Dale Kaplan, owner of Kaplan’s Careful Cleaners helps teenage girls throughout the day with prom dress alterations

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There’s a major go big or go home feel to this prom season, as teenagers will be emerging from the pandemic blinged from head-to-toe. With sequins, slits, statement backs, form-fitted dresses, and even long trains, high schoolers will be showing off the latest trends on the dance floors around central Pa.

Already, prom shops have seen an increase in traffic for prom season this year compared to 2021, when many schools hosted scaled back prom ceremonies because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

PennLive contacted prom boutiques and alteration shops - and talked to prom goers themselves - to give you an insider’s peek at the trends expected to be on display on the dance floor at junior and senior proms in central Pa. Here’s the scoop on what’s trending for the 2022 prom season.

All the sparkle is in this season, as more students will be wearing head-to-toe sequined prom dresses and gowns. Even prom retailers are leaning hard into this trend, so there’s plenty of glitz to go around.

This look is all about sequins, rhinestones, and luxe fabrics. Whether you choose a short dress or a full-length gown, Jill Brown, store manager for Cocoa Couture in Hershey, said the students are making a statement in glam style for prom night.

“Girls either want it completely plain or blinged out from head to toe. There is no in between,” said Brown.

Megan Chornak, a junior at Red Land High School will be in trend this year for prom as she will be full glam attire.

“I debated on a lot of dresses between going casual and going more sparkly. But last year for homecoming I went really casual,” said Chornak. “I know since Covid, I didn’t have a prom before, so I wanted to go a little out this time.”

This season, there are a ton of styles that make quite the statement when you walk by. From strappy corset designs to bold backless styles, statement-back prom dresses are absolute head-turners.

Taylor Eisenberger, owner of Taylored for You Bridal Boutique in Mechanicsburg said students are asking for striking designs and cut outs.

“They also often request for interesting backs. Like back details, whether it’s strapped or even a key hole design. Either way, they want something interesting going on in the back,” said Brown.

Ballgowns flatter every body type, making this one of the top trends, according to dress shops owners in central Pa. The fit-and-flare trend is all about creating the hourglass silhouette. Dale Kaplan, owner of Kaplan’s Careful Cleaners, said ball gowns are back at his alteration shop.

“Ballgowns are pretty tight from the shoulders down to the waist line and then it just goes out to seven or eight layers of kremlin with a top layer of chiffon,” said Kaplan.

The ballgown sales are making a statement in bridal stores as well, according to Brown at Cocoa Couture.

“This year we also sold 50 percent ballgowns and normally we don’t sell many ball gowns. We might sell four or five a season,” said Brown.

The mermaid trend is perfect for anyone who’s looking for a show-stopping look. This style is all about enhancing curves. Mermaid dresses are perfect for girls who want to feel sexy and glamorous on prom night.

“The style that’s really predominant is mermaid style. Where it’s really tight at the bust and into the waist and it flares out over the hips just to give them enough to sit down,” said Kaplan. “But then it gets tight into the knee area and flares out again.”

If you’re feeling daring, the sexy trend is perfect for you. This look is all about showing off your curves with tight-fitting dresses, revealing necklines, and even high slits.

Erin Stepp, David’s Bridal store manager confirmed the eye-catching trend, calling it “silk and slinky.”

“Silk and slinky is definitely this year’s trend. It’s semi-fitted but not exactly a mermaid,” said Stepp.

Also be prepared to see prom dresses with high slit designs. Although this look isn’t entirely new, it’s becoming a recurring frontrunner for the 2022 prom season, according to the owner of Taylored for You Bridal Boutique.

“They like dresses that are form fitting with slits. Whether the slit is on the side, front, or back,” said Eisenberger. “We’ve gotten a lot of requests for dresses with slits this year.”

Most prom dresses and gowns include long trains popular at Kaplan’s Careful Cleaners. Kaplan said some of the dresses reach 14 to 15 inches long.

“Long trains is another trend. Some girls have me cut them off and others want me to make them three inches longer,” said Kaplan. “Girls tell me that ‘it’s the look and it’s all for pictures.’”

From bold neons to soft pastels, many students will be wearing vibrant colors this year for prom, dress shop operators say.

“Everyone also wants color. We went through a year where everyone wanted white. Other years it was black and even hunter green,” said Brown. “But this year girls want yellow, light blue, pink.”

The mixed palette trend will be prevalent for the boys attending prom, as colorful suits and designs will be making their mark, according to Ron Kaplan, owner of Top Line Tuxedos in Harrisburg.

“We have a preparation of multifaceted colors. We now have six paisley designed coats in different colors from cobalt, apple red, black, charcoal, silver, and green,” said Kaplan.

This year the guys are leaving boring suits behind and heading into 2022 with more trendy suit and tux styles. Ron Kaplan has had an interesting experience keeping up with the latest trends, one of them being compressed fitting pants.

“The trend in pants has been tremendously different than it’s ever been before. The pants are getting tighter every year,” said Kaplan. “There’s no such thing as loose pants anymore. And each kid seems to want their pants to be tighter than the one before them.”

Which prom style caught your eye?

Now that you’ve got the deets on the trendy prom dresses this season, it’s time for you to decide. Which of the top prom dress styles and trends are you looking forward to seeing - or wearing - this year?

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