What to Wear to Homecoming?

Q?

What am I supposed to wear to homecoming? My best friend and I want to go the our school's homecoming dance but don't know what to wear to one of these? -Andrea M.

A.

Hi Andrea, glad you asked!

Deciding what to wear for a party or dance or wedding can be challenging. 

Because of all the different designations such as formal, white-tie, business casual or semi-formal, you need to know what kind of clothing and/or accessories are appropriate for each level of formality. Understanding which is which will help you avoid embarrassment.

What Is Considered Semi-Formal Dress?

What Does Semi-Formal Dress Mean?

Women

When you receive an invitation to an event which specifies semi-formal, this means a cocktail-length (knee-length) or long dress. You have to wear sheer hosiery. Leave the business pumps at home and put on the dressy pumps. You can accessorize with tasteful jewelry.

Best Advice? Go with the short party dress. Save the long gown for your prom.

Men

Men wear suits to semi-formal events. The suit should be a good-quality dark suit with a dark tie and white shirt. You should wear dark socks and black shoes.

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Need Help Finding a Prom Dress in my price range

Hi Gg,

Question : Does anyone know about dresses from www.lightinthebox.com?

They are wholesale from China. My order would be like $300, 1/3 of what it would cost at a bridal store here in the States. I don't care if the dresses are a knockoff or not as long as they aren't crappy. My fear though is sending my money and then never receiving my stuff. If anyone has ever ordered a dress from this place could you please give me your opinion? Thanks. Rose.

Answer : 

Hi Rose, I know  I am not the only one on this blog who has had a bad experience with some (not all) overseas manufactures. I sum up my answer to this dilemma in my recent article,  Wedding and Prom Dresses : The Pitfalls of Buying Cheap.  

As far as this particular company, Light in the Box, my suggestion would be to really read up on the reviews left by customers, they are often the ones who will speak frankly about any given product! 

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What to Wear : Man 34, Dress UP

More Boss Black...

Question:

Hi ggflower my name is Jaouad (MALE)I am 34 years old.  I always get confused when I try to dress for any occasion, I sometimes feel like I look Goofy. so, I would appreciate if YOU tell me Details about fitted Colors in classic clothes and others clothes.......I work in office and like to go out also.  your Response is appreciated  please if i don't understand something i will ask again  thanks jaouad city of hermitage, PA

Answer:

Hi Jaouad,

You have asked a very good question. I think, with so many new styles being offered every season, it is easy to get confused about what to buy and "what to wear" from moment to moment.  Whenever I get this type of question, I always answer the much same way, whether it’s a man or a woman.


It is important Jaouad to make sure you have plenty of classic styles and basic colors in your wardrobe. Stores like JC Penneys and LLBean always sell classic styles, like Dockers and Chinos. Since, you did not mention formal wear I concentrate on work and casual styles of clothing for men.

By the way, if you go shopping right after Christmas you will get the best deal on winter clothing. And the best sales for summer clothing is right after the 4^th of July. If you find that your wardrobe is lacking the basics to dress in a classic conservative manner, you will have to start to pay better attention when you go shopping.

Rule of thumb

Style: Don’t mix too many styles. Don’t wear tennis shoes with your dress clothes. Don’t wear your dress shoes with your casual clothes. Don’t wear more than one trendy item at a time. Wearing trends works for teens and rock stars. So if you want to be taken seriously, you need to avoid these looks. Find clothes that are fitted in the 'traditional' manner.

Dressing in the classic style:

Slacks: Chinos or Dockers-dark colors for winter, light colors for summer.

Socks: match your socks to your pants. 

Shirts: Oxford button downs collars for work, Henleys, crewneck sweaters, crewneck knit tops and polo shirts for casual.

Shoes: leather lace ups for work, loafers or docksiders for casual.

Belt: match the color and style of your belt to your shoes. One belt for dress and one belt for casual

Sunglasses: black shades if you are wearing a black belt and shoes. Brown shades if you are wearing a brown belt and shoes. By the way, here is where you can play around with trends. Find some cool shades.

Color for men

Wear as much of the same neutral color in each outfit as you can.Example: for work..

Navy slacks, Navy Shirt, or a white shirt with navy stripes.

Brown slacks, brown or beige shirt, or beige shirt with brown stripes.

Black slacks: with white shirts are really elegant, even if your are wearing jeans.

Tie: A multicolor tie will add just the right amount of color if you follow the rule above.  What you want to avoid is the goofy look which is created when you wear too many colors or too many styles. The overall effect is too busy!  

For casual: stick with neutral colors and solids. Save the funky prints shirts for the beach or a pool party or hanging around at home.

Navy shorts: navy, white, or gray Henley shirt or polo shirt or knit top.

Brown or khaki shorts. White or beige, navy  polo or t-shirt.

White shorts: if you are into white shorts, you can wear almost any color top.

Black shorts: grey, white, or taupe shirts, look dressy and elegant. 

I hope this helps. If you ever need help dressing up for a formal occasion, write me back. I would love to help out!

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Question
 
I am going to my school homecoming is november and i would like a nice dress but i am having issues trying to find a nice dress, i am an apple shape and i would like something that goes well with my shape and obviously conceals my stomach. do you know of any brands or particular dresses that would suit my shape well?
many thanks
katie

Answer

Hi Katie,
For your Body Type Look for prom dresses that de-emphasize the middle, such as drop waist or no waist dresses. Accentuate your gorgeous legs and slender arms with shoes, hosiery or a long strand of pearls.

I went to Sydneyscloset.com and found the lovely purple and black dress. I chose it because it doesn't fit tight around the middle like most other prom dresses.

Visit our PROM DRESS DIRECTORY where there are hundreds of dresses to choose from !

Tell me what you think?
GG Flower 
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---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Hi,
thank u for your reply and if i am not wrong i have hourglass body type as my mesuremnet come to be 36" bust,27" waist and 37" hip..right?...i also want to ask you what type of hair style will suit me i have very narrow face with somewhat ovel shape and everyone says that only thing i can do with my hairs is to just to make a pony tail as hair style make my narrow face looks more narrow..i have attached a link that u can follow to view my face type..
thanks a lot

http://s228.photobucket.com/albums/ee247/snehra1/ 

Answer
Perfect for your face
Yes! You are an hourglass type! -this type is the most proportioned of all the body types. You already have a sexy feminine body type, so try sleek classic hairstyles for added sophistication. Your clothing should be sleek and simple as well.

My suggestion:
Shoulder length
Blunt cut
Add height by blow drying
Part hair on the side


QUESTION: thanks so much for your explanatory answer..just one more question if u don't mind to reply.

The hair style u have mentioned looks good but i m doubtful about it as i have a small fore head it would kind of hide my forehead and other is i have a short height so i m afraid that shoulder lenght hair will cover my neack and will make me look more smaller..please suggest if i am right or wrong.
and i love this simple hair style..would it  look good on me

http://www.shop4prom.com/photogallery/gallery.asp?action=viewimage&categoryid=44&text=&imageid=446&box=&shownew=
thank a lot

Answer
Absolutely! This is very similar to my choice, except the bang is high over the forehead and its longer. Very pretty and very chic.

Make sure you blow dry the crown with a large round brush. That way you will create height and therefor look a bit taller...

I am a little confused about your statement about the length. It looks to me that the longer hairstyle is covering more of your neck? My reasoning for the shorter cut would allow you to brush the hair back and show more of your neck...

Why not try the longer version and see for yourself, before choosing to cut! 

GG Flower
 

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Question

Hello, how are you going? My name is Christina and I live in Australia. Thank you for taking the time to answer my question :-) I saw a dress that I like on www.ebay.com.au  (item has been sold / removed by publisher) It is item number: 160292343679 if you have time to look at it) I love the whole dress, expect the neckline, as it's a bit too low cut for me, as I hate having my boobs too much out.

I was wondering if you think it would look stupid if I get a small piece of material, like white lace or something, and sew it inside the dress, where the neck is, just so it will make the neckline go a little bit higher. So it will be like a small triangle of material at the neck. Would that look silly do you think? Or am I better off not buying the dress at all? If you think the material idea is okay, what kind of material would you put there? Like would you put white sheer lace, or lemon satin , or something else? Thanks heaps for your time, I do appreciate it a lot :-) Kind Regards, from Christina in Australia

Answer

Hi Christina,

I too think  this is a lovely dress and unfortunately does appear  to be cut too low to achieve a lady like look.

I understand your idea and I have made the same attempts to modify a dress that does not suit me perfectly. The problem you will find is  finding the  right material in the right color.  If the color is just a little off it will make the dress look 'funny'. As well, if it doesn't stay put just right it will appear home made.

What's a girl to do?  Your last option would be to find a cream or white camesole to wear underneath the dress, something lacy would look good,  but it should  lie flat against your chest, so look for something stretchy.

The other option is to wait for the perfect dress to come up for auction, but I know how hard that could be!!! - GG Flower

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