The word “wedding” to a middle-aged woman is like the word “prom” to a teenager. To them it feels like the most important night in their life. At a wedding, the bride doesn’t have to worry about what anyone else is wearing, or if they will wear the same dress as her. Unfortunately, at prom this is one of the scariest thoughts in some teen girls’ minds.
Luckily for these girls, two women realized this and decided there had to be a way to let that girl’s friends know what dress she would be wearing, so as not to copy the look. Ashley Granata and Brooke Moreland, creators of fashism.com, let me ask them a little bit about their site and their ingenious new idea for prom season 2011.
Have you ever been in a dressing room and not known if what you’re wearing really looks good on you? Fashism.com is the website to answer this. It was created when Brooke was shopping alone; she tried on a vest and wished she could ask her friends whether it looked good on her.
This brought them to the idea of creating an application and website to allow anyone to get instant feedback on their outfits, no matter where they were or what time it was. Users just download the app, take a picture with their phone and post it immediately to allow other users to comment.
It sounds like something that would make me self-conscious more than anything, but upon trying it out I found it to be extremely helpful. People I don’t know see me in my outfits every day in public, so why not ask others what they think before I wear it out?
The idea has had an overwhelmingly positive response, and this was all I knew the site could do. Then recently I read an article in The Boston Herald that claimed fashism.com was now allowing prom-going teenagers to post their dresses on Facebook and Twitter so their friends would know not to wear the same one. Even more brilliant!
My own sophomore homecoming I showed up wearing the same dress as one of my girlfriends. It didn’t end well, to say the least. It was how the co-founder of the site came up with the idea also. Ashley explained how at her own junior prom a freshman (pause for horrific gasp) showed up in the same dress as her.
“I was laughing and smiling on the outside, but dying on the inside,” she admitted to me. So how does it all work? Girls anywhere can sign in through their Facebook accounts, and fashism.com will be able to see what high school they go to and place them into the right group.
They may then post a picture of their dress, and when any of their peers sign on they will be able to see the claimed dress and hopefully not buy the same one. So far, the website has had great feedback about the idea. They have even gotten personal stories about girls who have always worried about someone else wearing the same dress as them.
In Lord & Taylor stores, they are promoting the site in-store with decals about prom dress advice hanging in dressing rooms. They hope this will lead customers to then download the app, upload prom dress pictures right there and get even more advice about if it’s a good look.
Overall, I wish in high school I had been able to do this; maybe I would have avoided my own drama. With this great idea now up and ready to use on their site, I wondered what was next for the duo. Would they expand the idea to incorporate different events where you don’t want someone else wearing your dress, like wedding receptions and formals? Ashley replied, “Perhaps we would expand it, yes. No plans yet, but I could see it working in the everyday also. Who wants to go to a party and someone is wearing the same sweater from the Gap”?
Gina Jensen is a senior majoring in retail and is a wannabe Carrie Bradshaw. Send fashion faux pas and column ideas to [email protected]
