended up buying on Etsy

it depends on budget. Prom shops will have a good stock but you are talking £££-££££. Places like Debenhams, quiz etc stock them a bit cheaper. Second hand on Vinted is an option. There’s also outlet prom stores that do last years stock cheaper. You can buy abroad but it’s risky.

With eldest we left it until around now but we couldn’t afford prom shop prices and didn’t see anything high street (before Vinted) so had a dress made which was about £200. With younger one we started looking in the September and got her a outlet dress for £250 (was originally £750)

£750? That's way more than my wedding dress cost!

We were told the official prom dress shops near us (SW London/Surrey border) charge around £300-£500 per dress! That includes getting a full train usually and any alterations needed.

Absolute madness! My dd found her one on Vinted thankfully 😉

OK, will get DD to browse Vinted thank you all!

When she asked about going to prom I foolishly said "Oh like Lorraine's dress in Back to the Future?" and she was utterly horrified as only a teenager could be In my defence proms weren't a thing back in my school days, my only reference was from American films!

I know it’s a little unusual and Just for reference this isn’t my cultural dress but I always think sarees are beautiful and not expensive
Lots online
The black one Lehenga below is lovely I think

Here’s some more. But there’s loads to chose from

I think the things about the shops only selling one dress of each kind is a bit of an American thing. It’s something I’ve had pop up in reels on places like insta!

Gosh!
on a role now🤣

My dd got her dress from asos and it was £26. She wore silver heeled sandals which I made her wear in the house for weeks beforehand and that seemed to work out as she still had them on the end. She normally wears platform DMs and what look like rags from a bush so I did find the whole thing quite surprising.

Some people did definitely go all out and get dresses and have hair and make up done. Everyone looked great on the night.

If she knows what sort of thing she wants then you can start looking for a cheaper alternative.

Oh god, shoes! That will be the next problem, DD only wears trainers (or lace-up brogues to school). I cannot imagine her tolerating even ballet flats.

I think once you know what sort of thing she wants it will be fine.

Slip dress
https://www.asos.com/vila/vila-satin-cowl-neck-maxi-dress-in-milieu-green/prd/207402487#colourWayId-207402489

Dramatic
https://www.asos.com/lace-beads/lace-beads-bow-shoulder-tiered-tulle-maxi-dress-in-red/prd/207185374#colourWayId-207185375

My daughter wore converse under her very long, floor length dress and was delighted to be able to walk, dance etc without being in pain like a few of her friends!! Several others did similar.

My daughter went for Vinted for her Year 11 prom, but she opted for a fairly simple slip dress and ended up paying £15 for it. There’s a range for all tastes in the second hand market!

Me too, that’s completely what I thought. I just went along with what she wanted. I offered her new converse or to wear her DMs but she wanted lady shoes.

Since she’s not a dress person
because the trousers are flowing it looks like a dress so she won’t feel like she’s being different ( if that bothers her ).

Get on ASOS, loads of stuff on there in all sorts of shapes and sizes and you certain won't need to spend hundreds! There's some amazing jumpsuits and co-ords if she hates dresses too!
Although i would recommend before deciding if you are going to keep something, see if you can find the same item on Vinted first!

For yr11 prom of my girls wore second hand and stuff they had.
One of them wore wide leg trousers, dms and a fitted waistcoat.. all stuff she had. For yr13 prom she wore a summer dress she'd found on Ebay... with dms as usual!
The other one wore a vintage Biba dress we found on Vinted, it was £40, she wore it with a pair of biker boots. She's looking for something now for her yr13 prom in July.
There is a prom dress shop in our town and the competition over dresses gets pretty full on. I'm glad that the girls didn't really want to get involved with that... partly because of all the DRAMAAAA! and partly because of the eye watering cost!!

DD did the prom dress thing (shop in Ewell/Stoneleigh) for year 11 prom. Dress was £250, we went halves (I only spent £90 on my wedding dress!). She is normally baggies and hoody so we were surprised too. She wore it with platform converse as she’s small and the dress was so long you couldn’t really tell. And was very glad of it when all her friends feet were in shreds from heels.

She’s got her year 13 prom this year and has bought herself a dress off Vinted for £40!

DS has his year 11 prom and wants smart trousers and a shirt, which he can wear again. So much easier!

@GardenAnarchist I feel your pain indirectly. DS is Y11 and has recently chosen a 3 piece suit and shirt for prom, from Next. About £150, and he's wearing his Nike Airforces. Took about 2 hours to chose, buy and put this outfit together. He actually looks lovely in it. He's usually very grungy.

My friends with girls in his year have done everything from charity shop hunting (£60 dress), to Vinted, stuff from overseas, high street to multi £100 heavily beaded gowns. I hear that Quiz have some acceptable options. One girl is wearing DM boots the same peacock blue as her dress.

Having said that, our school has a large rural, Pennine catchment and may not be in tune with the most cutting edge of fashions.

I'm stealing myself for DD in 3 years time.

I ordered lots from Next clearance on my account so I didn't have to pay upfront and DD could try without worrying. The styles were very similar to the current ones. I think we got through about 20 before she chose one!

Our local charity shops have got loads out on display. Sooooo much cheaper.

Vinted, charity shops, and older mates who had their proms a year or two ago are a great way to do prom for a sensible budget.

Niece went to a prom shop and spent £480 on a dress. It was lovely, but it was one evening and nearly bankrupted SIL.

DD hit the charity shops and got a full length embroidered dress for £30 and paid £40 for a couple of minor alterations to make it a perfect fit.

Also - prom shop dresses do tend to follow quite a recognisable set of formulas - which can be quite good if your DD decides one of them is what she wants, as it can be very easy to find a prom designer’s previous seasons’ versions of that formula on second hand sites.

One big prom shop (Dress2Party) also has an outlet shop on Vinted, it’s great if you have your eye on one of their dresses!