Better to buy good quality second hand dress or lower quality new one ?

[dancingirldancing]

Should I buy a higher quality second hand dress or a lower quality new one if budget is limited ?

Some of the second hand dresses are so great and beautiful with a really low prices. I dont know whether the fact that they have been around matter much in a competition.

Will anyone (esp. judges) think less of me for wearing 'someone else's dress ?

What do you think ?

 

[etp777]

I'd definitely second buying a quality second hand dress over a cheap new one that doesn't fit right, has cheap stones, etc. Buy, rent or borrow a quality dress. you'll be happier. Also, at least in first case, you'll have better resale value with a quality used dress than a poorly made new dress.

 

[dancingirldancing]

Fitting well is relative though ... what do you do when you find a gown that is absolutely incredible except that it is a bit tight ?

Can you do anything about it ?

 

[and123]

Sometimes yes, sometimes no. Depends on how the dress is made. There may be areas that can be let out, zippers/straps adjusted, etc.

 

[dancingirldancing]

You can always lose weight ... and if you cant lose anymore weight you can always cut up your bone ?

I cant believe how small some of these girls are....

I am literally skin on bone and still cant fit into some of these second hand dresses !!!

 

[and123]

agreed - I'd have to surgically remove some ribs to fit into some of the dresses I've admired :shock:

 

[star_gazer]

Lots of absolutely wonderful second-hand dresses out there. If you can't find a 2nd hand dress that fits...find a reputable seamstress that will work with you to design and make one that you like. I am yet to find someone who has been happy with an inexpensive dress they bought online although I'm sure it happens...occasionally.

 

[Ithink]

Agree with all the previous comments...

Also, it's a rare judge that will remember a particular dress. They have so much to look at while they are judging that the dress someone wore, unless there is something about it that's memorable (and usually not in a good way, in my experience), is the last thing they remember. Sometimes, when asked for their opinion on a particular couple's dancing they won't even remember the couple, if they were cut in the earlier rounds and didn't dance the semi or the final, not to say anything of the dress the lady in the couple wore

So relax about that concern too Buy a dress that you like, in good condition, even if it is second hand...

 

[fascination]

I have had an exceptional dancer from this forum dance in a dress of mine and her coaches at the time thought it was one of the nicest dresses she had worn...I wore it the next month in front of those same judges and I won...I tthink we have to give judeges the benefit of the doubt...the dress probably doesn't matter much unless you look dreadful it it...and you have a far greater likelihood of that in a poorly made gown...the dress I currently get the most compilments on was a dress I bought off the rack

 

[dancerman]

I also agree nothing wrong with second hand. In fact, we have had women put up dresses for sale as second hand that have never been worn on the floor. I know of others who had custom deisgned costumes made only to find out they hated the way they looked on them. Nice outfits, but just not for them. When this happens they are losing a percentage of their original purchase and someone is literally getting a brand new outfit.
When you buy new that is poor quality, you cannot make it a higher quality. You can stone it, trim it, cut it, but you can't change what it is.

 

[fascination]

additionally, second-hand can be something worn by someone who lived across the country, in another country, in closed franchise comps....so, the likelihood that the gown is going to be recognizable is just not that high nor that important IMO....but if it is poorly made, that is an issue

 

[tanya_the_dancer]

Also, it's a rare judge that will remember a particular dress. They have so much to look at while they are judging that the dress someone wore, unless there is something about it that's memorable (and usually not in a good way, in my experience), is the last thing they remember.

I bought a used dress for rhythm last year. When I brought it to the studio to get opinions, it so happened that I had a coaching with a judge on that day and he said he remembered the dress, he has seen it before.

 

[tanya_the_dancer]

Lots of absolutely wonderful second-hand dresses out there. If you can't find a 2nd hand dress that fits...find a reputable seamstress that will work with you to design and make one that you like. I am yet to find someone who has been happy with an inexpensive dress they bought online although I'm sure it happens...occasionally.

I had 4 dresses I bought from one of e-bay sellers for well under $200. They worked for me at lower levels, until I moved up to silver. At that point I was advised to get a better dress.

But I wasn't really unhappy with those dresses, they worked really well, they were reasonably well made for something costing that little, and in fact I kept my first rhythm dress as a party dress. It is modestly decorated, so it is still OK to wear for a dance party. I think I still have a picture of it in my album. It's the black and yellow one.

 

[danceronice]

additionally, second-hand can be something worn by someone who lived across the country, in another country, in closed franchise comps....so, the likelihood that the gown is going to be recognizable is just not that high nor that important IMO....but if it is poorly made, that is an issue

This is true. My "new" Smooth/Standard gown was made for an Amateur lady from the West, and I do pro-am almost exclusively in the East. The designer is recognizable, but she does so many dresses for so many people it's unlikely anyone will remember this precise gown. And while I paid more than I would from an eBay vendor, the look is really no comparison.

I will say, if you DO go with an internet 'discount' vendor, at least splurge for the real rhinestones. At least the Chezk stones. The Korean rhinestones really don't look good on a floor full of Swarovski.

 

[dlgodud]

You can always lose weight ... and if you cant lose anymore weight you can always cut up your bone ?

I cant believe how small some of these girls are....

I am literally skin on bone and still cant fit into some of these second hand dresses !!!

Hopefully I can lose weight. :shock: