We’ve all been there, shopping for homecoming outfits. You’re in the mall, under hot bright lights waiting for the dressing room. You’re with your parents, they are yelling at you to “just pick a dress already!” But now seniors (and privileged invited underclassmen) have a whole new event to shop for. Prom is important to seniors because it’s their last high school dance. The style is different from homecoming– long dresses and more serious suits. With prom just one month away, the SHS Courier staff gives their thoughts and advice on prom fashion and trends.

What the staff wants in a dress

Senior Kate Rose went to prom as a junior. She says she’d like to take a step up from last year.

“As a senior, I needed to find a more fun dress with a more fun color,” Rose said. “I went last year and I wore a pretty plain dress. I liked it, plain is good. [But] you know you’ll look good.”

Junior Sasha Zahler, who got invited to prom this year, said she wants something she will be able to top next year, since she will be a senior. She wanted something more simple, like a dark brown.

“I also wanted a cocktail dress, I didn’t want a silk [dress],” Zahler said. “I wanted it to be traditional, but I wanted it to be just a little extra. I wanted something that I could dress up even more with accessories.”

Senior Angeli Thompson thinks dark colors is what she’ll go for. She feels like she’ll pick a dark blue, red or dark green dress.

Where to shop

One of the hardest things about shopping for prom is finding the right stores. Some people go in person, some people shop online–depending on their personal preference.

Senior Hannah Levenson mainly looked at Beachwood Mall.

“I looked at Windsor, Windsor is good for affordable dresses, but it didn’t have anything that stood out to me, and I looked at Dillard’s,” Levenson said.

Thompson also shopped in stores.

“I am not a person who shops online a lot because nothing ever fits me,” Thompson said. “So I always have to try it on. I really like Nordstrom or Dillard’s. You could also thrift a dress too.”

On the other hand, Rose says she prefers to shop online.

“I search up colors of dresses, then I find a cute one, and I’ll go on that website and just look at all their dresses,” Rose said. “Sometimes it’s a bad website, but then the dresses are cute. So it’s a little gamble.”

Zahler knew where to look based off of one thing she knew she didn’t want in her prom dress, a leg slit. She got her dress from House of CB because she claims their long dresses never have slits.

Popular prom trends

With prom, comes popular dress and suit trends. For example, some of the Courier staff have expressed they like a low-back dress.

Levenson said she likes a corset style dress. Thompson said she likes spaghetti straps, leg slits and V-necks.

Rose feels that plain black dresses are overdone. She feels you need a little bit of a different element. For guys she feels something sharp is the key.

Zahler said she feels something that is a little more unique would be nice for boys.

“I just wish [boys would] have some more variety,” Zahler said. “But, I think something sleek and the right size.”

Least favorite trends

Now when it comes to least favorite prom trends, the Courier staff has a ton of opinions. But they all feel that you should wear what you love.

Rose, Zahler, and Thompson all say they aren’t into the poofy and tulle ballgown look.

Zahler also feels that there are pretty dress trends that are overused but are still very elegant.

“Like open backs with a high-neck that’s silk,” Zahler said. “It’s a very classic look, but I feel like if you’re trying to avoid matching people, that is a look to stray away from.”

Prom copycat social media pages

To avoid matching with people, students have made prom dress pages on social media. You can send your pictures of your dress to the account and they will post them. The point of these pages are to see another person’s dress and not buy the same one.

Zahler believes that they are a good idea. Nobody wants to match someone on a special day like prom.

“I think it’s worth it [posting your dress] because prom is supposed to be special so why would you want to ruin it by someone showing up in the same dress as you,” Zahler said.

At Solon, a page was made on Instagram for this year’s prom. This page is called Solonpromdresses2023, but it doesn’t say who runs the account. But, students have already posted their dresses there in hopes of being unique.