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Your prom night is one of the evenings you’ll remember for the rest of your life, but stressing over your dress or suit needn’t be part of the experience. If you start planning early, you can relax on prom night and just concentrate on enjoying yourself – while looking great!
Fashion experts say it helps to know your best features and highlight them, and also to pay attention to which colors look particularly good with your skin tone and hair color. But they advise against straying too far from your personal style – so be yourself.
When dressing for prom, often less is more, fashion gurus say you don’t need to make an entrance in head-to-toe sequins, or show a lot of skin.
“Some prom dresses are way too sophisticated and way too revealing,” says Sonoma-based designer/dressmaker Cena Jane. “You can still look good without all that.”
She says vintage dresses and skirts (ankle length, mid-calf, or at the knee) in a full, circle shape make a creative change from traditional formal gowns and will look original.
If you fear confronting someone wearing the exact same dress at the dance, Jane has a solution.
“If you find an older dress you can bring it in, and we can alter it and add trim -you can be part of the processing of making it,” she explains, adding. “I don’t look at a dress as it is, I look at a dress as how it could be.”
Jane says cocktail-length dresses that show off the legs are becoming more popular for prom instead of the traditional floor-length gowns.
“Back in the 1960s, I remember having a long white dress for prom that must have looked exactly like a wedding dress!” she recalls with a laugh.
Jane also sees trends in layering, such as donning a shrug (a small cropped jacket); in vintage dresses; and in having a little sparkle in your outfit. As for advice, Jane says the main things to remember are to get your outfit to fit properly, and also to add personal little touches that you stand apart from everyone else.
“When I was in school, we all looked the same, now young people are being more creative,” says, Jane who has some dresses in stock, and is starting a line of rental tuxedos and suits.
Formal dress for guys isn’t as complicated as it is for girls, but many of the same rules apply. Fashion experts say things to think about when considering your prom night outfit should include jacket length, color, and what you choose to wear underneath (oxford, vest, tie etc.), plus the right pair of shoes.
There are many tuxedo options.
“It all depends on the budget,” says Kanak Raj, owner of Sonoma’s Crown Formal Wear. “You could choose a two or three year-old tuxedo in basic black, or you could go really jazzy and get a designer tuxedo with a fancy vest and matching tie.”
Tuxedos at Crown Formal Wear rent from $39 to $150. Raj mostly rents clothing, but also stocks some items and accessories for sale. He can also clean, press clothing and alter clothes to get a good fit.
As for the tuxedo, classic black is always in style, although Raj says the Latino population also favors white tuxedos.
He says last year’s trends included lots of bright colors in men’s accessories.
“There was a lot of tangerine, lively greens, and shocking pink,” he recalls.
Before you even consider your tuxedo options, check with your date about the color and material of her dress, if you want to wear a coordinating cummerbund or tie.
“Some people coordinate, they bring in their girlfriends and their girlfriend’s dress and they want to match exactly, they’re very particular,” says Raj. “But other kids just want to wear basic black.”
Accessories can add a lot of polish to your outfit.
What’s popular in jewelry? According to Carol Petersen, co-owner of Sonoma’s Vineyard Jewelers, several specific items.
“First, long dangly sparkling earrings,” she says. “Also, large hoop earrings, generally in the silver tones, such as silver or white gold, are another popular choice.”
Fashionists say the bolder style metallic, or glittering chandelier earrings will compliment the up-do hairstyles favored by many girls on prom night.
Another trend, according to Petersen is to wear a circle pendant.
“It’s a circle of stones, such as diamonds, that hangs off a chain,” she explains.
And what’s hot for the guys?
“Definitely cufflinks,” says Petersen. “Cufflinks might be something for someone who wants to go beyond the studs provided with the rental tux - they’re for the guy who wants to be extra sharp.”
It’s customary for the guy to buy a corsage for his date. LaTisha Chiurco, owner of Sonoma-based LaTisha’s Floral Design, says the old-fashioned pin-on corsages have given way to flowers worn on the wrist.
“About 95 percent of the girls want wristlets, because almost everyone has a strapless dress, or a dress with thin spaghetti straps,” she explains.
The corsage wristlets usually come with two roses or other blooms, with some greenery and a ribbon.
“Kids come in and tell us what they’ll be wearing and the colors and we let them customize their corsages and boutonnieres,” says Chiurco, who offers a discount for prom-goers.
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Ever popular are orchids and a lot of roses.
“I think dark red roses, almost a rich burgundy look beautiful with black clothing, says Chiurco.
She says the main thing is to enjoy putting yourself together.
“The corsage and boutonniere should complement the outfit and be part of the outfit, either by matching of by using a complementary color because it’s going to be in the photographs,” she says. “But basically, it’s just part of the fun.”
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A pocket square finishes a sophisticated look at Crown’s Formal Wear.
Designer Cena Jane helps a local beauty define her unique style.
Photos by Rick Bolen
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