Prom and Graduation Dresses For Summer

Some best sellers for upcoming proms/balls follow:



These three prom dresses are from promgirl. The site has just enabled a comments function (it's pretty interesting to read what people think) and you can pay using PayPal! They also accept VISA, Amex, Mastercard and Discover.

The site is very easy-to-navigate: you can browse by price, by designer, by event (homecoming, graduation, ball -these all have slightly different looks) or even by what everyone else is wearing. Top ten dresses is a nice new addition. There is also a big SUMMER MADNESS SALE and a 2008 STYLES BLOWOUT if you don't mind wearing a cast-off (I guess they would have to be low-sellers) from last year!

That last dress in my best-seller trio (the champagne coloured one) is really something special. It is 'prom dress 19719', for everyone else who likes it, and the design is Paris by Tony Bowls. Those gems have a sandy look - it's so unusual. Also doesn't hurt that the girl is gorgeous and pulling the best pose!




Sister site 4prom also deal in prom dresses. With a glitzier look and a more compact design, the site is a good choice. The designs on offer (the dresses) overlap somewhat with promgirl but there is some nice different stuff, and less of a 'warehouse'/outlet feeling - Prom dresses, homecoming dresses, 2010 prom dresses and gowns declares the tagline. I'd say this is where you're likely to see next year's designs FIRST, as they become available.

The 'newest 2010 collection' has already arrived here.



My impression of prom dresses from Mori Lee is that they are more exclusive (even though this is another sister site). There is a smaller prom range, and wedding dresses, bridal dresses, general formal wear and even flower girl dresses are available! While the site is easy to navigate, there are few search options - you can search by style or find an authorised retailer. Less emphasis on secure internet shopping

Obviously the designs are mainly Mori Lee by Madeleine Gardner, and she does some nice work.

Everybody Needs an Alexander McQueen Moment

This English designer (the son of a taxi driver, and a Pisces, for what it's worth - every second blog mentions it!!) grew up in London's shabby east end. One of his earliest memories, he says, is drawing a dress on a piece of bare wall where the wallpaper had peeled off in the family's council house. McQueen calls it his 'first design sketch!'

There is a quality to McQueen's work today (a luxuriousness and a sense of abundance) that looks like a reaction against those times - the young boy saturated with a working class aesthetic (mass culture over high culture, practicality over whimsy, function over form, Cats over Faust and Strauss's Blue Danube over Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier) has blossomed into 'the hooligan of English fashion', allowing inner vision to propel him beyond the 'classic' (bland) and functional.

The late 00s provided fertile ground for McQueen to indulge - he continues to push the 'sculptural shoe' trend (in particular) to stranger, more wonderful places.

Debt Consolidation Site

One of the banes of the shopper's existence is credit card debt. US site 3DebtConsolidation.com is a comprehensive online resource designed to help manage debt, particularly what they call 'bad debt' (Auto loans, store credit cards, credit card debt and gambling debt). Is there such a thing as good debt? Yes, according to this site (business loan, real estate loan, mortgage, student debt).

Full of useful things like a recent article on How To Negotiate Debt With Creditors (apparently this is ALWAYS preferable to dealing with a collections agency so call your creditors directly). They have a phone line, fora (forums haha), lots of articles about credit card debt consolidation and bill consolidation and services directly relevant to your US state. There are also reviews of financial institutions and debt consolidations companies.

Recent Debt Consolidation Facts

1. If you spend more than 50% of your credit limit every month, this indicates to the Credit Bureau that you do NOT have enough cash on hand to meet your monthly expenses. This will identify you as a high credit risk and will actually reduce your credit score by 60 - 70 points overnight (Fair Isaac). 2. If you miss 1 or 2 payments on your credit card debt, the issuing company will skyrocket your interest rate to a whopping 27% - 30%! 3. Out of a random sample of 3 million American consumers (included in Experian's National Score Index), 51% of them have at least 2 credit cards and 14% of them have 10 or more credit cards.

Eye-Popping Designs from Lingerie.com

Where would you go for lingerie but the site that has scored the Holy Grail (that is, the most basic, obvious and search-friendly) domain name? Lingerie.com is an absolute lingerie mecca.

Click the images for more information

$21.99

Stretch Lace Bra and Boy Shorts
By Dreamgirl

Dreamgirl are marketing this as sleepwear! Are they kidding?!? The strappy boy shorts look much too uncomfortable for bed, or for that matter, to wear under anything! This would give you the ultimate visibly panty line.

Still fabulous though! Maybe to wear around the house ? ;p

$49.99
Reversible Corset 3 Piece Set

By Dreamgirl

Another Dreamgirl piece. Very vampy, the corset could even be 'underwear as outerwear' (a trend some people hate) if you're very bold.

$29.99
Halter Lace Babydoll with Matching Thong

By Dreamgirl

A nylon, lace and tassel piece. The stretch lace neck collar is included!!

$28.99
Mesh Chemise with Matching G-String

By Leg Avenue

Very sexy! And sweet too. That is sheer polka dot mesh on the body - the dots don't really show up in the picture. Did you notice the heart detail on the trim? A best seller :)

$31.99
Bell Sleeved Chemise with Matching G-String Panty

By Dreamgirl

Another best seller! The beauty of these sprawling internet lingerie sites is you will find so many things you'd never find in the stores.

Available in a nice maroon colour too. Probably quite flattering but would look especially good on people with long stomachs and bony collarbones.

For literally thousands more pieces on a simple, very browsable site click here.

Impulse Buying with Elastic

Just a note about the Elastic shopping aid.

I went overseas recently and had a very scary experience being stuck at an airport in Japan with no wallet.

NEVER lose your wallet while you're travelling!

I was very lucky- I was rescued by an American air force pilot. He gave me a phone card and 7000 yen. His name was Dustin Canedy. Thank you Dustin! He will see this if he ever googles himself :)

But I'm a young girl and people tend to find me sweet. Imagine if I was an old guy. No chance!

I researched a bit and found out that in some cases people in similar situations have been stuck at airports for months. In one famous case (an Asian man who lived at an airport for almost a decade) even years.

What I'm writing about today won't help you in airport emergencies, but it will help you in shopping ones!

Elastic offer prepay debit cards and small loans specially designed for urgent impulse buys. Say when a sale is about to end and you don't have any cash that day. Or when there is only one item left in your size and you just know it will be gone tomorrow.

Elastic can act as your heroic American air force pilot and come to the rescue.

Can also help with some other urgent purchases. I hesitate to recommend it for travel because I just don't know how accessible it is around the world.

For shopping (especially around sale time) - perfect! Visit their site here

Prom Dresses For 2009

It's prom time again for some! Here are some of my picks for this year.

Click for more information...

Tony Bowls 2009

Paris by Tony Bowls Chiffon Dress
$358

One eye-catching trend this year is trains! No longer confined to wedding dresses, the train adds
glamour, extravagance, and an extra dash of contrivance and inconvenience to any prom outfit.

You meet people who don't mind sporting fussy hair, corsets, painful shoes etc. as long as they look amazing. Pretty much everyone turns into that girl on prom night! So what's a little train? They do look wonderful. Watch out for people's feet!

Mauri Simone 2009

Mauri Simone light pink metallic prom dress
$318

Mauri Simone is a popular prom designer and they love those shiny fabrics! There's a conventional edge to Mauri Simone- they're very well suited to high school girls who want something safe that will flaunt their figure. Something that none of the school bitches could fault!

I guess I mean there' s not much edge or imagination to these. But they are beautifully made and quite elegant. My male best friend is sitting next to me right now and he wants me to write 'the slinky fabric accentuates the feminine physique and will capture the imagination of every male'. So there you go!

This one was my favourite because of the ruching and detailing around the bust, which gives it a 'Cleopatra' feeling.

Dave and Johnny 2009

Dave and Johnny blue strap dress
$189

These guys strike me as quite versatile. The dresses run the gamut from short to long, from fussy to simple, from sleek, shiny and 'evening' to printed, colourful and summery. And there are nice eye-catching details, like this blue design with the single back strap!

These designs are also very well priced and will probably be popular. The blue strap dress I've chosen has sold out in sizes 0 and 4, which might show how skinny American high school students have gotten. Or it might show that the other girls think they can't get away with slinky fabrics :(

Night Moves 2009

I liked a few of these!

Night Moves prom dress

$378

This one is ruched all the way down and will make you look like an expensive foil-wrapped chocolate.

Night Moves prom dress

$289

Another train design. It looks great in motion! The site has a shot from the back where the woman is not moving and the fabric seems to settle nicely. But this is clearly designed for someone who will dance!

My best friend doesn't like it, he says: 'the eye is drawn to the fabric, and not to the woman'!

Night Moves prom dress
$269

This tight fishtail design wood be good for enhancing the figure. Is it just me or does the fabric look a bit like vinyl?! I don't know how they got that chunky effect but I like it.

I sometimes think gilt touches on these sort of gowns (like the gold speckles on this one) look cheap, especially close up. But these look ok. You can see how flattering this dress would be overall!

Night Moves prom dress
$289

This is an example of a dress I would really like (it would probably be my favourite) if the dots on the bottom faded away a bit more nicely!

It actually looks good in this small picture so you'll have to click on it to see what I mean!

You have to PAY for beautifully executed details and I don't think many prom/school ball people have that sort of money.

I want to emphasise that overall Night Moves was one of my favourites, though :)

La Femme 2009

La Femme prom dress
$398

So, so pretty! So girly! La Femme lives up to its name by producing dreamy, very delicate designs. For people who are less about flash and in-your-face allure and more about looking like a princess.

These also have that nice quality of *looking* more expensive than they *are*. At least I feel that way about the dresses in the pictures.

La Femme dress with back detail

$338

4Prom has so many prom dresses it's not funny! Even if nothing I've featured caught your eye I encourage you to check it out because you really can't go wrong. There were looks and trends I couldn't feature because it would take all day.

I also want to say that I've focussed on dresses that make a *bit* of a statement. I know a lot of people want to keep their prom outfit traditionally stylish because that's the sort of event a prom is! Just so you know - the bulk of dresses at 4prom are in that vein. I just didn't feature them because I'd start repeating myself and it would get boring.

But please, please check it out! Also have a look at:

prom dresses Clarisse

and

short prom dresses at promgirl

Magical Interiors by Tony Duquette

'If I could trade places with anyone for a day, it would be the dashing Tony Duquette' - John Galliano

Costume and Set Designer and Interiors genius Tony Duquette died in 1999, and he's one of designs best kept secret. I think of him as a kind of Walt Disney of design. Actually he has a kindred spirit in all of the arts - it's weird how quickly I can pinpoint them and how right it feels.

In Literature Tolkien is Duquette-esque, because he's fantastical and because he's able to construct whole imagined universes from scratch and make them feel real. In music Michael Jackson has the Duquette quality because he's fantastical and because he gets away with being over the top. You might have a split second where you'll recoil at how *tacky* or *maudlin* this all is, but there are other qualities - the great craftsmanship, the sheer force and boldness and inventiveness - that melt you. You just can't ignore him. Design has a Duquette in John Galliano himself, for obvious reasons - the vibrant colours, the mish-mashed textures, the soaring inventiveness and the showmanship.

Above: Duquette's Main Room in his famous studios.

An Eastern motif in pastel colours.

The orient seen through a Hello Kitty lens.

Table with chunky, Dali-esque 'legs'.

A winter ball in Los Angeles decorated with crystal snowflakes
and silver lame by Tony Duquette.

Duquette interior with his signature animal print tablecloth.

'It's interesting because Tony is probably more honest as a creator of spaces than many people because it's about the heartfelt desire to create what he perceives as a beautiful space.

Through his interiors he was able to give people the feeling they had been there for a long time, that they were very important, that they were very glamorous.

I look at decorative Tony Duquette work, its baroque roots, and it's very much about people. His interiors were about trying to create an environment where people feel they've been there forever. It is creating a false aristocratic history, a fantasy, a type of magical festival, it's a bit like Louis XIV - the fountains, the amazing sculptures, and the belief that you can make something out of nothing. It was just entirely out of his imagination.'
designer Catherine Martin

The part about 'false aristocratic history' is spot on. There's that grandeur and self-importance (in a good way) and - I've noticed - nods to stuffy upper class traditions from all cultures! Like in this shot above: you have intricate beaded pillows and expansive couches, all you need is a veiled Egyptian princess to languish on them. BUT on the walls are murals straight out of a Baroque Polish castle so you know, maybe the princess has shacked up with Sobieski's daughter.

Interior complete with very unusual wall feature constructed from scratch.

Wouldn't it be wonderful to have the *sense* of aristocratic history in one's home without actually having the dubious family legacies, like slave ownership, colonialist expeditions,
whoring, stuffy, penny-pinching ancestors, deaths from cholera and connections
to powerful religious zealots?

Cream and red walls with the ever-present Baroque influence.

Duquette's own toilet!!

This reminds me of so many things at once: a place in an Indian Jones movie where he stays around the middle of the expedition, after he enters the Orient but just before all the action scenes; a stage set from the King and I, and... Christmas! There is a Christmasey feeling to much of Duquette's work. It's the lights, sparkles and ornamentation.

Mrs. Duquette's dressing room featuring a 19th century cabinet lined in blue felt and decorated with her collection of precious jewels.

Duquette called his wife Elizabeth 'Beegle' because she had 'the industry of the bee and the soaring poetry of the eagle'! There were also times when he called her 'Beegle jewel fiend'!

images: tonyduquette.com