I rented this dress for my daughter's 8th grade graduation ceremony. While girl after girl paraded up to the front in low-cut and thigh-high dresses (like baby deer in their wobbly heels, bless their hearts), she looked all confidence and class in this dress. It's almost neon bright (and the color is not consistent from dress to dress), slightly to the coral end of pink. Length is fun, but still fairly modest, and the fit is superb on a slightly hourglass girl frame. Everyone raved how stunning she looked - which is the real litmus test - because it wasn't about the dress itself, but how great it made HER look. For stats, she's typically a 2, height 5'6", weight around 115, bust 32C, slightly hourglass.

My apologies for this sort of awful picture, taken from top down and with harsh flash is certainly not a flattering showcase, but it was the only one I had! I LOVED this dress. It is really forgiving and easy to wear, easy to dance in. It's not too tight, the waist forms up above the tummy line, the skirt is flowing, but keeps some shape. The navy blue tones down the full-sequin sparkle. Based on some early reviews, I chose the long version of this dress in two sizes. Turned out, it was about 5 inches too long even with 4" heels on. Had to bust out my tacking skills and hem tape, and it was no small effort, but it worked. I found jewelry to be tricky with this dress - everything I tried seemed wrong. I ended up getting some bolder minimalist Swarovski pieces that didn't try to compete and it was just right.

Countdown Couture Gown

Badgley Mischka

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Size Worn: 4L

Usual Size: 4

Height: 5' 7"

Weight: 125lbs

Bust: 34C

Hardest thing about deciding on this dress is figuring out what color it actually is. I knew exactly what I was getting, because I tried the dress on first in the BCBG store, but for those of you not sure, this dress is a BRIGHT EMERALD GREEN (closest to the shots with flash). For that reason, it just does not photograph well, it's literally a non-photo green, the color they use for green screens. Another thing you cannot tell from the pics is how beautifully this dress moves. It's very fine and wispy, and flutters like a breeze when you walk. There's something that looks like a short flap across the front in the RTR pic - that didn't exist on my dress. It has a VERY short mini-skirt in the underlayer, and once you get to walking, that fluttery dress flies all the way open - so if you are needing more coverage, keep the fashion tape handy. I said true to size, but I think it's a hair on the big side. I can't always fit into a 4. It is truly a beautiful, goddessy dress. When I came out of the dressing room with this one on in store, people were gasping all over the place.

Salsa Verde Gown

BCBGMAXAZRIA

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Size Worn: 4R

Usual Size: 4

Height: 5' 7"

Weight: 125lbs

Bust: 34C

I was in love with the dress, and ended up getting it as a replacement backup dress. I tried it on excitedly, and while it did fit (as in, I could zip it up), it would not stay put. The bust of the dress wanted to throw forward, and the back is so low, there's nothing to keep the bust from tipping way out...unless you are a triple D. I am between a size 4 and 6, wearing a 34 C or D, and even with VS two-cup enhancer I could not fill up the front of this dress enough to keep it from pitching forward (with a regular bra, it was about a 6" gape!). Before you get any ideas, this CANNOT be fixed with fashion tape, or even duct tape. This dress is heavily boned on the interior, with a built-in corset of sorts, much too solid and heavy to be held by adhesives. My only hope was to get a low-back bustier that I could pin or tack the dress to, but there were none to be found the day of my event. After about two hours trying to make it work (and I'm pretty creative when it comes to making it work), I sadly gave up. At 5'6", I needed 5" heels with 1" platforms to get the 8L up off the floor enough to walk. Overall, runs at least 1 size small, you MUST have a tiny-waisted curvy body to wear this dress.