hows this dress for preference day?

[tra712]

http://www.express.com/catalog/produ...bCategoryId=22

the dress is longer on me- it falls about 4in above my knee and its actually a darker fuscia color. its not revealing on top or anything.

the dresses they show are all knee length or longer. they are very bland.. and i do not dress bland!! they show a blue dress, a black dress, and a yellow dress.. none of the dresses are strapless in the picture.. but i dont want to wear something as boring as what they show but i dont want to look "flashy" or obnoxious

please give me your opinions

[Army Wife'79]

They show you examples on their website for a reason.

Perhaps if you indicate which type school you will be attending, some of the GC'ers will be able to be more specific as to regional customs. (i.e. SEC school, Big 10 etc etc.)

ArmyDaughter was not allowed to wear anything strapless, low cut, above the knee or sexy at her SEC school. Her's was very "little black dress" and not clubbing attire.

[VandalSquirrel]

I personally wouldn't wear that to pref. However what is acceptable and appropriate depends on the campus and time of year. It has been said on GC before and it bears repeating. PNMs are dressing to impress women, not men.

I'd wear something like any of these with some tasteful accessories:

[tra712]

thanks for the pictures vandal squirrel. very helpful to give me an idea.. those are MUCH more tasteful.. and still professional. i didnt think it was clubbing attire army wife.. but after comparing it to those pictures.. it definately looks like something that could be percepted as revealing, and should be saved for a night out!!

[Army Wife'79]

Like I said, different parts of the country have totally different Recruitment customs. Just because it would "play in Peoria" doesn't mean it would be "tasteful in Tuscaloosa". My son's fiance's sorority experience at a Big 12 school is totally different than my daughter at the SEC. For example, one wore sweatshirts and jeans to football games and the other wore dresses and heels. It's all about the demographics.

[breathesgelatin]

I do really like that dress you posted. I think if it had straps it might be OK, actually. I think that one would be OK at more schools that the zebra one another PNM posted in her thread (you might want to check that thread out too), but I agree that VandalSquirrel's suggestions are more on target. You don't want to take any risks!

[tra712]

breathesgeletin cant agree more!! its not worth the risk! i want to look appropriate. i just didnt know wat appropriate was!

this is so helpful

army wife my mom told me it looks like a clubbin dress too! hahha this is why i asked for opinions. Thanks!! Where are those dresses from that you posted pics of?? theres a few i really like!

[nittanyalum]

^^^If you right-click and look at the Properties of the pictures, it looks like Nordstrom. Good luck, Vandal picked some nice ones!

[Zillini]

Originally Posted by tra712

breathesgeletin cant agree more!! its not worth the risk! i want to look appropriate. i just didnt know wat appropriate was!

this is so helpful

army wife my mom told me it looks like a clubbin dress too! hahha this is why i asked for opinions. Thanks!! Where are those dresses from that you posted pics of?? theres a few i really like!

Just goes to show that moms sometimes do know what they are talking about.

[VandalSquirrel]

Those are all from Nordstrom.com as that is one of my go to stores for clothing. I'm sure if you have a style of dress you can easily find something at a store closer to where you live. I'm also a huge fan of Macy's.

Here's a tip not just for you, but for all PNMs and a lot of young women in general: branch out from the "juniors" section and you'd be surprised at what you find. I see a lot of young women (and heck, women who have kids of their own) shopping in the "juniors" department. You can find contemporary, classy, and appropriate clothing in other departments. If the size is odd (1-3-5-7-9) that is a sure sign it is meant for teenage girls and though some of it may be okay, you have to change departments eventually.

I really want to start a nationwide campaign with the help of Clinton and Stacey from "What Not To Wear" to put an end to people inappropriately shopping in the jrs. department.

[breathesgelatin]

Originally Posted by VandalSquirrel

Those are all from Nordstrom.com as that is one of my go to stores for clothing. I'm sure if you have a style of dress you can easily find something at a store closer to where you live. I'm also a huge fan of Macy's.

Here's a tip not just for you, but for all PNMs and a lot of young women in general: branch out from the "juniors" section and you'd be surprised at what you find. I see a lot of young women (and heck, women who have kids of their own) shopping in the "juniors" department. You can find contemporary, classy, and appropriate clothing in other departments. If the size is odd (1-3-5-7-9) that is a sure sign it is meant for teenage girls and though some of it may be okay, you have to change departments eventually.

I really want to start a nationwide campaign with the help of Clinton and Stacey from "What Not To Wear" to put an end to people inappropriately shopping in the jrs. department.

So true!

When I realized what the Misses department had to offer, I never looked back at Juniors.

[DDDlady]

As a girl who has recently been on the pnm side of rush and who is currently on the other side, I would highly recommend that you choose a different dress for your preference dress. I know that the general attire varies from campus to campus and I am an active at a large southern school so we are a bit more conservative but... Pref night is generally the most serious night of recruitment. This is the last night you will have with the girls before you make your decision. You want to present yourself as a classy, confidant lady. My advice would be... try to keep your dress at your knee. No more that 2 in. above your knee. If you have a dress shorter than that, you have a greater chance of running into problems when sitting in chairs, going up stairs, etc. Your jewelry should be simple and compliment your attire, not draw all of the attention. If you have a signature piece that you have worn all throughout rush, wear it that night as well as long it does not distract from the overall appearance of your outfit. Lastly, you can compromise just a little bit. For example, if you want to wear a pretty strapless dress, make sure that it is longer, at least to the knee. If you have a pair of fabulous, bright shoes, pair it with a simple dress. The goal on pref. night is to be classy and elegant. Think Jackie O and Audrey Hepburn. Good luck with your recruitment!

[33girl]

The Express website even says it - "this dress made for going out"! Pref is not going out.

As far as the juniors section is concerned, believe me when I say it is skewing younger and younger BY THE DAY. "Juniors" used to be mainly for high school and college age girls - now it seems like they're catering to the jr high crowd exclusively. I wore juniors stuff well into my 30s and didn't look stupid - however, if I tried to do that now, I would get laughed out of town. You can OCCASIONALLY find something there if it's tailored, but those things are getting few and far between.

The problem is (depending where you are) once you go out of juniors, sometimes misses is frumpy dowdy land. It's hard to find an in between.

[concordance11]

So anything that is silk, maybe cocktail dressy, and knee-length would be alright? if so, perfect and I'm already set! If not, I need to shop lol.

[Kansas City]

When picking out a pref night dress, PNMs should ask themselves if they could/would wear the dress to church. If you couldn't wear it to church or a wedding, do not wear it to pref night. The examples VandalSquirrel gave are very beautiful and appropriate.