Dear Prom Lady,
I'm a guy and I'm going to my first prom this year. I want to impress my date, but I'm relatively strapped for cash. What am I expected to pay for?
- Money Is Definitely An Object
Dear MIDAO,
I understand the pressure to go all out with the stretch Escalade and the 5-star dinner, yadda yadda yadda. The thing is, none of that stuff is really necessary to have a good time. That having been said, in this age of Super Sweet 16's, more seems to be more. Take a look at the following checklist for guidance:
- Prom tickets - for most schools, these are essential just to get into the front door. If you're trying to impress the girl that you've invited (you're not just friends and you haven't been dating forever and ever), you should go ahead and pay for hers as well as your own. Assuming that your school is not trying to make a profit off of the students, the ticket prices shouldn't be more than $20 per person - $40 total
- Tux Rental - it's the traditional thing to do, you can't go naked and unless you make your outfit out of duct tape, it's probably what you're going to wear. This'll cost you about $90 for a full tux, suit and shoes. You'll pay more for fancier styles, wild colors, etc.
- Dinner - going to dinner before the big shindig has become a tradition. Some schools host a meal for the students (or have some sort of buffet), but most schools aren't going to fill you up at the dance. (Plus, she's definitely going to want you to show her off somewhere in her big beautiful dress.) To maintain the special feeling of the evening, you'll want to eat somewhere pretty nice (let's go one step above TGI Friday's, shall we?) Let's say that you do what I did and go to Maggiano's with a big group of friends - you're looking at about $45 per person including tip. - $90 total if you pay for your date
- Corsage - you know, the little bouquet of flowers that she wears around her wrist. (Girls used to pin them to their dresses, but that's pretty 80's - get her one that she can just wear like a bracelet). This is pretty much a prerequesite. She's going to want it to match her dress and she probably doesn't want carnations (though, they were making a come back about 4 years ago). You can get the (really cute) one pictured below from FTD for $45 including tax and shipping
- Limo (optional) - this one is really up to you. Having a limo is nice because it completes the super grown-up, oh-so-luxurious feeling of the evening. It can also be fun if you're planning on doing prom in a big group and you all want to ride around together and be loud. It is, however, completely unneccessary. As a nod to keeping it real, the only reason why I would say that you ought to rent a limo is if you're planning on drinking. (Sidenote: Chances are, if you're going to prom you are under 21 and therefore it is illegal to drink. However, if you do drink, you SHOULD NOT DRIVE. - Think about it, you've had your license for about 2 years and you're drunk... you're going to hit something.) Otherwise, you should either drive yourselves or get an older sibling or cool older cousin to chauffer you around. The least expensive 8 passenger stretch limo that I could find was $65 / hour. Assuming that you use your limo for 4 hours (8pm-12am), three other couples ride and share the cost with you and you decide to pay for your date's portion, add $65 to your total.
Start saving now, kids. It costs a lot of money to have a good time! ;)
If you have questions for the prom lady (moi) - feel free to send them my way. I promise to post them and give you the most thorough answers I can come up with.
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