As someone who has ordered (and returned) countless dresses for Winterfest and Homecoming dances, I would say I have mastered how to avoid the stress of finding a dress for a dance.
While shopping online, I have said to myself innumerable times, “Wow, that dress looks great on the model, but I don’t know how it would look on me.” And while I wish I could just buy it and hope that it looks good, and return it if it doesn’t, the fine print of return policies can make this difficult. Because returning dresses can be such a pain sometimes, whether the return policy is nonsensical and only allows store credit or returns after only seven days, it can be difficult to pick a dress, buy it, and just cross your fingers that it will look just as good on you as it does on the model. Many websites use “store credit only” returns, forcing you to purchase yet another dress from their website that will be just the same as the last cheap and ill-fitting dress. Reading the fine print of the return policy is critical prior to purchasing, and this would have saved both my mom and me so much stress.
In addition to the stress of buying a dress or finding one that you like, dresses can be extremely expensive for very cheap quality. Personally, I think that spending any more than $80 on a dress that I will wear once is absurd. Thankfully though, there are definitely ways to get a better deal.
If you like the look of a dress from a more expensive store but not so much the number on the price tag, shopping two to three months prior to a dance in the clearance section can provide you with a wide selection of dresses, often discounted fifty percent off or even more. However, if you wait too soon, the clearance section can be very picked over and limited. A few other options for a discounted priced dress would be to either borrow a dress from a friend, reselling your dress online to earn some money back, or even thrifting. Borrowing a dress has saved me a few times after many unsuccessful try-ons, and this was a great option for a cute last-minute dress. I also have resold all of my past dresses on either Facebook Marketplace or Depop, and it is a very easy way to regain some of that money spent on a pricier dress. Thrifting can not only be a positive environmentally wise, but it can also provide an amazing deal on a dress. Each time I find myself at a thrift store, I always find a cute dress that would be perfect for a dance, and each time it has been less than $10. If you don’t have a thrift store near you, online thrift stores can be an option as well. Borrowing, reselling, and thrifting for a dress for a formal dance can not only alleviate much of the stress and anxiety associated with shopping, but it can also provide a much more cost-friendly alternative.
While finding a dress for a dance can often be way more difficult than it needs to be, these tips can help dismiss some of that stress.