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The eternal ballgown dilemma
Former Member
Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
Right, here goes. Pre-empting several similar threads...
I have a lovely ball gown, strappy, which I am determined to wear. My arms are quite scarred from self-harm but all in all they don't look too bad. I want to go sleeveless (and can't afford a new dress anyway!) but I was wondering if anyone can recommend a good concealer to cover up the worst of it?
Ta!
I have a lovely ball gown, strappy, which I am determined to wear. My arms are quite scarred from self-harm but all in all they don't look too bad. I want to go sleeveless (and can't afford a new dress anyway!) but I was wondering if anyone can recommend a good concealer to cover up the worst of it?
Ta!
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Sorry if this isn't any help
:yes: A pashmina or a shawl.
Alternatively - you could use the stuff they use to cover tattoos?
I'm sure you'll look great regardless.
To t'others - I did the shawl thing a couple of years back when I left school but it irritated me so I lost it eventually, but I am taking one for photos and such. Also, it's both my upper and lower arms that are problematic so neither a shawl nor gloves will hide everything. I just wanted some make up to get rid of the really bad stuff. I'm going to have to live with the rest. *deep breath*
It doesn't help that my housemate is trying to talk me out of wearing a sleeveless dress. Sigh.
:yes: seconded. This stuff was developed by a lady who has a huge strawberry birthmark on her face and when she puts it on you would never know she had any type of blemish there. It stays put too, you have to use their remover to shift the stuff.
Don't listen to them. Your scars are part of you, if you feel better covering them up, then do. With the dermablend, gloves, scarf combo you can cover up as much as you want. Even if people see your scars- so what? They might stare, they might draw their own right or wrong conclusions, and... who cares, sod em! Also, even if they're noticable, people's eyes will be drawn to your face if you smile confidently and they'll soon forget the scars. You wear your dress. And post pics too
if you'd feel better covered up, something like this might work? (i know it's a pattern and not a shop, but just as an idea. i think it's pretty cute:
http://www.knitty.com/ISSUEspring05/PATTido.html
if you want to go sleeveless, then i agree dermablend is the way forwards. you can buy sample sized bits in big boots for testing purposes
:thumb: *clap* *clap* *clap*
Pretty much exactly what I was going to post. You said yourself that they aren't that bad (even if they were though it doesn't matter), don't let other people make you feel bad about your scars it has nothing to do with them! I say leave them be and enjoy your night
Thanks all. I've got a number of options, I think. I really want to wear the dress and be able to wear it 'as is' so I've ordered a dermablend test kit - I'll try that out first. The other thing is that I do have 8 days out in the open air digging just before the balls so hopefully I'll get a bit of a tan then and it'll be more subtle. Slightly worried that a tan might cause problems if I get hold of the dermablend first... hmmm... anyone know?
yay for crochet! how long have you got? if you could make your own shrug then people would be so dazzled by your creative talents that no on would even SEE your scars.
:yes:
I just covered my arm in my Dermablend sample, enthusiastically, and ran out to show my housemate who immediately said, "well, show me where you put it and I'll tell you if it helped..." Sigh. It changed the colour but they still catch the light and it won't stick on "new" scar skin.
And, because I don't want to make another thread about ball dresses:
Does anyone know where I can get a nice, full length (or knee length, but nowhere in between) dress for less than about £50? I need some new shoes too. Eek.
Monsoon and Coast are good but tend to be expensive. Large department stores also tend to be all right, but probably err on the expensive side.
T.K. Maxx maybe? And charity shops are allllways worth checking. You never know.
Good luck though
I bought one a couple of years ago for a £10 in a charity shop, they didn't have any 'proper' dresses on display but I asked and they led me to a back room where they had LOADS that they hadn't put out, ballgowns, wedding dresses and bridesmaids... I recon, find a largish town or a smallish city and ask is your best bet. In the bigger cities the charity shops seem to have recruited staff who really mark the prices up high, more for the vintage market than regular charity shop prices.
Oh, and yay for crochet too! Teh bestest christmas present I can remember is my Grandma teaching me to crochet. (although I'm rubbish with patterns and just really enjoy going round and round in circles )
All this talk of dresses is making me green! I want a ball to go to...
Come to my graduation ball with me, im too scared to go alone
I can't find anything, anywhere, that I think is nice enough. Poo. So I was resigned to going without but one of my friends today was like "well it's enough of a statement to be wearing a t-shirt at the moment, do you really want to go to the ball like that? I mean, it's all about respect, if you had a tattoo you'd hide it (I do and I wasn't going to...) and it's the same thing".
I don't think it's like being tattooed. whilst it's a horrid turn of phrase I think the most accurate would be that it's a sort of deformity. I don't think he has the right to tell me what I can and can't wear but at the same time he raised the point that I don't like it being stared at or commented on.
What to do...? It does look bad at the moment I'd thought it was ok but it's really obvious.
however, i also know what it's like to feel like everyone's staring at you, and if it's at the risk of you feeling a bit uncomfortable the whole time and not enjoying this ball as much as you could, maybe you should cover up?
i disagree with your friend. it's nothing to do with respect. it's to do with how comfortable you are with people noticing, cause like it or not, some will, and it might be worth sacrificing your stand on the matter to make sure you have a good time.
A scarf is a pain in the ass all night, but I'll just have to play it by ear and if it gets too much, and I've had a drink or two, I can lose it. I hope.