It’s Not About the Price Tag
When it comes to finding the perfect high school dance dress, students often face a tough question: How much should you really spend on something you’ll only wear once?
Senior Abby Dümmar has a clear answer.
“Yeah anywhere from like $20-$70,” Dümmar said. “You might be asking the wrong person for this because it may just be my opinion but absolutely not, I don’t feel the need to pay $100-$200 for a dress that’s going to do almost nothing except sit in my closet and get dusty. It doesn’t make sense!!”
For Abby, the price tag should depend on what she has available, not on trends or expectations.
“Well that depends on how much is in my bank account,” Dümmar said. “When I have a decent amount, probably like $45 max. I don’t think I’d pay more than that; if I don’t have that much, probably like $25.”
She doesn’t think spending more money makes a dress more special — or makes her feel any better about herself.
Dümmar said. “Honestly if I bought an expensive dress I’d be more worried about ruining it and would probably not have a good time because of how worried I am about a dress, so I definitely would feel less confident in a more expensive dress.”
Abby further explained that picking a dress shouldn’t be stressful or based on pressure to look perfect.
“Personally, I’m not a huge fan of picking dresses because they have to be a certain style or certain length or a certain color that makes you look good, or pressures that make you think you look pasty,” Dümmar said. “Why do girls put that much pressure on themselves worrying too much about all the small details? Picking a dress can be so simple and it doesn’t have to be expensive. Find one that you like!”
Her favorite dance look didn’t cost much at all.
“I spent $35 on my last dance dress and yes, it was definitely worth it,” Dümmar said. “Probably my favorite dance dress I’ve ever gotten!”
When it comes to finding affordable dresses, Abby has her go-to method.
“SHEIN — that’s the way I find dresses,” Dümmar explained. “Sometimes I’ll just search up what kind of dress I am looking for and then I take a screen shot and put it in SHEIN and find a really similar dress for at least $100 cheaper, definitely worth it!”
Admitting that while people might judge, it’s not something she focuses on.
“Honestly I do believe that people judge people, but more often than not I feel like people are more worried about what others think of them rather than what other people look like or are wearing!!” Dümmar said. “Also you really never know how much people spend on their dresses — many times you may be able to tell, but why judge someone? Why not just love them for who they are!”
For her, what truly matters is how a person feels in what they’re wearing, not how much it costs.
“100% how it makes you feel,” Dümmar said. “A price tag means nothing to me. It doesn’t tell you what kind of person is in it — it just tells you they had money to buy an expensive dress. It doesn’t tell you if they are kind or if they are stubborn or if they are mean or silly. So the price means nothing. What’s important is the person in the dress, not the dress itself! If I feel comfortable and the people around me feel comfortable and happy, then that’s what’s important!”
Abby also believes schools and students can play a part in making dances more affordable and inclusive.
“This is a good one,” Dümmar said. “Students need to be more focused on how they can help each other — not necessarily giving them money or raking leaves or anything, but picking each other up when they fall down, everyone falls down at some point in their lives. How can we build them instead of tear them down? Which will build a more tight, close community that doesn’t wait for something to happen but goes out and does it because we are all human and all of us are struggling with so many different things. So just showing love to those around us instead of judging others! Which will automatically make it more inclusive because we all want to be around each other.”
She even has ideas for how to make dances more affordable.
“I’m not really sure exactly how to have the students cut the price, unless we do some kind of fundraiser thing,” Dümmar said. “Like they can buy these things too, and the money they make could go to decorations or DJs or something. Or maybe we could get sponsors almost for decorations and DJs instead of having to pay so much for them because that has the potential to make the price less. The only problem is there are already so many sponsors of Madison School District, so we would need to find some that would specifically sponsor Madison High School’s dances, and that could be difficult to do! Or doing other cost-cutting things to make it more affordable to be there!! And I’m sure the school is trying their best to cut it for people anyway!”
At the end of the day, Abby’s message is one of kindness and simplicity. A dress doesn’t have to be expensive to be beautiful — what makes it special is the confidence and heart of the person wearing it.
