Prom season is approaching, and though it may look very different this year (thanks, COVID!), I’m still reminiscing on the Proms I attended during high school. If we’re being honest, my favorite part of the whole ordeal was picking a dress and getting ready. Who doesn’t want to get dolled up to take pictures in a sweltering hot backyard? Of course, I had fun at the actual events too, but when I think of my Proms, I immediately think of my dresses. And the fact that there are STILL people who haven’t paid me for the limo but we won’t go there (you know who you are).

Junior Banquet - 2014

My high school’s version of a Junior Prom was our Junior Banquet, which was a lot more low key than your usual Prom. Only the juniors from our school were allowed to attend - no underclassmen or people from other schools. So if you were like me, and decided to date an older guy from a different school, you were flying solo for the night.

But I didn’t care (that much) because my look was honestly iconic. I remember seeing Janel Parrish in a magazine wearing this dress and falling in love immediately. The color, the lace, the way the skirt fell, it was so classically glamorous. I bought it online, without trying it on, even though it was nonreturnable and two sizes too big. No problem, I could just get it altered, right? Wrong.

My boobs didn’t fit into the built-in bra, and the sleeves were extremely itchy. But I didn’t let that stop me from having a great time and looking cute! I went for a Hollywood glam vibe, with my hair curled to the side and classic glam makeup. I had my nails painted black and wore the most beautiful silver sparkly heels, which looked so great with the shorter dress. I felt like an absolute princess.

I ended up wearing this dress to my cousin’s wedding and my sorority’s formal a couple years back. It’s one of my favorite dresses ever, and it actually fits me now!

Senior Prom(s) - 2014 and 2015

As soon as I tried this dress on, I fell in love. It was a true Say Yes to the Dress moment. The colors were beautiful and unique, and they faded into each other flawlessly. I felt like a mermaid! But my favorite part of this dress was the back. It was almost like a loose corset, with green ribbons zig-zagging up my back. I felt so elegant and mature. I loved it so much, I ended up wearing it twice!

The first time was to my boyfriend’s Senior Prom. I have to say that I liked the way I styled it better the first time around. I went with side curls again, but in a cute half-up-half-down-like look. And I was absolutely obsessed with my makeup. I took a ridiculous amount of selfies.

2015 (I couldn’t find any pictures by myself so let’s pretend I went to Prom with Shy Ronnie)

The second time around though, I had my heart set on wearing my hair in an elegant ponytail to show off the back of my dress. When I look back at those pictures, I really wish I did the same hair as my boyfriend’s Prom. I wanted the pictures to look different, but if I could go back in time, I would dump my boyfriend and stick with the curls.

What did you wear to your Prom? Let me know in the comments!