Prom attire: Making the grade on a budget

Maria Vriniotis has dreamt of her prom night for years. That is why she volunteered to head the graduation committee at Windemere Secondary. She wanted everything to be perfect.

Most girls do, but perfection can be expensive. It's easy to find your dream dress if you are willing to spend more than $500. But what if your budget is significantly less than that?

Aside from the Cinderella Project, which does a fantastic job providing dresses to girls who can't afford to buy anything, a little creative shopping can make dreams a reality for those with limited resources.

Cassandra Ly, the student council president at Windemere, went to a BCBG outlet store in the U.S. She bagged a strapless, lilac chiffon gown for just $40. She scooped two pairs of shoes for under $50. She also scored a short dress for the early fall photo shoot through the online store shopruche.com for $32.

"I really wanted to make sure I didn't spend a lot on grad clothes," she says. She preferred to use her money on the events.

Ly's friend Emily Chan is still looking. She wants to find something unique and affordable, so she went shopping on Main Street hoping to find something by a local designer or vintage. She wants a long gown, but found that the boutiques mainly stock short ones, and the long dresses in the vintage shops were "a bit too vintage-y".

Her limit is $150 and she hopes to find something that falls off the shoulder in a bright blue or purple. Le Chateau and BCBG are a little too mainstream for her tastes. But for others, the BCBG store on Robson has a whole floor dedicated to dresses. Some sale items come in under $150.

"I'm a little anxious," Ly says about not having found her dress yet. "I want to get this out of the way so I can focus on other stuff."

Klay Kaulback may have the answer to her quandary. He owns the designer gown rental shop Du Jour Boutique on Abbott St. in Gastown. Unlike bridal rentals, Du Jour deals in dresses that are appropriate for galas, and he says he has some gorgeous dresses for prom night.

"We don't do the traditional grad-type dresses," he says. No big poufy numbers or super-clingy, slit-to-the-thigh pieces.

"Ours are more classy. Super sweet and kind of sexy and fun."

For example, there is a Sue Wong gown with petals all down the skirt and an aubergine-toned short Sue Wong with a jewelled belt and feather skirt.

"It's stunning," he says, adding he also carries Laundry, Betsey Johnson and JS. These dresses sell for up to $550 new, but girls can rent them for $130 or less, which includes cleaning. It's an affordable option, especially since few girls will ever wear their prom dresses again. No one else would have anything like them.

Joy Mauro, owner of the Turnabout consignment stores, says the south Granville and south Surrey locations also have some great options for frugal grads.

She has a stunning Marchesa gown (the designer behind the dress worn to the Academy Awards by True Grit star and Oscar nominee Hailee Steinfeld). The gown retails for $1,200, but you can snag it at Turnabout for $396. That's a great discount, but if it's still too steep, there is also a D&G dress for $289, a Diane von Furstenberg for $129 or BCBG dress for $69. If one of them fits, you've got a bargain.

Turnabout also features a large selection of accessories including shoes, clutches and jewelry.

Maria Vriniotis, who's still trying to find her dress, could do worse.

For guys, prom night should be considered more of an opportunity than an expense. This may be the first suit they own, and if they select it carefully, they can easily use it for years.

Kyle Vucko, co-owner of the Vancouver-based online line Indochino, which allows clients to customize their suits for both fit and flare, says guys have a tendency to dress like a peacock at grad, choosing something flamboyant like a silver vest. But since this may be their first suit, he recommends guys buy a basic black or navy suit for prom night and jazz it up with bright accessories, maybe a pink or purple shirt or a colourful tie. For style, he says to go slim.

"There are a lot ways that you can very cost effectively make your outfit look really unique and really colourful, but still add all of these pieces to a wardrobe you can use in the future," he says.

"A lot of that stuff put together gets you close to $500. To rent it would cost $200 to $300, and you don't get to keep it."

It should be a night to remember, but not for putting you into debt.