Proms Go Hollywood

But even that much money can be a problem for teenage girls on a tight budget. Promgoers will spend a projected average of $148 on their attire this year, according to Teen Research Unlimited, a market research group for teens. Stephanie Downs realized just how costly celebrity dresses can be when she fell in love with a pink dress featured on Paris Hilton in Vogue. "I thought it was really pretty and different, and I wanted my senior prom dress to stand out," Downs says. "Whenever I look on the Internet for prom dresses, I thought they were boring." This dress was short and silky, with a plunging neckline and little back coverage. But the knockoff price was too high--over $700.

Undaunted, the 18-year-old from Bloomsberg, Pa. corresponded with a dressmaker in California to negotiate a cheaper alternative. But even that was around $600. When Downs realized she wouldn't be able to have her dress, she threw a fit and decided to boycott the dance. "I wanted the dress, and I was like, 'I'm not wearing anything else,'" she says. But her friends pleaded with her to attend anyway, and she eventually picked something else at the last minute. "It's pink and it has beading. It's simple," she says sadly.

For girls who can spend that extra cash--or coax their parents into footing the bill, they say it's well worth the money to dress like the stars. David, who saw herself at prom in Gwen Stefani's dress, had scoured the Internet and local dress shops for months, but couldn't find a replica. She even considered asking a family friend to make the dress, but she wanted it to be exactly right. With time running out, she stumbled across PromGirl.com. David tracked down video stills of Stefani's dress and e-mailed them to the designers, who produced a near-perfect match. Her mom OKed the $600 bill--it was, after all, her senior prom.

"Once I put it on, I thought it just looked great on me," David says. Her father might have objected to the price tag at first, but she says, "He said I looked beautiful. I know he liked it." At least for that one night, David was the star.

© 2005