The choice of prom dress is a seemingly life important one for many girls, so it’s worth stepping back to take a look at the history of the prom gown…

In fact the high school prom is a recent phenomenon, only really starting in the early 20th century.
At that time, it was a fairy small affair, with students gathering rather formally, with a live band maybe.

As the century wore on, society changed in all sorts of ways, and the prom changed with the times, but because it remained a fixture on the school calendar, it grew in tradition and importance.
As the proms became a bigger and bigger event, the look you presented to others also took on more importance.

A gothic prom gown doesn’t even have to be black, it’s more the sensuality of the colours that count, so purple and dark red work fine, even pink if it is co-ordinated with black!

A gothic prom gown would probably have a tight fitted corset section, and flowing skirt, although it can work just as well with a short skirt.

There are lots of specialist sites online now where you can get prom dresses that are designed in the goth way, so you don’t have to rely on adapting old dresses, which used to be the norm.

Maybe you aren’t a fully fledged goth, but like the shape of the clothes – not the loose hanging casual stuff, but the more fitted shapes, and you could go for this shape and still keep the more classic colours you’d associate with prom dresses.

There really is a huge array of choice, so you can make your gothic prom gowns as you want – they also work for halloween and fancy dress parties!

It’s hardly surprising that the choice of prom dress is a trying one for girls, as the event is such an important one in their development, but more and more people are turning to gothic prom gowns – let’s take a quick look at why…

The gothic look is always popular with high schoolers – it’s a classic way of stating individuality, of not being one to follow the herd.
It does that job well, because even in today’s world where the goth look doesn’t shock anymore, people that go for that look will still have to run the gauntlet of abuse.

With the increase of goth look at school, it was inevitable that there would be a related rise in goth prom dresses.
After all, if a girl spends her school life wearing black, they are hardly going to want to turn up at the prom looking like they just stepped out of a Grease musical, are they!

It is also a statement of individuality – it doesn’t mean you listen to Marilyn Manson, remember you are not wearing goth – but it shows you are prepared to stand out and be looked at, a very appealing quality.

This individual statement can also be one of the disadvantages of wearing gothic prom gowns – people will notice you alright, but not everyone will like it.
Maybe some people who have lower self esteem will react by directing some abuse your way.
It’s never likely to be anything of any note, but you should be aware of the possibility.

It may also be uncomfortable!
If you aren’t used to the tight fitted type of clothes, it could feel like a very long evening after quite a short while, so it’s a good idea to spend some time in the dress to get used to it.

As ever, the choice is down to the individual.
In this day and age, you dont have to be brave or extreme to wear goth, but you do need to be aware of the disadvantages to go along with the advantages!