The prom!

[beadsbydesign]

Well Joe's prom has finally arrived.
For all of you with young children let me warn you, it's a costly affair.
first there is the ticket at £20.00.... not bad, until you read the dress code!
Black Tuxedo suit and dress shirt. Well I scoured ebay on a daily basis looking for a suitable second hand outfit. (after all it's for one night only and joe is growing by the day, so it'll not fit him next time he needs it.)
i did find one, but only remembered that the auction was due to finish 5 minutes after it HAD FINISHED!
So I looked at hire proces £75.00 + deposit. including three visits to the store, one for fitting, one to pick it up and one to take it back.
In the end last Saturday morning i went on ebay and contacted a wonderful company who sent me out a complete package of barnd new suit, dress shirt, bow tie and cufflinks.
it arrived last Tuesday morning and is absolutly fabulous quality etc (especially for only £99.00)
Tomorrow morning I shall stick it back on Ebay and hope to recoup some of the money.
Now the one issue I have is that I spent all day looking for the ticket. Joe gave it to me for safekeeping hahaha!
Couldn't find it anywhere so I've had to send a groveling note to the school to have another issued!
Just got to supply him with drink money (non alchoholic of course!)
For some of the kids, they are going in Limo's at another £40.00 each. Joes going in our trusty toyota! got to draw the line somewhere.
For the girls they of course want beautiful ball gowns, tiaras and elaborate hairstyles.
So this warning is to all you with younger children.... GET SAVING NOW!!!

[nattynetty]

Had nothing like this when I left school, when we left 6th form we organised a party at the local social club cost a couple of quid each and no dress code. Part of me wishes I'd had the chance to dress up but thinking back to how I was then I think I'd have run a mile at the idea.

And just a thought BBD, why not hang on to his tux etc until next April/May and put it on ebay then - you'll get loads of mums like you desperately looking for something like that then and yhou could get more £££ for it.

[euston-74]

At the school where I used to work the PTA organised a prom when the kids left in Year 8! They went all out with limos and everything too - no dress codes for boys though; and they never quite kept up with the girls!
I'll get saving now - Dan is only 1 but they'll probably be graduating from nursery in a few years time!
Mel

[janetdc]

Well it is a special occasion and I'm sure Joe will look fab - don't forget to post a piccie!

[indri]

We had a leavers ball that I chose not to go to. Everyone going was supposed to learn some ball room dancing before hand - fat chance of me doing that, especially with the creepy ex-physics teacher trying to teach everyone how to!!! I think there was even some lunchtime sessions put on for 6th formers. So glad I didn't go, my friends were mostly in the year below anyway, so I'd have been a right wallflower!

[ladyrat]

I have helped with the supervision of a Year 11 ball and I was stunned at the amount of money these kids parents had forked out for gorgeous ball gowns, shoes, hair, transport....etc.

As a lover of shoes I had to stop all the girls to show me what they were wearing on their feet!

[Annette]

Oh BBD I definitely know where you are coming from......Liam's prom is 4th July and because he's 6'3" and thin as a rake I'm making his suit (thank god they didn't say tux's!). I'll be leaving plenty of seam allowance to allow for more growth, but praying like mad that he won't get much taller.....

I've also got another suit to make for one of his friends, who is rather short, but that is an easier job as he is in proportion.

Liam's lift is costing £47 (told him he'd better get saving) they're going in a stretch Hummer??? Give me a sports car anyday.

We didn't have anything like this when I was at school, either Natty. Pity as I was so slim then....oh those were the days, lol.

[craftyjan]

my four daughters all had proms my oldest daughters wasnt too bad as they just got a little dressed up and had a disco but it did get more exspensive as each daughter went as they had the gowns and the limos luckily i think i had 2 years between each one but it is lovely to see them dressed up and they have some lovely photos to look back on now mine had to have 2 outfits as they had a last day at school outfit day time then there evening wear a good idea for girls is you can pick up cheap bridesmaid dresses if you can persuade your teenager to wear second hand clothes or wear something that is not this years fashion theme

[beadsbydesign]

Update!

WOW WOW WOW!!!!

It was like being at the oscars. I was so lucky to have taken Joe there and seen it all. There were loads of limos, vintage cars, a charabang, open top sports cars, hummers and even a huge shiney tractor.
The boys all looked stylish apart from their hair (What is it with Teenage lads and their hair?)
The girls were done up to the nines with elaborate hairstyles and dresses that ranged from the tiny short cocktal dresses to one girl who I swear was wearing a wedding dress. Others had hooped ball gowns.
There was a cheer every time a limo pulled up to the hotel steps and someone got out. The teachers were dressed up to the nines too!
Everyone was given a corsarge or button hole.
It seriously brought a tear to my eye.
Everyone who was in the resteraunt left their tables to come and look and guests were hanging over their balcony's to get a look.
The kids really enjoyed themselves.
Only down side of the night was when I got flashed by the police!
I was driving Joe to the prom and we passed his crowd of girlfriends. Joe made me pip the horn! It was then I looked in my mirror and discovered the police car behind me. I drove on very carefully and at first oportunity I turned off into a side road. The police flasshed their lights at me as I did, but then drove on.

[Carol29]

I agree with you....it's an expensive time. could you have hired a suit. Here in Dublin we have a great chain of dress hire shops and they do a special for Debs nights (prom to you!!) and you can hire all for 40.00 euros. But its not just the night that costs. They want to go to the ball in a limo etc.

The 6th forms here in Ireland also hold a pre debs nights, more casual but also expensive especially if you have girls!!! and they plan a big 2 week to the sun end of school trip which costs a fortune and us parents end of forking out for.

My son goes into 6th form in Sept and I'm dreading the expense of it all.

Groan!!!!

Carol
www.carolshawjewellery

[swirlyarts]

Oh goodness I've got two girls so I'd better get saving now - and training them to like second hand dresses although with a mother like me they WILL like vintage dresses!!

[brittone05]

Thankfully my kids are young so I have a good few years until their proms. I am making a maternity prom dress for my step daughter who is having her leaving ball/meal in June. She will be 14 weeks pregnant by then and is only a slender girl so a simple underbust seam style dress will work a treat hehe

I did have a couple of prom dresses to do this year - one lady I never made for came and her daighter wanted a belle styled swedding gown in white bridal satin with full hopped underskirts the works but she only wanted to pay £100 with materials nad everything!!! Needless to say, she ended up hiring form a shop.

I made up a 50's style gown with pink netted underskirt and corset back for a young rock chick and modified a handkercheif gothic gown for another young girl who had her dress copied by the popular girl in their year

[lauralou1601]

Im in the process of organising our graduation ball for uni, its a giant headache! In the begining of april, all the student nurses from our year, split into the four specialities, and all the child branch (mine) decided they wanted a smaller more intimate event, so when there were four reps (one for each branch) organising one ball, theres now me, organising one! Cant wait to buy the dress though! And the shoes! Oh it sooooo exciting! Only got two years left!!!

[MrSwirl]

Oh goodness I've got two girls so I'd better get saving now - and training them to like second hand dresses although with a mother like me they WILL like vintage dresses!!

My sister made her own prom dress, and that was for a proper one in America.

Kids today don't know they're born - if they want to go, they should make their own clothes, I say!