Top 10 Spring 2009 Prom Dresses

Prom time is coming up fast. Here are some of the nicest dresses available and the time to shop is now.

Waiting for the last minute can mean spending a lot more on the prom dress of choice. The short and long of it is that there are many fashions out there and finding a unique dress can happen right now.

I think that some of the best stores out there for clothing shopping for teenage girls are: Dillard's, Macy's, Lord and Taylor, JcPenney, Banana Republic, J. Crew, Forever 21, Delia's, Wet Seal, and Torrid. Those of us who are in our twenties or thirties can remember shopping at the latter four of these stores. The fashion choices they provide for teenagers have remained consistent over the years even though styles change. The young in spirit might still be shopping for styles at those stores today. I know Forever 21 is an example of a store where older women can shop for styles that make them feel just so- "forever 21".

I recommend all of the stores above for both in-store and online shopping, whichever you prefer. For online shopping, I would also add ebay, amazon, and edressme.

There are also many charitable organizations that are accepting donations of prom dresses for those whose proms have passed. It is also something to keep in mind for those shopping for prom dresses now and who do not think they will use their prom dress again in the future for any particular occasion. Donating is always a good thing. It is also true that as with bridesmaid dresses, we like to think that we might be able to use them again. Maybe, get them altered to look a different way and have them for another special occasion. But, how often do we really do that. Bridemaid dresses and prom dresses tend to hang in the closet for a long time after the wedding or the prom. So, why not donate them? If you are reading this and are interested in either giving or receiving a donated prom dress, here are some organizations that will facilitate that effort:

cosmogirl.com and promspot.com are two top places that discuss the topic of donating your prom dress. More information can be found at their sites or by directly contacting The Cinderalla Project, The Fairy Godmother Project, the Ruby Room.

I have also found that several bridal boutiques have had drives to accept prom dress donations and coordinate re-distribution. They include Hitched in Washington, DC, Look out for prom dress donation drives at certain times of they year at various spots, usually immediately post prom.

Now, for the list of 10 ten recommended prom dresses for 2009:

As a fashionista who pays attention to the styles out for all age groups not just my own, here are my top picks for 2009 prom dresses.

Additionally, if it suits your interest, please be sure to check out my hub, Easter Fashions for Kids.

http://hubpages.com/hub/Easter-Fashions-for-Kids

Like I said in Easter Fashions for Kids, I'm a bit old fashioned and believe in a classic sense of style. I think that kids should look like kids and similarly teenagers should look like teenagers. Of course my own sense of style influences these selections, so I hope you like them. I definitely believe the look for prom should be classy not trashy. Students should also be cognizant of the fact that some schools will have special dress codes. Many girls attending prom might be over 18 but some are still 17 or even 16. I don't like the idea of prom dresses sending the message of being overly sexy so here are some classic and very pretty dresses, not overly structured in design.

Two of my favorite designers for prom dresses are Sue Wong and Faviani. I also like dresses by Nicole Miller and Adriana Papell among others.

My top choices in fashion designs for this spring all have splashes of color such as yellow. The basic black for evening attire is also among my selections.

Many of these dresses, such as the Adriana Papell short chiffon beaded dress, come in plus sizes as well.

As a disclaimer, many of the dresses were selected for beauty of the design regardless of price. I think that for teenage girls looking for prom dresses, it is important to consult with parents about the budget if the teenagers are not paying for the prom dresses themselves.

One of these dresses is upwards of $600 which I think is a lot to spend on the prom dress. In general, I think that prom dresses should be in a lower price range than the price ranges you typically see for wedding dress, however that is not always the case.

When making the final selection for a prom dress, price, quality, design and value should all be considered.

While Dillard's was my top pick for finding Easter fashions for kids, after some research, my top picks for finding spring time prom dresses (most proms will be in June, some in May) are definitely:

1. Edress Me (edressme.com)

2. Serendipity Prom (serendipityprom.com)

3. Macy's (macys.com)

4. Dillard's (dillards.com)

Note that the best selection that department stores offer are sometimes available among various stores. When you find the dress you like the most, you can do a price comparison at sites like shopzilla.com or browse the various store sites and enter the dress description of product number in the key word search box.