5 places to shop for the perfect evening gown!

 

 

It has been a week all about glamour! 

Today is one of the biggest & glamorous nights in Hollywood - the Oscars! 

This past week was NYFW (and I discovered a new gown designer that I'm in love with!)

AND last night I attended the Heart Ball in Knoxville - a black tie event for the American Heart Association!   

One of my favorite things in the world is to dress up, especially in a gown! 

I've been to quite a few events and look forward to shopping for dresses for any upcoming event!

...but I know that's not on everyone's "favorite" thing to do...

How many of you have had a black tie or formal event to attend and went into full panic mode because you had to find a dress??

It can be a daunting task to find one (especially if you are on a budget!) so I'm sharing 5 options (in all price points) to find the perfect formal dress!

Ready?! Here they are! 

5 places to shop for an evening gown 

1. TJ Maxx | Ross

This is always my first go-to for an event. I have found amazing designer dresses for a steal!

But, the only negative is... if you've ever shopped for a dress at either of these places, you know your options/sizes are limited. You may find the perfect dress but it's 2 sizes too big or small and there isn't another one.

2. Department Stores: Dillard's | JCPenney | Belk

To me, Dillard's always has THE BEST formal options.
BONUS: check the sale/clearance!
DOUBLE BONUS: Dillard's has AMAZING sales. I bought one of my favorite gowns at Dillard's that was on sale and then another 75% off!! It was less than $50 and was originally over $300!

JCPenney

Belk

Dillard's

You can generally find gorgeous formal options on clearance for less than $100 and sometimes even less than $50

One of my favorite formal brands that can be found at department stores (and on Amazon!) is Alex Evenings:

Link: Shop this dress!

Alex Evenings (link unavailable)

3. Rent the Runway

If you've never tried RTR - you have to! It is amazing! Not only do you get to rent a designer dress at a fraction of the price - you get an extra backup size! You can even add another backup dress for only $35!
One of the most important things here though is to read the reviews. Under each dress, you can read reviews based on your size or the size they rented and know if it's a little snug in places, TTS, if the material is thin or heavy, or if it is longer than expected. All the things you want to know when you can't try something on first! So read reviews posted by girls around your size (one size up and down) - listen to what they say about their experience - it is so worth it! I carefully read everything about mine and it fit like a glove!
The best part - once you're finished you just stick the dresses in a bag that is provided and send them back! Easy peazy!

BCBG - Rent the Runway
I lost most of my pictures from this evening so this is one of the only ones I have of my dress unfortunately. 

4. Amazon

I know what you're thinking - "sure, Amazon has stepped up their game in clothes, but there's no way you can get a good quality gown too can you?"

 You absolutely can!

Treat it just like RTR and read the reviews (they just aren't as organized on Amazon as they are on RTR). Also check out the material types so you can get an idea of the quality.

These two dresses are two amazing Amazon finds!

Link: Shop this dress!

Link: Shop this dress!

Link: Shop this dress!

Link: Shop this dress!

Link: Shop this dress!

5. Local: Boutique or Consignment Store

I absolutely LOVE supporting local businesses!

One shop that I love go through their extensive gown collection is Katie's Kloset in Cedar Bluff (other locations are Downtown West & Alcoa). They also have a huge consignment shop as a part of the store so make sure you either know exactly what you're looking for or have a lot of time to spare when you stop in! But I have loved what I have found there!

Local Consignment: Katie's Kloset

I'm super excited to have partnered with the Gilded Gown for the Wesley House Ball. I actually got to walk for them during Knoxville Fashion Week and they have such beautiful gown options (formals and bridal!).

How perfect is this dress?

       

Other local options in Knoxville are:

 Diana Warner

 Bella Boutique

Finally - if you have time - check local consignment shops! 

I've seen evening gown finds for as low as $5! 

Check out last year's formal trends in my 2019 Award Season review and stay tuned for the 2020 Award Season round up and trend prediction!

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 Happy Sunday! 
I'd love to meet you/interact with you!

Instagram: @itsbrookeallison

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