Dear Piper: Fireball Fashion

Dear Piper,

What is appropriate to wear to Fireball?

-Anonymous

Dear Fireball Fashionista,

Fireball is weird because you have everything from Cinderella after her Fairy Godmother, to Cinderella before her Fairy Godmother. Hamline Programing Board doesn’t help by just stating that it is ‘semi-formal.’ What does that mean? A nice skirt and my favorite t-shirt?

I have gone to Fireball, yet  the dress code is still unclear. So I turned to Google. According to the search engine, the definition of semi-formal is, “an event at which semi-formal attire is expected.” Thanks for the help Google.

My advice is to dress how you would for a wedding. A nice skirt and a t-shirt won’t cut it because the bride will be glaring at you.

If you are a person that likes dresses, I suggest wearing a hi-low dress. They are basically the dress version of a mullet: business in the front, party in the back. But hi-low dresses are elegant, whereas mullets are not. Plus, it’s a the perfect answer to the short or long dress debate.

If you like short dresses, find one that is fancier that you would not wear to class because people would ask why you are so dressed up. If you don’t have a fancy dress and don’t have the resources to go get another one, try dressing it up with jewelry or accessories you do have.

If you like long dresses, then you are in for luck! Many people will be wearing long dresses. So if you happen to have a prom dress collecting dust in your closet, it’s time to dust that bad boy off. You can also wear a summer maxi dress, just dress it up with some accessories.

Maybe you aren’t a dress person, but don’t worry you still have plenty of options. You can wear a pantsuit. Not a Hillary Clinton one, unless you are into that. More of a jumper style, because jumpers are in right now. Plus, you will have more mobility for your dance moves than your dress wearing counterparts. The bad part of jumpers is that to go to the bathroom, you have to get naked. So maybe don’t drink as much water that day.

Maybe you aren’t a dress person or a jumper person, but don’t worry, you  still have options. You can wear dress pants and a dress shirt-think what your mom thinks you look cute in and ‘sooo grown up.’ You can wear a tie or bow tie if you want. Obviously if you are a person that feels like you are being choked while wearing them, don’t.

Overall, just be comfortable. If you love that prom dress but are going to be miserable wearing it because it’s scratchy or doesn’t fit right anymore, don’t wear it. If you want to wear sweats and aren’t going to worry about people’s opinions and aren’t going to be worried that you aren’t dressed fancy enough, more power to you. In conclusion, no one has a clue of what semi-formal means,  so you do you.

Sincerely,

Patricia Piper

Send asks to hercampus@hamline.edu to get a response from Patricia Piper!

• formal
• style advice