Prom

This is much long overdue, but prom!! Finally being a "big kid" and getting to go to prom was almost surreal. You look forward to this for most of your life, and within the span of a few hours, it's over. Lucky for me though, I have one more night to dress up and feel like a modern day Cinderella.

shoes // hair 

Though prom is a whole ordeal the day of, there's a lot that goes into play much before hand. Here are few tips I learned from this year..

• Book your limo early!! It doesn't matter if it's January and your prom is in April. Go ahead and book that sucker, otherwise you'll be stuck with your parentals driving you to prom. Wouldn't that just be fun?

• Make reservations about 6-8 weeks out. This is a must. Odds are, prom is on a Saturday night, and no nice restaurant is going to have open seating for a group of 12. Pick a good restaurant (J. Alexanders, Brick Tops, Cheesecake Factory, Amerigos, the options are endless!) and make a reservation. If you're not exactly sure how many will be in your party, tell them more than you have confirmed. You can always call back and downsize your group, rather than trying to find new accommodations for a large group.

• Don't forget about after prom, either. After dancing the night away, you might be hungry and tired, so have an idea of where you're going and when you'll be getting there (for your parents' sake). My group went out for ice cream and then back to one of our houses to watch movies, aka sleep. If you choose the limo route, make sure your limo driver knows where to go. Our driver was quite clueless and we ended up having to find an alternate location to get ice cream at :/ 

• Get your dress and shoes early. By March, most stores are wearing thin on their formal wear options. Go early, and you'll have more dresses to choose from. This also gives you lots of time to get your dress fitted and hemmed, which it probably will need.

• Order a corsage! If you have a date, gently remind him the color of your dress and one or two accent colors that would complement it. If you don't have a date, order the  corsage yourself. Most girls forget this since it is traditionally the guy's role. As far as presenting it, ask a key male figure in your life (dad, brother, grandfather, etc.) to present it to you. My dad did mine. 

• Designate a photographer. This is one of the most overlooked ones, since the parents are all naturally going to have their shaky smart phones and digital cameras. While that's great and fine, make sure with each pose that it is clear what camera to look at. We got several pictures with wandering eyes since there was a mob of photographers in front of us.

• Book your hair and makeup appointment early on! The same idea as the limo, if you wait, they'll be all booked. 

• Coordinate with the other girls in your group! It can be pretty tough to organize pictures with two girls wearing the same dress-- been there. done that. 

• Bring a portable phone charger, if you have one. Between the snaps and the selfies, your poor phone battery is going to be draining all too quickly. I used mine when we got back in the limo after actual prom, and it was a life saver.

• Schedule a "practice session" with your hair and makeup stylist(s)! Go in and talk to them about what style you're looking for. Chances are, they'll conduct a "trial run" with you to customize themselves with your hair/skin, and in this time, take notes of what you like and don't like and how you'd like it to be altered for the real go around.

Prom's a night to remember!! Go have fun!! Make good choices and don't do anything stupid. 

Through pictures and memories, it'll be hard to forget your prom night.

If you want to see my pictures and get some ideas, feel free to check out ours. There are quite a few candids in here, if you know what I mean ;)

Set 1

Set 2

Set 3

xox,

Lauren