Promtacular!

Someone Didn’t Get The Memo

Posted on April 06, 2011 by promtacular! in 2000s Prom, Group Prom Pictures, Pairing With White | 1 Comment

Year: 2010
Event: Senior Ball

Sonia writes: “I think this picture is pretty self-explanatory.

The guy in the white tux’s name is Ben. Fortunately, my date (third from left) had the good sense to stick with the wingtip shoes. (For the record, we were trying to do a 1950′s theme. I had a white Marilyn Monroe dress.)”

There is absolutely zero way for me to make my feelings about Bieber-hair known without sounding old and crotchety. But. Well, right.

Can someone explain what’s happening in the hair department on the guy second from left? That’s…um…what?

I am down with the Converse, though. Of course, I prefer the wingtips, and actually think Sonia’s date is the most put-together and appropriate under the circumstances. Too bad he’s asleep.

As for Ben? Maybe he blended better at the actual event, but I hope he has this photo up in his dorm room anyway.

Well Before Photoshop

Posted on March 01, 2011 by promtacular! in 1980s Prom, Backdrop FAIL, Blame the Photographer, On The Plantation, Pairing With White | No Comments

Year: 1986

Joanne submitted this photo on our Facebook page, saying: “I loved that dress, bought it myself for $35 at Smith’s of Bermuda. There is a hoop slip under that dress, I wanted a crinoline but it was more than the dress. Don’t you just love those sleeves? This was taken on our front porch, see my brother’s socks under the bench!”

One of the things I always find amusing about prom pictures is how only the prom-goers are dressed up, and everyone else around them is wearing their street clothes. Reminding us that “prom” and “formal events” are only magical for those attending. So while Joanne looks ready for a beautiful night, her front porch did not get the memo.

I find myself wishing for a nonsensical backdrop. Clouds? Painted sunset? Balloon jungle? Anything?

No. We have a porch. In theory, the brick wall and porch swing wouldn’t be out of place with Joanne’s plantation-like dress and white gloves and acres of sleeves. But sadly, the magic ends there. The scrubby yard plants aren’t exactly white oleander in bloom. I’m pretty sure those are ashtrays against the far left pillar. And, as Joanne points out, her brother’s socks and — is it? could it be a SNORKEL? — thrown under the porch bench sort of dash the Old Country mystique.

Love it.

Better With Age

Posted on February 28, 2011 by promtacular! in 2000s Prom, Pairing With White | 2 Comments

Year: 2007

Our anonymous submitter writes: “This is my boyfriend and I at our eighth grade formal (we’re currently seniors in high school). Now, I don’t have all the numbers to back it up, but I believe we *may* have been THE most awkward children ever.”

Awkward? Perhaps. But also exceedingly adorable. I hope you all appreciate the delightful elements of this couple. They’re not trying too hard. Yes, corsage…but also hairband-as-bracelet. Yes, red nails to match the dress…but also white ballet flats. And crazy patterns for both of them. Plus hanging on each other like friends.

I am immediately reminded of my bff’s series of photos where she, as a young teenager, seemed both unwilling and uninterested in actually making contact with her dates. So comparatively, this couple here seems to have come a long way.

Not as long a way, however, as the couple in the back on the right. They seem perfectly comfortable with one another. She, in a ball gown in a junior high school gymnasium (naturally); he, reaching his very long arms around her, in a break-all-the-PDA-rules kind of way. Classy.