How much for a prom dress?

iVillage Member
Registered: 11-28-2000
How much for a prom dress?
6
Wed, 04-04-2007 - 1:29pm

Hi All,
I'm so happy that my 16 yo daughter is now back with her boyfriend. (he's the nice straight A kid). Anyway, he asked her to prom which is May 5th and we are going dress shopping this weekend. How much can I reasonably expect to pay? For Homecoming dresses I've been able to keep it under $100. I plan on going to an outlet mall but I still have no idea what I'm in for.

Thanks for any help.

P.S. Thanks for help before when I had questions on dd hanging out with the bad-boy football player. That thank God has passed. Her boyfriend always stayed in touch with her during the 3 months they were not going out and he was the only one to come and visit her after her knee surgery, so I think that helped her make up her mind. We are still working on the grade thing though, like many of you. But I guess one thing at a time.

Linda

Avatar for heartsandroses2002
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Wed, 04-04-2007 - 1:53pm
Last year I paid $120 for dd17's prom dress. The year before that I paid $129 for dd19's prom dress (she was then 17). This year, dd17 wanted a specific dress which was way outside my budget, so we split the cost...are you ready for this?? $80 each!! Yep, $190 with tax and everything, total. And it isn't even floor length! BUT< it is a beautiful pink dress with ruffle flounces and some really pretty ribbon tied up the front of the bodice. We bought it at Jessica McClintock and dd will be able to wear it for other occasions. Which ones, I don't know yet, but this is what she tells me! lol - have fun shopping.
iVillage Member
Registered: 11-28-1999
Wed, 04-04-2007 - 2:22pm

I am hoping for around $100. My DD has so many dresses, not only the one from jr. prom, but she also got a nice dress every year for homecoming and then there were a couple of other dances. It was getting ridiculous. This yr. for homecoming, some of the girls got together and decided to see if they could swap dresses from years past. I thought that was a good idea.

She does have a couple of nice dresses that she could weara in the future. One is a short dress that's black and strapless. It's pretty basic, so she could wear that if she has a wedding or an event to go to in college. Her jr. prom gown was also a black halter long gown with silver beading at the neck. It's sophisticated enough to wear in the future. I do remember having a couple of semi-formal dances in college and I was able to wear my prom gowns. It's amazing that I can remember so many years ago.

iVillage Member
Registered: 07-22-2003
Wed, 04-04-2007 - 3:30pm

Given that she's 16 and it's not her senior prom, I would start out slow. Most knee-length dresses are between $60-120. Floor length dresses can run from $100 on up to $300 or $400 (sometimes even more). Don't forget you may need to add in the cost of alterations and undergarments not to mention the appropriate shoes and purse.

I refused to get crazy about the prom as I have two daughters who were prom bound for several years. When they were seniors, I didn't mind spending a few more dollars than I would have if they were 16 and justing going as a date. My older daughter was interested in a beautiful dress that cost $275. We split the cost and it worked out well.

In my opinion, it's a shame to spend any more than $75-100 on a dress they'll probably wear just once although somehow...we always have fond memories of our proms and I feel it's not worth an argument or the cost of a memory.

iVillage Member
Registered: 04-09-2006
Wed, 04-04-2007 - 9:01pm

My daughter went to prom last year, because her boyfriend was a senior, and we spent a little over $100. It was a floor length dress. This being her junior year, her dress will be around the same price if she chooses to go. I will let her spend more and go all out, within reason, for her senior prom though.

Adelaide

iVillage Member
Registered: 10-16-1999
Thu, 04-05-2007 - 7:45am
I got really lucky this year with DD's prom dress - we got the dress, shoes, jewelry and a tie for her b/f that matches her dress for right around $100! We were pretty proud of ourselves, that's for sure. Most of the knee length dresses she tried on were between $60-$100, the floor length ones were $75-$130, We had so much fun on that shopping trip! Have a ball with your DD.
Rose
iVillage Member
Registered: 11-13-2004
Thu, 04-05-2007 - 8:26am
DD purchased a $600 dress on ebay for $240.
I had my reservations, but it arrived and looks absolutely stunning.
My little negotiator convinced me she can sell it back on e-bay for roughly the same price. We'll see...
Anyway.. Have any of you tried ebay for a prom dress? It might be a good alternative.
D