Dear Nashie,
I always have trouble deciding whether to buy a new dress for an event or reuse one that I already have for events such as Winter Formal. For this dance, specifically, do you think that I should buy a new one or reuse one that I already have?
Sincerely,
Anonymous Sophomore
Dear Anonymous Sophomore,
When making the choice between buying a new dress and sticking to the one that you already own, try to be realistic. For events such as Winter Formal, it’s likely that you will only wear your dress once – for that particular event. Many girls wear a new dress once and end up stashing it in the closet to collect cobwebs and be forgotten forever. For this reason, it may be smarter to explore alternative options and nix the idea of buying an expensive dress.
At the same time, I understand the novelty of buying a new dress. There’s nothing quite like the excitement that comes with scouring the internet for the perfect dress, ripping off the tags with gusto and admiring yourself in the mirror afterwards. If you really desire the entire dress-shopping experience, then, by all means, buy a dress that fits your budget.
Money can definitely be an issue when it comes to purchasing a dress. In the past, I have come across the perfect dress, glanced at the exorbitant price on the tag and scrapped the idea of buying it at all.
To avoid this situation, you could borrow a dress from a friend or rent a dress from a website like Rent the Runway. Rent the Runway and many other online shopping websites have dresses that are both affordable and cute.
Borrowing a dress from a friend who has a similar style as you allows you to try a different style than one you may be accustomed to (just try not to compare how you look in the dress to how your friend looked). Choosing either of these two options allows you to have the best of both worlds: a fresh new look and a full wallet.
Above all, be confident in the dress you choose to wear and remember that others probably aren’t thinking too much about the particular dress you’re wearing.
