Your school ball is one of the big ‘moments’ of your school years that you will remember forever and you want to look amazing. But where do you start?
If you are thinking of buying, retail shops stocking ball dresses in New Zealand are few and far between, so you may find it hard to find something to buy in store and buying online from overseas can be fraught when you don’t know if the dress will fit or not.
We recommend finding your local dress rental boutique online and choosing one that offers complimentary try on sessions. That way you can try before you choose an outfit. This is where dress rental boutiques can be a god send. The Social Wardrobe, located in Mount Eden, Auckland stocks more than 80 dresses and these generally retail for $300-$800 each and that’s a lot of coin to drop on a dress for one night, with renting you can wear these beautiful gowns for a fraction of the price.
There are so many colours, styles and lengths available so it is hard to know where to start. Have a good look on the website before you go to your try-on appointment to see which styles and colours appeal and then be ready to try on anything else which you may see as you are trying on different dresses.
When trying on ball dresses The Social Wardrobe have a few suggestions.
- Most importantly come with an open mind. You may have seen your perfect dress on Pinterest or Instagram but does this dress even exist in NZ? If you are anything like most kiwi girls you spend most of your time in sports gear, jeans, tees, hoodies and cut off shorts, not $500 ball dresses so it’s hard to know what you really like or what suits you. If you arrive at your try on appointment with an open mind you may find something that wasn’t on your radar but looks spectacular on you.
- The Social Wardrobe recommend bringing a friend, parent or family member and taking photos of the dresses you try on, so that you can compare your favourites easily.
- Lastly, don’t worry about dressing up or wearing makeup to your appointment. It’s quicker and easier if you aren’t trying to avoid getting makeup on the beautiful gowns. If you already have high heels, bring them with you, but if you don’t the best dress rental boutiques will have shoes available for you to try. If the dress looks amazing without your hair and makeup done, it will look spectacular on the night
At the end of the day, the best dress is the one that makes you feel amazing. Usually you can tell, it’s the dress that makes someone smile and they don’t want to take off, but sometimes it can be confusing, as you may have more than one favourite. In that case, take your time, think about it for a few days and then book your favourite dress online so that you can secure it for your special event.
Hiring means that you get to wear special dresses at a fraction of the price compared to buying and it’s and it kinder on the environment than wearing something once and leaving it hanging in your closet. You won’t have to keep wearing the same dress over and over to get your money’s worth and even better the dress rental company takes care of the dry-cleaning at the end, as it is included in the rental price.
Remember these dresses are very expensive and a lot are made from very delicate fabrics, so take out garment insurance if that’s an option and treat it with care. If every person looks after these gorgeous garments, then the next person gets to enjoy wearing a stunning dress in beautiful condition too.
Be aware, you need to read the Terms and Conditions as some company’s contracts will charge you up to 200% of the RRP if you damage the dress. The Social Wardrobe doesn’t do that, however if a dress is returned in unrentable condition you may be required to pay the cost of a replacement dress.
Above all enjoy the experience - from trying on beautiful dresses, to getting your hair, nails and makeup done. The school ball experience is one that is not to be missed and it’s an occasion that you will remember forever!
