Short Evening Dresses

October 1st, 2009 |

Once in a while the right dress comes along and empties our wallets. Sometimes it's a dress we see on a TV show or a red carpet moment. Sometimes it's that dress we saw some girl at the mall wear. I'm always in trouble when I browse websites, because I tend to find at least one "right" dress at every site. It's become kind of a side hobby of mine. Shopping for short evening dresses is one of my favorites. Well any kind of evening dress really, but short ones are always fun because they're wearable them to a number of different functions. Long evening dresses, while pretty, are only appropriate for certain occasions.

Evening dresses come in a variety of fabrics. My favorite fabric of all time is chiffon. I love the way it moves. Chiffon always looks so pretty and feminine. Dresses are the epitome of femininity and chiffon just naturally falls along the curves and moves so brilliantly with movement and wind. A lot of people don't realize that chiffon is actually a weave of specific textiles. There is silk, cotton and polyester chiffon. Evening dresses are commonly made of silk and polyesters. While it's sometimes hard to tell the difference (to the trained eye it's a lot easier), polyester chiffon is not dyeable.

Taffeta is another terrific fabric made form both silk and polyester and is used for evening dresses. It's one of the most common fabrics used a short evening dress. Taffeta is popular for shorter dresses because it's a fabric that can cling to curves. It also holds shape really well and looks gorgeous. It's not one of my favorites simply because I don't like the sound it makes, but that can be avoided by buying silk instead of polyester.

Besides taffeta and chiffon, short evening dresses come in satin and silk, and even a few jersey fabrics. Natural fibers, like satin and silk, are great for dying, which makes them ideal for future wearing. Imagine having an ivory dress, then a summery yellow dress then maybe gray or black. So even if you spend a few extra dollars on a natural fabric, you're doing yourself a favor. Luckily satin and silk also look and feel fantastic when worn! =)

One thing I love about evening gowns is the way they make you feel like a princess. The right evening dress makes a woman feel pretty and feminine. There are a lot of choices of styles, as well as fabrics. Short evening gowns are one of the hardest to buy because you want to get everything right. Long dresses cover a lot more, so there is opportunity to hide certain features that most of us are a little... uncomfortable with showing. With short dresses it's all hanging out there in the open. Gah! But for those women with great legs, geez or even so-so legs, short styles will show your assets to their fullest.

Buying short evening dresses can be an overwhelming experience. The choices are so vast between color, style, designer, costs and, the hardest to nail down: the size. While it's relatively easy to pick a short evening gown based on the color or style, it's much harder to pick one based on size; unless one knows how to find the right size.

Finding the right size sounds easy doesn't it? I mean I know I wear a size *cough cough* and when I go online I just put in that size when I decide to buy, right? Wrong! My size *mumble mumble* isn't the same in every brand! In fact, the sizes can vary by as much as 2 sizes up or down. Buying a size 10 in Vera Wang is not the same as buying a size 10 in Isaac Mizrahi. What's more is that height makes a huge difference, especially in short evening dresses! If you're over 5'8 or under 5'5 or 5'6 the dress is not going to fit exactly as the pictures you see online or on the tags themselves. That is why many women choose not to shop online. I want to assure all women that if they get their correct measurements and fall between a height of 5'4-5'9, the only thing that they have to worry about is the merchant's sizing chart.

The color is a little easier to find, although the younger we are the harder it is to know what colors look best. If you're not sure about which colors work for your coloring, check websites that offer a color for colorings guide. My personal favorite is Susannah and Trinny's. They're these two British gals with an eye for fashion and the TV show to spread the news. They also have a really good guide to how to wear all kinds of colors. Less black more of everything else!

One of the hardest things to figure out is styles of dress to fit our figure. We're all uncomfortable with some parts or another. Let's face it though, if you're uncomfortable with your legs, thighs or even your ankles, wearing a short evening dress isn't going to help. It may make you feel worse. If you're completely comfortable with your legs, a short dress is going to be perfect. But what type of short dress works if you're not comfortable with your tummy or arms?

An empire waist dress hides a lot of imperfections with the tummy and hips. It also can make them look bigger, if the wrong style is chosen. Avoid pleated, ruffled or thick fabrics for babydoll dress styles. There are always choices of long or short sleeves for women who may be uncomfortable with showing their arms. If the dress you choose is strapless or tank sleeves, you can always add a wrap or bolero jacket. For my wedding I actually had removable sleeves made for my dress because I wasn't comfortable with my arms. A bolero jacket can actually look really terrific with a little evening dress. A little black velvet bolero is ideal for a short Christmas party dress.

Buying short evening dresses isn't as complicated as it seems. There are hundreds of styles, designs, colors and prices from which to choose. Ordering online is one of the best options for both price and design. Check out the various places online to get a great dress.