PNMS Mom:

I looked at those Theta recruitment pics as well and noticed QUITE a few strapless dresses. Maybe wearing one isn't such a big deal? I dunno, I think that might be a comforting thought to any other pnms who might be stressing over strapless. No matter what, I'm sure your daughter will shine;)

Re: Re: Re: Re: Lilly on sale
 

I know you were trying to help. :) I was joking.

It varies by school what kind of dresses actives are allowed to wear on pref night, even within the same national org. In Theta at my college, we were not allowed to wear strapless or even spaghetti straps on pref night.


Another point I'd like to throw out there about pref dresses- I can't say how it works for other sororities, but in at least some houses, the bid list is already set before the pref night parties. No cuts are made following the last round of parties. So what a rushee wears has absolutely no impact on whether or not she gets a bid the next day- the sorority's decision regarding her place on the bid list has already been made before she sets foot in a pref party. As a rushee, I had assumed that the pref dress mattered a lot and I was shocked to learn later on that it makes absolutely no difference.

I guess my point is, don't invest $200 in a cocktail dress if you don't normally spend that much on clothes, because you think it will help get you into your dream house.

Bid list placement
 

Very true statement that applies to all rush clothing.


Once again, very true. Note though that this says "In at least some houses . When I was in college, (back in the days when the pyramids were still a dream) our top bid list was in large part tailored to match our perception of how the rushees felt about us. If we thought she would place us #1 on her card, she would most likely be on our first bid list. After all, you don't just want fabulous girls, you want fabulous girls that really want to be your sister. If she was still undecided, there was also a chance that she would be high on the list, but we weren't willing to risk losing someone that really wanted to be an XYZ just to grab that extra quota number. These perceptions were largely determined by pref night activities.

Please note that I attended an institution that did not have an intensely competitive rush, so this may not apply at all to a large, competitive university. Also, no rushee should ever be invited to pref if you are not willing to extend her a bid. This post applies only to a rushee's placement on the bid list.

So I've posted a couple of times on how I was stressed about spending a lot of $$ on clothes for rush. So I put a list together yesterday of what I want to wear for each day, and out of the 5 outfits I put together, I only need to by like 3 items. New shoes and a new top. I guess I didn't know my closet as well as I thought, or maybe the stress was making me think that nothing I already owned would be cute enough. So now I'm a lot less worried, and feeling a lot more prepared.

I also want to thank everyone who is posting about how the cost of the clothes don't matter, it's the look and the girl that wears them the houses look at. It's very comforting in this time of such high stress.

in the 'what to wear' section of our greek tiger, it had two girls wearing strapless dresses for pref night. i previously thought that was a no-no, but if you're going to stick it in the panhellenic's guide for PNMs, then it must be okay - of course, there are always exceptions, you'll want to wear something tasteful and classy, and not too revealing or sexy! (though if you're naturally sexy like me, you might not be able to help it...:D joking!)

http://ebay1.ipixmedia.com/abc/M28/_...eea72a/i-1.JPG

here's a dress i got today off of ebay. they are actually spaghetti straps, though you can't see them in the picture. it's a betsey johnson dress and i think it's awesome. it may not be lilly pulitzer, but i think it reflects more of my personal style. i think i'll wear it to pref...if i get that far =) there IS a lilly dress that i am also eyeing on ebay, which i'd probably wear for round 3. it's really pretty, too.

I think it is very pretty!
 

I got the couple of Lilly dresses I ordered today as well and they are quite bright :eek:. Definitely good for the beach (where I'm planning on wearing them) but definitely too bright to ever be used for pref (in my opinion).

I think your dress is perfect.

It is fairly expensive at $188, but I think this dress from Garnet Hill would be cute for recruitment.

http://www.garnethill.com/garnet_hil.../9000ef03z.jpg

A note on the strapless thing: it really does depend on your college. At many schools a strapless dress would be a big no-no. At mine it would be perfectly okay. The dress code varies so much from school to school -- at a small school with a very laid-back Greek system, you could probably get away with a skirt on Pref night; at other schools it's entirely cocktail dresses (and I think I remember one GC poster talking about prom dresses during Pref night! :eek: ). At some schools, rushees dress very trendy whereas at others a more classic look is preferred. Follow what's in your rush booklet, ask your Rho Chi, and if nothing else, go with the option that is the most classic -- for example, you'll probably feel more comfortable in a "strappy" dress if nobody else is wearing strapless, even if it's not a rush faux pas to go strapless at your school.

So a few things....

1- I didn't know what a Lily Pulitzer was until I went through rush at UF. (or shall I say AFTER...) :D

2- The Lily Pulitzer dresses ARE cute... but I remember seeing girls wearing them as Round 3 dresses at UF, instead of Pref dresses.

Most girls wore black dresses to Pref... or something "prom-y" but without so much glitz and glamour. I saw everything from long dresses with dyed shoes to match, to short cocktail dresses. I wore a short red dress and red shoes... because I wanted to be remembered in the sea of black!

For rush... just wear what you're comfortable in. I'm sure my houses would not have changed if I had worn Lily all week long! (not to mention I would've looked silly!)

WOW!
 

That's gorgeous! I'd love to have that to wear when I help out during recruitment!!! :)

Wow all this talk about Lilly makes me think. The different parts of the country really do have different fashion codes. I have never heard of a "Lilly" dress and I go to a Pac-10 school with a very competitive greek system. Here it's all about what you wear and where you got it. Though you're much more likely to see someone in Juicy Couture than Lilly Pulitzer. And by the way the Betsy Johnson dress Moxie picked out for pref night is PERFECT. I love that dress!

Good for you! I've always felt like Betsey Johnson attracted the girls who had a sense of style that shouted that they were unique, even though she is a well-known designer.

They have some cute dresses at Banana Republic and Bloomingdale's. :) I want to go shopping!