While reading the continutation of this thread I remembered a cute American Eagle dress I ordered offline about a month ago also came in white. So I checked back on the site and sure enough, they still have it and several others. Plus they are on clearance! These might serve a dual purpose- white initiation dress and just a cute summer staple for not an excessive amount of money :-) I posted the link below to the one with the most sizes left but take a look at the other options on the site, too.
http://www.ae.com/web/browse/product...ctId=1396_9909
I agree J.Crew can be expensive but personally I believe their classic, simple lines and durability make worthwhile purchases in many cases. And when they put things on sale, it's as much as 70% off in season items. Plus their mainstays like cotton tank tops come in the best color palette I've ever seen at very reasonsble prices. Just my $0.02