For the past couple of weeks I’ve had about a gazillion people ask me which store is the best place to buy a homecoming dress, where I got my dress for Rockhurst homecoming and where I’m getting my dress for Teresian. Because I got tired of having to recall which stores I’ve spent countless hours searching then refreshing online, I made a list in my phone of all of my favorite stores to shop for dresses. All I had to do was look at the 12 different tabs open on my surface pro because it’s no secret that the “studying” we’ve been doing during our frees is more accurately described as hunting down the perfect homecoming dress.

   The perfect homecoming dress, in my opinion, is a dress that’s original. I’m pretty sure I’m not alone in saying that I don’t want to see someone else strutting around in the same dress as me. I’m not down to play a game of who wore it best. However, I’m always down to play the game of “search every website to find a dress that nobody else will have”. But by letting you in on all my secret little stores to shop for dresses, I’m risking having the same dress as you, so be aware of what I’m sacrificing here. It’s a major risk that I’m willing to take to help a sister out.

If you want to wear a dress that absolutely no one else will be wearing, shop at my all-time favorites ASOS, Zara, Free People, Zaful, SheIn, Princess Polly, Nasty Gal, Romwe, and CNDirect. If you shop at any of these, I promise you won’t be “twinning” with anyone.

Now, if you if you don’t have a very distinct style and you’re okay with being basic as heck, then some great places for a simple, staple dress are LuLu’s, Urban Outfitters, Xenia Boutique, Francesca’s or Forever 21. Those are all fabulous options, but you’ll probably run into someone with the same dress as you.

Lastly, if you’re looking to find a cheap dress that is cute but probably won’t look quite like how it did online, then you should try Ali Express, Wanelo or even Amazon. Although I will warn you to only shop at these last three options if you’re okay with facing the suspense of whether or not your dress will arrive in time or at all.

All in all, I just look for a dress that is my own style, and these stores helped me find exactly what I was looking for. Find a dress that is your style, not someone else’s. My style is what most would call “weird” and what I would call “an acquired taste.” But whatever your style is, whether it’s funky like mine, fancy or basic, wear it because you like it. My advice to you is to shop at ASOS not Amazon, to forget the rules when it comes to choosing the perfect homecoming dress and to not buy the same dress as me.

Sincerely, Isabel