Homecoming Help

Homecoming season seems to have appeared out of thin air. This weekend will be my last football game, parade, and dance celebrating school spirit. As a senior, I hope to participate in all my school has to offer one last time. I’ve attended the dance every year, and had plenty of dresses! Each year I look for something a little different, but one that matches my classy and modest personality.

Style

Plunging necklines with tight skirts have never really been my forte. I tend to favor dresses with some structure and modesty to them. I know that the attention will be on me and my personality, not my body. Most importantly, I feel more comfortable when I’m showing less. I never have to worry about bending over or getting out of a car. This being said, I favor smaller waists with a more full skirt to compliment my features. The princess style dress has always drawn me in. It really captures my personality and classy style. All in all, enjoying yourself is most important, so choose a dress you’ll dance the night away in.

Color

I love very simple dresses. Again, they allow my natural beauty to shine through, without looking too plain. A touch of sparkle and color make me feel gorgeous without looking like I’m playing dress up. I usually opt for solids with a bit of bling, or two colors with a simple pattern. Gaudy, over the top ensembles can’t be worn again, but a good homecoming dress could be worn to a wedding or cocktail party. Steering clear of eccentric colors, patterns, and gems keeps the focus on my face and makes me the star of pictures, not my attire. After all, I want to be rocking the dress, not having the dress wear me. Over the years, I’ve favored darker colors like navy and black so I don’t look too washed out. By homecoming season, my tan has faded, so I don’t want to look pale.

Accessories

Hair, jewelry, and shoes vary by each dress! When I pick strapless or thinly strapped dresses, I tend to wear my hair down to keep the flow of attention. A bare chest with an updo tends to create a lull in the overall look. Busy necklines look best with an updo, in my opinion, to balance where attention is drawn. I’ve always been very simple when it comes to jewelry, both formally and informally. For flashy dresses, I seldom add anymore sparkle. The goal is to look beautiful and natural, not like a disco ball. For my more simple dresses, I’ve worn a small bracelet on the wrist without a corsage. If you look carefully, you’ll notice I have the same, basic earrings each year. Purchasing a pair of plain earrings allows you to wear them with nearly anything! These Sabika earrings were quite the investment, but definitely worth it. Because I’ve spent a lot of money on dresses, I think it’s best to complete the look with nice heels. Some girls are big fans of the Converse look, but wearing sneakers to an expensive event just doesn’t make sense to me. Regardless, pick accessories that emphasize your natural beauty and compliment your features.

Price

Perhaps the most important factor in dress shopping is setting a budget. My freshman year, all my friends went all out. By “all out” I mean $400 dresses found and shipped across the globe. For weeks, I compared my dress to theirs. They spent over twice what I did, and didn’t bat an eye. As I got ready, I clipped the price tag off my dress and it dawned on me. No matter how much I spent, I would look gorgeous and have a good time. From then on, I’d set modest budgets for dresses, never trying on anything beyond my budget. For homecoming, NEVER spend more than $200. It can get ridiculously expensive very quickly, and it’s really not the most glamorous evening. No matter how expensive your dress was initially, you’ll probably never get more than $150 for something that has already been worn. All in all, it’s not about the price, it’s about the memories you make! So set an appropriate budget and stick to it.

Hopefully this brief guide to Homecoming dresses has been helpful! I know I definitely could’ve used someone to teach me a little about dance fashion and etiquette. Below you’ll see each of my dresses, and how I styled them. If you’re absolutely obsessed with any of them, be sure to comment or email me, as they’re all for sale! Happy shopping!

Stay Classy,

Maya