Friday, October 5, 2012

Ball Dress: Rent or Buy?

Apologies for re-posting this picture of me in a ball dress, you already saw it on Monday. The thing is - I had a load of emails from you about whether to buy or rent this dress. What further murkies the question is that the cost of rental is $89, but you can buy it for $168.  So, as Mrs Merton, another lady of uncertain years, would say:  Let's have a heated debate!



And yes, I know this is a very First World problem, a Princely problem. I've been very happy for 15 years wearing Old Gold, a bridesmaid dress made by my mother, but the old girl is now pretty tattered and pulled.

Finding a replacement for Old Gold has been a lot trickier than I thought. In fact it's as tricky and depressing as finding a swimsuit. One day I tried on all the long dresses in Bloomingdales with absolutely no luck. I either looked Hyacinth Bucket in full chintzy sail (a British telly character who pronounces her name "bouquet") or a dreadful old slapper.

Finally I found the above cobalt dress in an Oakland rental store called Dress, and I was happy renting it. Then of course, fatal mistake, I went home and Googled it - and found it on sale on Amazon.

Rental: $89 for three days. Deposit refundable up until 24 hours before the date. Pros: You only have one Black Tie thingy each year, maybe two - you will be more excited to wear a different dress next time. The money "saved" can go to charity. And it's not taking up space in your wardrobe. Below are some of the other rental options from Dress that I tried on for next time.

Too frilly?

Too heavy?

Good option?

Buy: $168 (orig. $270) plus tax, no shipping costs. Only two wears and you're even.

I instructed the person in charge of our Amazon purchases  - 15 year old Harley - to buy the dress so I could really see if I would love it for all time. The first one was badly stained and heavily worn. The replacement was clean. It's well made and drapes nicely but as I said on Monday, because of the gravitational pull on the bingo wings, not sure I'll be able to wear this dress in one, two, five years time.

Friend 1 says: "Rent it.  Wear it, enjoy it and put it back on the shelf for some good dress karma."
Friend 2 says: "Buy it. Wear it to Holiday parties as well and your school auction (theme this year is "Hollywood.") More than two wears - you're actually saving money!" (Disclaimer: Friend 2 is not an economist)

See what I mean about a Princessly problem? Still don't know what to do...what do you reckon?

47 comments:

  1. i agree w friend #2! (then after a couple of years, donate/give!)

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  2. Buy it, if it were $500.00 I'd say rent it.

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  3. Tough one. Not sure what I'd do. Depends on what your dress wardrobe looks like now, and your budget. If $168 is no big deal then buy it, but only if you are sure you'd wear the dress at least twice.
    And fwiw, I think the two white dresses you are pictured in look to wedding-ish. I love the "frilly" one. It looks great on you. My two cents, there.

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  4. My mother would kill me if I wore second-hand clothes! Buy new and when finally bored, or out of shape (you or the dress), donate it to a charity.

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  5. I'd buy, I'm always worried that the next time I go looking for the "perfect" dress I won't be able to find one!

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  6. Really? Is Friend 2 not an economist, because she made perfect sense to me :) I say buy it. It's absolutely stunning ... the other options are nice, but not as jaw dropping as the blue one. As I can't see any remote sign of bingo wings, I think you're good to go for quite a few years yet.

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  7. Buy it if you like it now - don't worry about what is to come. I am renting an Issa dress for our art museum gala, but it's a $125 rental and a $600+ dress. I love the concept of renting - you can wear something that won't last years and year - but for $168, you'll be happy you have it in your closet!!

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    1. I agree with Amy. I can definitely see renting the Issa dress because of the cost. I don't think we have any place here to rent dresses like that. I've heard of the concept, but I don't think it's reached here.

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  8. Ok, the reference to Hyacinth Bucket I got, and laughed! But bingo wings? Is that flappy arm skin? If so, very funny. :-)

    I say buy the blue - even with your giant lens nose you look striking!

    Heck, after a few wearings to gala's it looks like it would be great cut off just above the knee as a sun dress or layered under a jacket for work.

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  9. Bears, not being wearers of dresses, means I'm not going to say anything. I know when I'm in over my head.

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  10. If you love it, buy it! It looks fabulous on you either way. xo style, she wrote

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  11. Only $168 for transformation to a sea goddess?! Buy.

    I like friend #2's thinking. New math indeed. ;)

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  12. Without a doubt buy it.... it's completely gorgeous and I can't see how you wouldn't wear it more than once... when you're done, sell it on Ebay..

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  13. BUY!!
    I also agree with your friend's maths!
    Sx

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  14. Not sure, I suppose if you buy it, it can be given to someone to wear, like something to be passed down to generations. If you rent it, then maybe it won't crowd up the closet if you might not wear it so much. Me, I would buy it and then if I just didn't wear it so much, sell it on somewhere. It's a gorgeous dress :)) x

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  15. #2. Without a doubt.

    Buy, wear, (Eventually) sell.... you will get more than your money's worth!!!!!

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  16. Personally, I think that dress looks gorgeous on you. I say BUY!! :)

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  17. The dress looks fab on you but I say rent. Reason? Well if you rent it you don't take the chance of being seen in the same dress several more times and renting gives you the option of finding something you may like more, later.
    Don't worry about the money, who needs a dress collecting dust! Love Di ♥

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  18. I'd say buy it if you are going to be able to wear it a few times. With all the events you host and go to Jody.. you need dresses anyway, right? Also, finding a flattering dress (and I'll add for a mature woman..) isn't easy and I don't think spending that amount on a dress is over the top.

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  19. Jody I say buy it. It is a very classic dress and you can wear it more than once; a really great price actually. You could spend that much on an everyday outfit easily.

    Also as another mentioned it is the kind of dress that could easily be altered to a shorter length. (I also have a thing about wearing clothes that other have worn...just me)

    I do hope you will enter my Giveaway of Velvet Pumpkins from Love Feast!

    Xoxo
    Karena
    Art by Karena

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  20. looking so beautiful . . nice pics . great outfit .
    Parfum pas cher

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  21. If I looked that good in the blue dress no question I would buy it. I like the feeling of putting on a new dress also the buzz of the purchase (of course I would not say this to my husband).

    There is a chance it may not be there the next time you go to hire it .

    Do not hesitate buy buy buy..........

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  22. Definitely buy this gorgeous dress. It's such a rich blue, a great style and it suits you - you are sure to wear it more than once!!
    http://missbbobochic.blogspot.co.uk/

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  23. BUY! Love it! And I think you'll get a lot of use out of it. I like the idea of rentals but I know that I'd be wishing that I had the item again in the future. I'm always reaching for something old in my closet when things pop up :) xoox

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  24. Stunning! And I didn't know you could rent dresses!

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  25. You look lie a knockout in that dress - style, colour, fit ...everything is perfect , buy it for sure. If you have a great figure, show it off!!!

    Melissah

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  26. Jody- Rent, then put your "saved" money towards the skin toned "frilly" one next - so pretty!

    Or come to my garage sale and buys one of three gowns I have priced at $4.. All burgundy...

    My version of Old Gold is a black floor length dress with metallic thread thrift shop find that a gay friend asked "Is It Couture?" and I now love him forever!

    Loretta

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  27. Good dress, very cute. I like this so much. I want to buy this.

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  28. Buy because the difference in cost is minimal and, with the savings, buy some barbells to banish the bingo wings!

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  29. Buy it. The style is classic, and you'll be able to wear more then 2x (which means you'll save money v renting others). If you had said the frilly one ... I'd have said rent it .. those kind of styles come and go, mostly go. And you're 'bingo wings' have quite some time to go before they must be covered. Flaunt those arms while you can!

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  30. Rent it, I've got a long Issa dress, I wore it once, and it irks e every time I see it, such a waste of money. You are as slender as a reed!

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  31. We started going to black tie events regularly about 12 years ago and I have always bought my dresses. I have a few now and I just swap them around from year to year. I think I love to have them to own as they have lovely memories for me. The plain black ones also get used as outfits for my choir. And one dress, which started to look a bit like a meringue, was remodelled one year for me to wear as Katie Brown in Calamity Jane.

    So, after that ramble, you can see I would say 'buy'.

    By the way, I bought a bargin evening dress from TK Maxx for £40 yesterday. The make is Betsy and Adam. Is it American?

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    1. Not sure, but looks like Nordstrom stocks it - so it must be!

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  32. Those fabulous arms will not show signs of atrophy for a very long time. The blue dress is elegant, timeless, all weather, chic, and otherwise stunning on you. The two white dresses have high vavoom factor, the tiered one is a bit too mother of the bride. My resounding opinion is to put "Old Gold" out to pasture and purchase "True Blue".

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  33. I love the blue Laundry dress on you. The others looked less so (still wish that I have your long lean figure though). It's a bit of a tough one. Rent it if you think you're unlikely to wear it again. I tend to buy my dresses just so that I could pull one out if I'm a bit desperate.

    BTW, you can now order Karen Walker dresses directly from NZ via her website (www.karenwalker.com). She ships internationally too.

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  34. buy, buy - it looks amazing on you, it's timeless and elegant... and you only need to wear it twice and you're even!

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  35. I'm with Friend #1. I think.

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  36. I LOVE Keeping Up Appearances, I still watch all the old episodes on PBS every Saturday! Remember her hats? LOL

    Tough conundrum. I usually buy my dresses to have on hand, but if you're only going to wear it once, well....

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  37. Wow, just seeing this now. I truly think you should buy it. It looks so good on you. It's a classic and won't go out of style anytime. Also, so hard to find a dress that fits so fabulous.
    Love it!
    xo
    KIm

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  38. i say rent, but you attend many more soirees than I!

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  39. I really want to try this one. Everyone seems to like it!

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  41. I would say that you should definitely buy it, if you wear it at least twice, it already pays off! It looks amazing on you, in my opinion it´s worth it!

    Good luck :)

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  42. Very beautiful dresses, I think it is more cost effective to buy.

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  43. Wow, just seeing this now. It looks amazing on you,buy it,it's worth it!http://cpbay.com/

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