posted by chiara
May 30, 2007 10:30AM
I wish I could be cool and say I got a thrift store prom dress... but no, I went to "Sophisticated Lady" at the local mall and got an awesome long blue sequined dress. Ended up cutting it into a mini and wearing it for years clubbing in miami!
posted by helen
May 30, 2007 10:33AM
jessica mcclintock. it was butter yellow.
aww. remember when i used to live in the midwest? that was fun.
posted by Amy
May 30, 2007 10:34AM
Junior year was a mint green dress from Cache. Senior year I saved up and bought a white strapless dress from Ralph Lauren. It was amazing... too bad my date dressed up like the Monopoly man...
posted by Chels
May 30, 2007 10:38AM
Ack...Cache. But in my defense, it was not a typical "Cache" dress...it had a bubble hem and was the kind of crinkly fabric Gianni Versace used on some of his dresses. Still the absolute best part of my high school experience.
posted by Severine
May 30, 2007 10:43AM
Mine was a heavy ivory satin a-line halterneck with matching sash that had been handmade for one of my aunts in the 60s. My mother shortened it for me to just above the knee. I also wore it to my first university graduation. I still have it but no idea if I'd still get into it these days.
posted by Allison
May 30, 2007 10:50AM
Junior year I wore a 70s lounge dress from a vintage store... Marvelous bright purple, orange, red, yellow and green. It was a bit much for suburban Pennsylvania. Senior year I ended up back at the mall with a graduated chartreuse BCBG tea length dress. Ick.
posted by Helen
May 30, 2007 10:53AM
Went to Lord and Taylor and got a violet Jessica McClintock corset top. I loved it. Then in college I discovered that my best friend and I had worn the same dress to our respective proms (her's in Nashville, mine in Jersey). That's when you know you're meant to be friends, when you've shared fashion, whether intentionally or not.
posted by iwantmypradaturban
May 30, 2007 10:58AM
Prom, for me, was such a joke. A friend and I took sophomores to the dance, I wore another friends dress from the year b/4 and every girl wore flip flops.
Anyway. When I saw the two girls photographed above in the recent issue of Teen Vogue, I got super excited. Mainly b/c I have both dresses :-X
posted by guest
May 30, 2007 11:01AM
sophomore year I did white mcclintock. I think I remember there being marabou involved.
senior year I had my seamstress in Lima mock up a version of swank's copper oscar dress, but in bronze with navy undertones. I still have it and love it. (although I haven't worn it since my last recital in college.)
posted by elizabeth
May 30, 2007 11:02AM
Went to Bloomingdales (oh, I do miss King of Prussia) and got a gorgeous black silk column that I still have--I hope I still fit into it....I was obsessed with Audrey Hepburn at the time (surprise surprise) and made a faux white and black-pearl necklace.
posted by MH
May 30, 2007 11:12AM
Laundry, black beaded column, junior year...had this gorgeous D&G that actually was featured in Vogue that month, but it was long and white and freaked out my boyfriend, so I didn't wear it and still regret it. Betsey Johnson senior year, more long and black...my mother told me I should wear something more fun since I'd never wear it again, but for the record, I still fit into both dresses and have worn both since for events!
posted by georgia
May 30, 2007 11:19AM
mine was 3 years ago...a beautiful Rebecca Taylor that I got from Saks. I haven't had a chance to wear it again but I still love!
posted by jaclyn
May 30, 2007 11:35AM
haha, jessica mclintock. junior and senior prom.
i still like both of them. but I wouldn't wear them anyplace else than a prom.
posted by sophie
May 30, 2007 11:44AM
I was so happy to see these girls (who I think are around my age) wearing pretty and sensibly priced dresses... after all, what teens but those featured in teen vogue (heiresses, children of actors and designers, etc) can actually afford real Proenza, while the rest of us 17 year olds are out getting it from target...
posted by sll
May 30, 2007 12:13PM
I rented a Grace Kelly gown from Early Halloween. That night I also dropped my clutch from the barge into the East River.
posted by heather
May 30, 2007 12:13PM
My proms were in the late '90s, so my junior prom dress actually came with a matching long-sleeved shrug. It was black with silver glitter, strapless, a long tight column with slits up both sides, sourced from some random store at the Cherry Hill Mall. I wore it with black pantyhose and clunky black strappy heels. Ouch!
My senior prom dress was also from the Cherry Hill Mall (I grew up at the Jersey Shore so Cherry Hill was the nearest mall that was slightly more upscale), specifically White House/Black Market. It was just below the knee, bias cut, spaghetti strapped, a swirly black and white psychedelic print. Not too bad, actually. Worn without pantyhose (thankfully).
posted by laurie
May 30, 2007 12:26PM
It was 1997 and every last girl had to have the Jessica McClintock "corset" top with the pastel pouffy princess skirt that obliterated any figure they might have. Knowing I wouldn't have that bod forever, I grabbed the slinkiest, brightest colored dress I could find - Betsey Johnson. I adore it still and can aaaaalmost fit into it.
posted by Justine
May 30, 2007 12:38PM
Junior year I had a coral colored princess dress that I picked up the weekend before at Macys... clearly I didnt care too much about it, but it looked really pretty. Senior year I had a white Jessica Mclintock (suprise!) with a light pink overlay and pearl beading... a much more thought-out and informed choice. oh prom..... if only I could go back, knowing what I know now...
posted by patentleather
May 30, 2007 12:55PM
i went to ten proms... but my favorite dress was a nicole miller, orange/pink (very bright) floor length sheath with an empire waist, rhinestone straps and a very high slit up the front right. i wore gold gucci sandals that i found at loehmann's and have bobbed jet black hair ala cleopatra. it was hot.
posted by patentleather
May 30, 2007 12:55PM
i went to ten proms... but my favorite dress was a nicole miller, orange/pink (very bright) floor length sheath with an empire waist, rhinestone straps and a very high slit up the front right. i wore gold gucci sandals that i found at loehmann's and had bobbed jet black hair ala cleopatra. it was hot.
posted by Cail
May 30, 2007 1:21PM
My very small, very Southern school didn't have a prom, but we did have a Senior Graduation Dance on the night of graduation, and the juniors are invited. The seniors wear their graduation clothes (white linen suits for the boys, full-length white dresses for the girls) and the juniors wear cute dresses-- I still wish I had hung onto mine. It was lavender Cynthia Rowley dress, knee-length, and kind of a swiss dot pattern, but all lavender. I think there was a teeny bow on the waist, and a kind of angular u-back, as well as that high boatneck front that was popular in 1997. As much as I hated high school, I LOVED that dress.
posted by team gingerbread
May 30, 2007 2:07PM
I got a custom dress from a bridal shop in Ottawa (Justina McCaffrey) not because I was super into having the best dress at prom or anything, but more because that's just what we did - everyone at my school went all out and seemed to spend a small fortune on their dresses.
I figured I'd wear the dress once and that would be it but I wore it to a sorority formal last year
posted by guest
May 30, 2007 2:17PM
short green Laundry dress with an empire waist...randomly spotted it at a neiman marcus outlet...i absolutely fell in love with the dress and had to have even though there were was only one left and it was a size 8 (i was a size 0 at the time)...the larger size actually looked soo good becuase it was a delicate,diaphanous grecian dress and wearing it bigger made it really drapey and cool...i still loooove that dress so much...wore it to my freshman formal last year, will probably wear it again this summer to another formal
posted by dawn
May 30, 2007 2:43PM
I got my dress in 1987 at JC Penney's. After looking a Lillian Ruben, Nieman's and other high end places. It is so 87. Short. Gathered top, Tiered ruffle skirt and a nice bow on the butt.
I can still wear it and plan on wearing to the 20th Dallas Video Festival.
posted by jigsaw
May 30, 2007 3:34PM
cache, the only time i've stepped foot in that store. it smelled horrible!
after days and days spent agonizing over finding the perfect dress i was about to give up. my boyfriend dragged me to the mall and i saw it in the window and i admitted my defeat. it was nice enough but it wasn't awesome. but it was in my size and that was enough at that point!
whatever, it was just prom. i haven't worn it since but my mom borrowed it for an event last year.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v299/jigsawyouthh/self/yadda.jpg
posted by Faran
May 30, 2007 3:44PM
Jigsaw, you were so adorable! I will scan an old prom photo of me and post it online, if I can find one...
posted by knowitall
May 30, 2007 4:04PM
wow, it seems cache was the go-to. i bought mine there too! i thought i was so chic in my black jersey sleeveless dress with jet beading scattered on it...
BETTER QUESTION:
DID YOU HAVE RINGLETS IN FRONT OF YOUR FACE WHEN YOU GOT YOUR HAIR DONE?-no matter what, you had to have two little ringlets in the front! haha
posted by outfitkit
May 30, 2007 4:28PM
My junior year I wore the requisite long sequined dress that everyone in KS wore to prom. The dress was copper and this old beautician from the local hair salon decided it would be cool to put copper highlights in my hair a la Susan Sarandon at the Oscars when she wore the copper dress. The hair was horrendous and I cried for about 2 hours.
The next year I went with a tasteful, long white column dress. It had very fine gold horizontal stripes and a mock turtle neck with short sleeves. It was very different from what most people wore. I still have the dress in my closet and wore it to my cousin's wedding. I got them both at a local clothing store.
posted by Laia
May 30, 2007 4:34PM
back in high school i still thought i could be a fashion designer... i designed prom dresses for 3 girls. the funny thing is that I actually bought mine because I couldnt find any fabric that i liked. I loved my dress though, it was a flesh-toned spaghetti strap column from bcbg with tons of sequins in different tones of blue going down the middle (which perfectly complemented the awesome midnight blue color that my hair was at the time...)
I still love that dress.
posted by marchesa
May 30, 2007 8:07PM
A short, vintage dark blue dress with gold and black sequins around the bust and the halter. Knee length. very burlesque. Found it outside a thrift store for $5.
posted by nadarine
May 30, 2007 9:22PM
Junior year was a black minidress with 3" fringe at the knee: found in the geriatric section of Herberger's, size 14, on clearance for $25. I had it altered to be short, tight, and scandalous!
Senior year was a custom-made tea-length black satin dress with a row of pearl buttons up the back and full skirt- largely taken from the penthouse scene in the original "Sabrina". Went well with my punk spiked hair.
posted by guest
May 30, 2007 11:41PM
I wore this two years ago...much more sophisticated than all the princess dresses, but to be honest i kind of regret missing my only chance to wear one of those and not look ridiculous!
http://www.trashydiva.com/trashydiva/40SDRESSwine1.JPG
posted by allie
May 31, 2007 10:55AM
Junior year, I wore a pink dress with sparkly flowers—sounds disgusting, but I still love it. I think I got it at Macy's. Senior year, I got an off-the-shoulder, black, ruched-front number from Lord&Taylor. It was a little goth, but I also still love that one. Especially because in the pictures, every other girl wore pastel.
posted by Jennie
May 31, 2007 12:20PM
a strapless chloe dress i got off ebay...it was gorgeous except when i tried it on it fell off b/c it was so big...so some quick tailoring and a ribbon for a halter strap did the trick
everyone else looked like a cross btn a ballroom dancer and a stripper...yeah my high school was classy
posted by dumbbrunette5
Jan 13, 2008 8:14PM
for junior prom i wore a black body con knee length dress with a slit up the side and a 1950s style halter and red lipstick. i loved it. i havent decided what to wear to senior prom yet cuz i still have time (im in my second semester of my senior year of high school)
posted by Miss Jeffrey
May 30, 2007 10:20AM
I didn't go to my prom, I can't mention what I did do that night (it was very illegal, young, silly and LOTS of fun...it was the 80's!)