The perfect example of asymmetry is the One Shoulder Silky

Features to Look for in a Modern Prom Dress

Prom season. Youe been looking forward to it all year long. It the climax to the school year social scene. Naturally, you want to look your best.

In fact, you want to do more than that. You want to be the head-turner. The belle of the ball. The girl who makes other girls jealous because she getting the stares from their dates.

So you absolutely need the perfect prom dress. The one that ultra-cool and super-hot! Not something that your mom wore to her prom back in the dark ages.

Good news! Today cutting edge trends in prom dresses give you a multitude of options which weren available even a few short years ago. So if you want to be the forward-thinking fashionista at this year main event, you need a crash course in what hot this prom season.

Here are five features you should look for in modern prom dresses:

Prints

Don limit your choices to solid colors. Some of the most eye-catching prom dresses these days are all about prints. This way, you can combine all kinds of shades for a uniquely stylish look. Plus, print dresses are more likely to match your favorite shoes and jewelry combinations.

The Green Sleeveless Chartreuse Multiprint Prom Dress combines hues of red, pink, and blue with a sheer midriff and plunging neckline. The Floral Fuscia Multiprint Dress features a fuscia print down to the thigh and a green print down to the floor, along with an open X-back and beaded empire waist. And the Long Silky Knit Print Halter Dress sports a white, lavender, and black painterly print with an empire waist and a tie-in-back halter.

Glam

Many of this season prom dresses are all about the wow factor. Some feature embellishment throughout the entire dress. Others incorporate illusion fabrics which flatter the wearer even more. And some even have fitted silhouettes for a uniquely fashionable look.

The turquoise-and-lime Strapless Layered Tulle Ball Gown is easily identified by its sequin-encrusted sweetheart bustline and its lettuce edge hemline. If purple is your passion, youl want to check out the Short Silky Halter-style Dress with Beaded Neckline and Waist with bows in the back at the empire waist and halter neck. And the Strapless Tulle Dress with Caviar Beading at the cheap jovani dresses bust and hem is available in numerous color choices and has ruching at the empire waist.

Cutouts

If youe been working hard on your figure and/or tan, then you need to show it off when prom rolls around! So you may want a dress with sexy back or side cutouts to accentuate your natural beauty. Or maybe youl go for a dress that is completely backless.

The Jewel-tone Chartreuse Sapphire Gown has sparkling beadwork which accents subtle cutouts, along with a crisscross back which ends in a V-neck in front. You might also like the sexy X-back on the Short Iridescent Taffeta Halter Dress, which also features delicate soutache detail throughout the skirt. And the Jeweled Neck Short Halter Dress is made of gorgeous matte chiffon fabric with a unique "inverted-V" back.

Bows, Ruffles and Tiers

There nothing like a frilly accent to catch the eye! Bows can spruce up almost any style, flirty floral ruffles can create a jaunty look, and tiers can help build a three-dimensional ensemble. And if you can combine these elements, you may just have the most talked-about dress at the prom!

The bow in the back is the perfect accent to the moss-colored Silky Knit Short Dress, which features a bubble skirt, sequined hemline, and delicate spaghetti straps. If youe looking for ruffles, the white Spaghetti Strap Tiered Lace and Mesh Trumpet Gown with a black satin ribbon tied around the waist is chic, trendy, and comfortable. And the Short Strapless Tiered Organza Dress with Sash and Sequined Bust is best described as the "little black dress that makes a big statement."

Asymmetrical

Maybe you want your prom dress to look more like a work of art. Then you wholesale designer wedding dresses might opt for the asymmetrical appearance, which will stand out in a room full of more traditional designs. This look can be achieved using unique draping, straps, or necklines.

The perfect example of asymmetry is the One Shoulder Silky Knit Long Dress, which is available in red or turquoise with a side slit skirt and a fabric flower-detailed bodice. The fiery red Strapless Stretch Satin Dress with Side Shirring and Layered Skirt beautifully flatters fuller figures. And if you want to blend tradition with a splash of flair, the Black and White Mesh Prom Gown is a conventional black strapless silhouette gown with a white side-drape ruffle.

So when youe searching for your prom dress this season, don settle for stodgy, frumpy, boring body coverings that may have been popular last century. Look for prom dresses with the most vibrant colors, dazzling accents, and sexy designs. After all, prom night is supposed to be a night to remember ?so why not make sure everyone remembers the dress you wore to the event?

Wedding Dresses and Prom Dresses The Pitfalls of Going Cheap

Today's brides and prom girls are faced with ever rising costs in all areas of their lives, but especially so when it comes to preparing for special occasions, like weddings and prom! So it's important to create a budget and to plan and shop wisely. Getting the best value for the money is on every shoppers agenda and today, more than ever, women are given the option of purchasing a custom prom or wedding dress at a fraction of the cost, just by heading overseas!

Many companies overseas are willing to make a custom-made dress for women in the U.S. who want a certain style, but are unable to afford a high quality designer wedding or prom dress. If you decide to purchase your dress from an overseas factory, you need to be aware of the many important issues that will come up regarding the quality, size and color of your dress. You will also be faced with all sorts of shipping issues which are out of your control and out of the control of the vendor.

Lately, there has been whole slew of defunct factories that have re-purposed themselves to address the needs of American women seeking affordable formal wear. Often, these factories have no other experience in fashion except how to run the machines and how to convince the public to buy from them. They own none of the beautiful gowns you see in the pictures and they have made no money selling their gowns to knowing customers.

Low Quality

The actual photos of the real gowns are owned by the real designers of the dress, who overlook the production of each and every gown at each and every aspect of the production cycle.This is called Quality Control and at many overseas factories, you will have none of that. For instance, the picture will only be the suggested look of the dress. The vendor will use a photo of a dress to copy it in your preferred color and size. But keep in mind, the dresses are only replicas of the picture, they do not own the actual dress you are seeing in the picture. The copy will be made so it looks like the same dress even though the material, quality or details won't be the same, for the price you are willing to pay.

Most likely you will not even get a dress that looks like the picture, so beware. One dressmaker from Hong Kong told me, "even though the dress will be almost similar in shape, we cannot be 100% sure, that this dress is exactly as the picture or that the quality will match the original one". She went on to state: "if the quality was the same as the real dress, believe me, the price would also be much higher."

Nevertheless, even if you were happy with a dress that looked almost like the picture, you might be surprised if the details of your dress were of a less expensive version. For example, one customer expressed regret that her wedding dress looked cheap because her foreign dressmaker used sequins instead of beading. Sequins on a wedding dress! From far away, you couldn't tell the difference, but she was too embarrassed to wear it to her own wedding, so she had to purchase another dress that was of the quality she felt she deserved. To make matters worse, since it looked like the photo, she was not given one dime of her purchase price back, even though she shipped the dress back at her own expense!

Poor Fit

Your custom made dress will be made-to-order, using your own measurements. If you receive your dress and it needs to be tailored, you be prepared for the additional cost and time to make it fit your body perfectly!

Nowadays, good tailors charge $45.00 - $55.00 per hour. Extra turnaround time could be up to a week, or more, if the tailor is not overbooked!

Other common design problems include:

cheap fabric that wrinkles or shows permanent water spotting from steam irons

poor workmanship

plastic beads and crystals

large pearls in place of seed pearls

garish thread color

poor or non-existent foundation / boning features

poor finishing

unprofessional hemming

see-through lining

While it's true that many of the authentic design companies use manufacturers in Asia and beyond, not all factories are created equal, we know. The really good ones are contracted by the major design houses around the world and are constantly monitored for quality.

Strange Color

If you are buying online, you will obviously be viewing the color choices for your dress on a computer screen. Since computer screens have chromatic aberration, especially between CRT screens and LCD screens, you cannot be guaranteed that the color of the dress will be exactly the same with the photographs you saw. Don't take a chance on being shocked at the outcome. Always ask for fabric samples (swatches) to be sent to you by mail before you order! Any reputable distributor is more than happy to send you samples of various colors and the various fabrics they incorporate into their gowns.

Uncertain Shipping Time

Shipping time can also pose a problem, especially if you are up against a deadline and did not allow enough time for the dress to be transported across the ocean. You might not get your dress for up to 30 days after you place your order. Because you bought the item from opposite side of the earth, it needs time to ship and the duration on its way to you is out of your control. Once the item leaves the hands of the dressmaker, it is out of their control as well. So if the shipper has to add a few days here and there to their travel time based on unforseen circumstances, you may be without a dress for your next special occasion. The shipping times for overseas packages have a lot more leeway than what we are used to in the U.S. Keep in mind that you won't get your money back, if the vendor sent your dress on time, but the shipper held its arrival up for some reason.

While we are on the topic of shipping, you need to be aware that you, the buyer is responsible for all import duties, taxes and charges are not included in the item price or shipping charges. Your dress will sit in a crate at the dock until these expenses are paid and the box is released to the overland transportation company. This could take up to 2 additional weeks if Customs waits for your check to clear, before it ships.

Oh, and in the event you are so dissatisfied with your dress, you do want to send it back for a refund, be prepared to pay the return shipping as well.

Are you willing to gamble that your next special occasion dress will be just what you want in all ways: fit, color, quality? If you don't want to take a chance, then be sure to purchase from an authorized dealer of authentic formal wear. Be patient and mindful, and watch for semi-annual sales of last season's dresses and you will be rewarded with the best, not the second best.