Saying Yes to the Dress
From a few dollars to a few hundred, NASH students have been buying dresses as Homecoming weekend approaches.
Photo Courtesy of Getty Images
A sample rack of dresses for sale for purchase for homecoming dances.
October 7, 2021
Editors’ note: Some of the students interviewed for this article requested anonymity.
Homecoming weekend is practically here, which means that the past few weeks have been filled with dress shopping for the exciting event. The price range for Homecoming dresses can vary from less than ten dollars to hundreds of dollars, prompting the question: How much do NASH students really spend on Homecoming dresses?
According to a poll conducted on The Uproar, the majority of students spend between $50 and $199 on Homecoming dresses.
“I think that most students spend under $100, but I know of some people that spend more,” junior Jackson Pross said.
Dress prices can be more expensive depending on a brand name, material, alterations, and more. The amount spent can be seen as necessary and important for certain NASH students. Homecoming is not a common occurrence, prompting some to spend more money on their outfit.
“This is the first dance that I have attended in two years, and I am now a senior,” said one student who spent 550 dollars. “I wanted to splurge and get an extra special dress to make up for lost time. Plus, my dress is worth every penny.”
But less expensive dresses are rather popular with NASH students. A cheaper dress could be bought potentially to save money or to reserve excess money for alterations to be made.
“I do not like to spend a lot because I’ll never wear it again,” junior Khushi Pasrija said.
In fact, alterations to a Homecoming dress can quickly inflate the final cost.
“My dress was slightly expensive, but the alterations cost a decent amount of money. I wish I factored the price of my alterations more, rather than just assuming costs,” another senior said.
But for some NASH students, the days of shelling out money for a one-time dress are long past.
“I spent a decent amount of money freshman year, but that has changed over my time at North Allegheny. I ended up borrowing a dress for my senior year to spend less,” a senior said.
Freshmen tend to spend more money on their dresses, as the event is their first Homecoming experience. But when they become upperclassmen, their perspective changes.
“My freshman year, I spent about 350 dollars on my Homecoming dress. Once I got to the dance, I realized that there was no need to spend that much on a dress that I was going to wear once in the school gym. So, this year my dress was only 68 dollars and I actually like it more than I liked my other dress,” a junior said.
But such is not the case for every student, some of whom may want to spend more money their high school years come to a close.
“I spent less freshman year than I ever would now,” a junior said.
Throughout September, Homecoming dresses flew off the racks at all prices. Now that October is here and Homecoming weekend is a day away, it’s time for students to strut their stuff.
