Should You Keep Your Prom Dress?

Prom will always be a memorable night for any lady. Not only does it signify how a teenage girl is slowly maturing into a young adult but it also is one of the highlights of any student’s high school life. That said, almost every high school girl tries to make sure that she looks at her best during prom night by wearing the most elegant (and also expensive) prom dress around. But after prom, should a girl keep her prom dress?

You can indeed keep your prom dress so that you can wear it again in the future or keep it hidden as a keepsake. However, the more altruistic decision you can do is to probably sell your dress for a bargain price or even donate it to someone who might be in need of it for her prom.

Keeping your prom dress is perfectly okay because you can always wear it again for another event in the future or even pass it on to your daughter or your sister if the same style is still in when it’s time for them to go to their respective prom. You can also trim the dress or have it altered to change its style for some other future event. But, then again, there are some other reasons why you shouldn’t keep your prom dress, and the reasons are quite good. Keep reading to find out what other things you can do with your prom dress regardless if you intend to keep it or not.

Can you wear your prom dress again?

High school will always be one of the most memorable years of a teenage girl’s life. And when it comes to one of the best experiences in any maturing lady’s life, prom night should be up there at the top. Of course, that’s because there are plenty of different memorable things that happen during prom night especially if you and your friends are looking forward to the things you could do during and after prom.

So, because prom tends to be one of the most memorable days of a lady’s life, it is important for any young woman to look at her best not only in terms of how she wears her hair and do her makeup but also in the way she dresses. That’s why, when it comes to looking at her best, a girl needs to prepare for the best prom dress by having one tailored for her or by buying the best one that’s available on the market.

If you are someone who is looking to become the prettiest girl on the prom, you need to be able to look at your best by wearing the best prom dress that suits your style and figure. And you would know that prom dresses are actually pretty expensive. Nevertheless, even though prom dresses are indeed costly, they are more than worth it even if you are simply going to wear your dress for one special night.

On the night of your prom, you indeed pulled off looking at your best by wearing the prom dress you were looking forward to wearing for a very long time. And you probably even won prom queen during the night. You also had fun with your friends or your date right after the actual prom events as you might have carried the party to another place or you might have spent an intimate night with your date all while wearing your prom dress.

Nevertheless, while you might have had one of the most memorable nights of your entire life wearing that gorgeous dress you had tailor-made for prom, you begin to realize that your prom night is only a one-time thing that is never going to happen again unless you plan on repeating a year in high school. In that sense, what happens to your prom dress after that?

You have now worn your prom dress to the prom after spending nearly an entire year preparing for that event. So, do you have a reason to keep your prom dress after prom? Should you even think about keeping your prom dress? And if yes, is it okay to wear your prom dress again in the future?

In all of those questions, the answer is yes. Of course, it’s okay for you to keep your prom dress after prom and even wear it to another event in the future. There is no problem if you want to keep your prom dress because of how many memories are attached to it as it can serve as memorabilia of a great night that you probably won’t ever get to experience again. And, if you probably are going to attend another formal event in the future and you think you can keep your high school measurements the same, there is no doubt that you can wear your prom dress again.

It would be a waste of money and of memories if you decide to just throw a perfectly good dress out in a figurative sense after your prom night. There are plenty of memories attached to the dress, and there are also other things you can do with your prom dress in case you intend on keeping it. So, in that sense, you can indeed keep your prom dress with you indefinitely and even wear it again in the future especially if you can still rock the same look you had when you attended your high school prom.

What should you do with my prom dress?

If you are wondering what you can do with your high school prom dress after prom night, you have a choice of keeping it or getting rid of it in a way that is beneficial for you and another person. You have to make the most out of that beautiful dress, after all.

For those who intend on keeping their prom dress, here are the things you can do with it:

1. Keep it for the memories

You can just simply keep your prom dress and store it somewhere safe where it won’t get ravaged by time. Regardless of whether or not you are planning to wear it again, you can just make sure that you store it properly so that it would retain its beauty. Keeping it for the memories should be enough reason for you to keep it.

2. Wear it again in the future

Of course, if you are keeping your prom dress, you can still wear it again for another formal event in the future because you have to accept the fact that it is perfectly okay for you to repeat your dresses no matter what the public might think about you. After all, dresses can be quite expensive.

If you are planning on going to college, you can bring your dress with you so that you can wear it again for a formal college party. And the best part is that the people you would be going to college with probably haven’t seen you in that dress. Wearing the same dress in front of different people is like wearing an entirely new dress all over again. Of course, you have to understand that it is perfectly okay for you to repeat clothes regardless of what the people around you might think.

3. Have it altered

If you believe that you can no longer keep the same high school figure that you had when you were in prom or if you think that your prom dress won’t be in style in the future, you can have it altered if you are looking to wear it again. Just go to a nearby tailor or to the same tailor that made your dress, talk the design over with him or her, and have the dress altered depending on your new measurements or on the style that you prefer.

4. Store it for the next generation

Prom dresses can act as a family heirloom from a mother to her daughter especially if the same style still fits the style that’s “in” in the future. That’s why you can store your prom dress for your daughter, who may want to wear it as it is or choose to alter it in any way she sees fit. Or, if you have a much younger sister, keeping your prom dress so that she can wear it in her prom many years from now is also a good idea.

Meanwhile, for those who have decided to not hold on to their prom dress, here are the things you can do with it:

5. Donate it

This is probably the most altruistic decision you can make if you are looking to “get rid” of your prom dress. Even though you are essentially gaining nothing back in return for donating your prom dress, you would be happy to know that it would be going to another girl who might not have the same financial capacity to have such an elegant dress tailor-made for her. So, if you think that this is what will make you happy, you can make another girl happy by donating your prom dress to her.

6. Sell it

Of course, there is nothing wrong with selling your prom dress if you think that this is the decision that will allow you to maximize the worth of that elegant dress. You have a choice of selling it at a much lower price so that a lucky girl can have her dream prom dress without paying a lot. Or you can sell it close to the price you paid for it so that you can still gain something valuable out of that dress.

Where can you sell your prom dress?

If you want to sell your prom dress, there are different avenues you can use for you to find a market for it whether you are looking to sell it for a bargain or for close to that of its regular price:

1. In-person

This is a no-brainer because you can always sell your prom dress in person if you know someone who is looking for a prom dress. Just contact that friend or that acquaintance and offer her your prom dress for a price that is both suitable for you and for her. This should be easy because it won’t take a lot of effort on your part especially if you already know that person well enough.

2. Social media

Different social media platforms have allowed us to sell our items easily and much more efficiently than ever before. For example, Facebook has a marketplace that will allow you to post your prom dress for sale. You can also go to prom dress groups where you can post your prom dress for sale there similar to how you can post it on the Facebook marketplace. Or you can even sell your prom dress through a timeline post if you think that you have enough friends that can see that you are selling your dress.

Using Instagram can also be a good idea because of how that social media app has also allowed us to market different items efficiently. You can do so by posting it on your very own Instagram account or you can start a new account where you can sell your different pre-loved items, which include your prom dress. Or, if you have a friend with her very own Instagram shop, why not have her market your dress instead?

3. eBay

A timeless classic, eBay has been around for a very long time for us to use in case we wanted to sell something online. The great thing about eBay is that you can have a chance to sell your prom dress at a higher price depending on how prospective buyers bid for it. Yes, in case you didn’t know, eBay is a bidding website where the prospective buyers bit for a certain item by naming their prices. In that case, if someone happens to bid for the highest price, which is higher than the price you paid for your prom dress, you can end up with a profit instead.

4. Third-party websites and apps

Aside from eBay, there are third-party websites and apps that will allow you to sell your prom dress without you having to go through the usual process of selling items on social media. Such third-party sites apps include Prom Again, which is available on the App Store. Prom Again is a great way for you to sell prom dresses because it was specifically made for those who are looking for outfits they can wear for prom.

Meanwhile, another good website to use is Poshmark. Poshmark allows you to create a virtual closet that people can visit so that they can shop for different clothes that you sell. You can create your own virtual closet and then include your prom dress in it so that anyone who may be looking for a dress they can wear for prom or for another formal event can buy it.

5. Garage sale

The old classic garage sale. If you and your family are looking to get rid of old stuff by selling them through a traditional garage sale, then you can simply include your prom dress in it. This is also a good opportunity for you to try to sell and get rid of old stuff you probably aren’t going to be using anymore.

Of course, you have to understand those garage sales are supposed to be “sales” in the sense that you would be selling different items for prices that are much lower than what you paid for. As such, expect that you would have to sell your prom dress for a much lower price if you intend on selling it through a garage sale.

How much to sell your prom dress for?

For those who are planning on selling their prom dresses, you might be wondering how much you should sell your prom dress for considering that prom dresses are quite expensive especially when tailor-made. Of course, there’s also the fact that your dress is already second-hand or pre-loved, which means that it doesn’t have the same appeal as a brand-new dress regardless of whether or not you kept the dress in perfect condition.

As such, the rule of thumb is that you should probably sell your prom dress somewhere between 30 to 50 percent of the price you paid for it especially if you bought it in retail instead of having it tailor-made. Meanwhile, tailor-made dresses are better off sold at prices closer to 30 percent considering that it doesn’t have a brand and it was made for your measurements.

However, because eBay is a bidding site, you might be able to get a price better than what you expected or even more than what you paid for depending on how the prospective buyers bid for your dress.

And if you are looking to make another girl’s day bright, you can sell the prom dress for a much lower price (maybe somewhere between 10 to 20 percent of what you paid for) especially if you are selling to a friend or if you are selling the dress to someone you know will find it hard to pay for an expensive dress to wear for prom.