Teens will spend $600 each to go to prom
By Dolly A. Butz Journal staff writer | Posted: Saturday, April 14, 2007
The dress $325. The hair $45. The tux $100. The limo $300. The corsage $21. The prom ticket $30. Is prom too pricey?
More than $4 billion was spent nationally on prom last year, with prom-goers spending an average of $600 each, according to Conde Nast Bridal Group, publisher of the magazine Your Prom.
"I think for prom it's probably OK because it's kind of a big deal," East High School senior Sam Jacobson said. "It's kind of our last hurrah at the school."
Jacobson is going out in style with a limousine he estimates will cost him and his friends $55 each. He's also splurging on dinner, flowers and a corsage for his date.
"I'm going to go broke," Samantha McWilliams exclaimed as Jacobson went down his list of prom expenses.
McWilliams, also a senior at East, will spend on estimated $600 on prom, with over half of it going toward her prom dress. She said she will spend the rest on hair, nails, shoes, jewelry, flowers, tickets and pictures.
"I saw it in a Seventeen Prom Magazine and I was like, I want that dress," McWilliams, who has been searching for a prom dress since January, said. "They had one in Orange City."
The pouffy pink strapless dress will set McWilliams back $380.
The dress
On a trip to New York, Vicki Marks, vice president of La Ventura, saw dresses with corseted tops, empire wastes and bubble bottoms in black and white, taupe and black and soft pink.
"You'd see this in New York at prom," Marks said pointing to a mannequin clad in a Nanette Lepore. "This kind of look--the bow, kind of the louder print with the real corseted body with the ruching."
The above-the-knee aqua and yellow rose-printed silk dress retails for $340.
What's trendy on the East and West coasts for prom, Marks said, isn't what Sioux City teens are scouring clothing racks for.
"I think they're looking for gowns more like you would see at the Oscars," she said. "It takes the Midwest a little while to catch up to what they're doing out there."
Marks said the price of a designer prom dress runs the gamut. A long, sheer pale pink Sue Wong with beading sells for around $380.
"They're all over the board," she said. "It depends on the beadwork and the detailing."
Beverly Kistenmacher, co-owner of Bo'ris Fashion Gallery, said her teen customers already have a particular style in mind from searching for dresses on the Internet.
She said teens are buying sleek elegant gowns and corseted dresses with fluffy skirts that range in price from $200 to $300.
Lydia Moes, a senior at East High School, couldn't find a dress in Sioux City, so she traveled all the way to Des Moines to find the perfect prom dress.
"I literally could not find one that was under $300," Moes said. "They really don't exist anymore unless you go to Younkers and stores like that. I guess I thought of it as the last dress, so it had to be perfect."
Moes' straight sky blue beaded gown cost her $325.
"You have to get it early on because you have to kind of stake claim if you find a dress," she said.
The hair
Loose curls. An up-do with barrel curls. Any hairstyle you would see on a celebrity.
These homecoming trends will probably make a resurgence for prom, said Tosha Davis, a hair designer for Hair By Stewarts in the Marketplace Shopping Center.
Davis said teens spend an average of $45 on their hair, but could spend well over $100 on highlights or a pre-prom up-do.
"They'll do a trial run a lot of times the week of or a week before," she said. "It normally is full price for the (trial) up-do--just as much as it is for the real thing, so prom girls are paying double the amount,"
Davis said the prom dress often dictates the hairstyle. On occasion Davis said clients will show her their dress so she can match it to a hairstyle.
"They may want it subtle because the dress is out there or they really want to do a funky hairstyle with a funky dress," she said. "Sometimes we have to talk them out of things. If it's way too extravagant, it might look like too much."
If the top of the dress is adorned with sequins or flowers, Davis recommends a simple straight hairstyle that doesn't detract from the dress. If the dress has an open back, she said an up-do should do the trick. If it's a halter dress, leave your hair down.
Schedule your appointment a month in advance. The day of prom, Davis said Hair By Stewarts is booked all day on the hour.
The tux
For the guys, striped coats and vests in bubble gum, turquoise, peach and fuchsia are in this year, according to Chad Menin, director of training and marketing for Randall's Formal Wear.
"We have kids who come in that want to do something very traditional with white gloves and a cane, and then we have kids who want to come in and wear as much color as they can," he said.
Randall's Formal Wear's best coat selection ranges in price from $49.95 to $99.95.
"They can pretty much pick and choose any upgrades they want and customize the tux," Menin said. "Also they have the opportunity to buy hats, canes, gloves, scarves and a zoot suit chain."
The flowers
Kathy Bogenrief, owner of A Step in Thyme Florals, creates customized corsages and boutonnieres with a variety of flowers, glitter, beads, rhinestones and fiber optic lights.
"They can have roses, orchids, carnations--any flowers in them," she said. "It just depends on what they want in a corsage."
A wrist corsage with three sweetheart roses or three orchids costs $19.95. Adding fiber optic lights is an extra $8.
Rose boutonnieres are $9.95 and carnation ones are $7.95, plus add-ons.
"They can get crazy, but we try to keep it under control a little bit," she said. "The most expensive one we had last year was around maybe $40. You can only put so much on your wrist."
The limo
For $300 to $700 you can arrive at your prom in style with a stretch or SUV limousine. Cathy Becker, owner of Black Tie Limousine Inc., said she is completely booked on April 14 and 28, and prom-goers are still calling.
"Prom kids are calling like the week before or up to a month before, so what you find is there's a lot more children then there are limousine companies," she said.
Limos are equipped with flat screen TVs, stereo systems, CD and DVD players, neon lights and bar areas. Becker said the prom package includes the limo, chauffeur and a few extras.
"I find out what school the kids are from and I decorate the inside with their prom colors," she said. "The non-alcoholic champagne, the time, the chauffeur and the car for the night--it's all included."
html>Related stories
Heelan collects prom dresses
More than $4 billion was spent nationally on prom last year, with prom-goers spending an average of $600 each, according to Conde Nast Bridal Group, publisher of the magazine Your Prom.
"I think for prom it's probably OK because it's kind of a big deal," East High School senior Sam Jacobson said. "It's kind of our last hurrah at the school."
Jacobson is going out in style with a limousine he estimates will cost him and his friends $55 each. He's also splurging on dinner, flowers and a corsage for his date.
"I'm going to go broke," Samantha McWilliams exclaimed as Jacobson went down his list of prom expenses.
McWilliams, also a senior at East, will spend on estimated $600 on prom, with over half of it going toward her prom dress. She said she will spend the rest on hair, nails, shoes, jewelry, flowers, tickets and pictures.
"I saw it in a Seventeen Prom Magazine and I was like, I want that dress," McWilliams, who has been searching for a prom dress since January, said. "They had one in Orange City."
The pouffy pink strapless dress will set McWilliams back $380.
The dress
On a trip to New York, Vicki Marks, vice president of La Ventura, saw dresses with corseted tops, empire wastes and bubble bottoms in black and white, taupe and black and soft pink.
"You'd see this in New York at prom," Marks said pointing to a mannequin clad in a Nanette Lepore. "This kind of look--the bow, kind of the louder print with the real corseted body with the ruching."
The above-the-knee aqua and yellow rose-printed silk dress retails for $340.
What's trendy on the East and West coasts for prom, Marks said, isn't what Sioux City teens are scouring clothing racks for.
"I think they're looking for gowns more like you would see at the Oscars," she said. "It takes the Midwest a little while to catch up to what they're doing out there."
Marks said the price of a designer prom dress runs the gamut. A long, sheer pale pink Sue Wong with beading sells for around $380.
"They're all over the board," she said. "It depends on the beadwork and the detailing."
Beverly Kistenmacher, co-owner of Bo'ris Fashion Gallery, said her teen customers already have a particular style in mind from searching for dresses on the Internet.
She said teens are buying sleek elegant gowns and corseted dresses with fluffy skirts that range in price from $200 to $300.
Lydia Moes, a senior at East High School, couldn't find a dress in Sioux City, so she traveled all the way to Des Moines to find the perfect prom dress.
"I literally could not find one that was under $300," Moes said. "They really don't exist anymore unless you go to Younkers and stores like that. I guess I thought of it as the last dress, so it had to be perfect."
Moes' straight sky blue beaded gown cost her $325.
"You have to get it early on because you have to kind of stake claim if you find a dress," she said.
The hair
Loose curls. An up-do with barrel curls. Any hairstyle you would see on a celebrity.
These homecoming trends will probably make a resurgence for prom, said Tosha Davis, a hair designer for Hair By Stewarts in the Marketplace Shopping Center.
Davis said teens spend an average of $45 on their hair, but could spend well over $100 on highlights or a pre-prom up-do.
"They'll do a trial run a lot of times the week of or a week before," she said. "It normally is full price for the (trial) up-do--just as much as it is for the real thing, so prom girls are paying double the amount,"
Davis said the prom dress often dictates the hairstyle. On occasion Davis said clients will show her their dress so she can match it to a hairstyle.
"They may want it subtle because the dress is out there or they really want to do a funky hairstyle with a funky dress," she said. "Sometimes we have to talk them out of things. If it's way too extravagant, it might look like too much."
If the top of the dress is adorned with sequins or flowers, Davis recommends a simple straight hairstyle that doesn't detract from the dress. If the dress has an open back, she said an up-do should do the trick. If it's a halter dress, leave your hair down.
Schedule your appointment a month in advance. The day of prom, Davis said Hair By Stewarts is booked all day on the hour.
The tux
For the guys, striped coats and vests in bubble gum, turquoise, peach and fuchsia are in this year, according to Chad Menin, director of training and marketing for Randall's Formal Wear.
"We have kids who come in that want to do something very traditional with white gloves and a cane, and then we have kids who want to come in and wear as much color as they can," he said.
Randall's Formal Wear's best coat selection ranges in price from $49.95 to $99.95.
"They can pretty much pick and choose any upgrades they want and customize the tux," Menin said. "Also they have the opportunity to buy hats, canes, gloves, scarves and a zoot suit chain."
The flowers
Kathy Bogenrief, owner of A Step in Thyme Florals, creates customized corsages and boutonnieres with a variety of flowers, glitter, beads, rhinestones and fiber optic lights.
"They can have roses, orchids, carnations--any flowers in them," she said. "It just depends on what they want in a corsage."
A wrist corsage with three sweetheart roses or three orchids costs $19.95. Adding fiber optic lights is an extra $8.
Rose boutonnieres are $9.95 and carnation ones are $7.95, plus add-ons.
"They can get crazy, but we try to keep it under control a little bit," she said. "The most expensive one we had last year was around maybe $40. You can only put so much on your wrist."
The limo
For $300 to $700 you can arrive at your prom in style with a stretch or SUV limousine. Cathy Becker, owner of Black Tie Limousine Inc., said she is completely booked on April 14 and 28, and prom-goers are still calling.
"Prom kids are calling like the week before or up to a month before, so what you find is there's a lot more children then there are limousine companies," she said.
Limos are equipped with flat screen TVs, stereo systems, CD and DVD players, neon lights and bar areas. Becker said the prom package includes the limo, chauffeur and a few extras.
"I find out what school the kids are from and I decorate the inside with their prom colors," she said. "The non-alcoholic champagne, the time, the chauffeur and the car for the night--it's all included."
html>Related stories
Heelan collects prom dresses