Casual styles, green tones, and tight-fitted dresses made a notable appearance in this year’s homecoming fashion trends. PHS’s 2022 homecoming was held on the evening of Saturday, October 15, but fashion preparation began weeks before, with new trending styles of shoes, accessories, and dresses.

Homecoming is a semi-formal dance so most students wear mini dresses rather than long gown-style dresses. Though uncommon, midi and maxi dresses did occasionally make an appearance at homecoming. Junior Nidhi Parekh observed this trend and noted other popular styles. 

“Short body-con dresses were definitely the most popular this year, but I also saw a lot of dresses with cut-outs and sparkly designs, as well as a lot of green,” Parekh said, “Mine was a silky green dress with cut-outs around the waist and an open back.” 

Parekh’s dress is the perfect example of this year’s homecoming fashion trend; the light green satin fabric makes for a subdued yet chic design. Windsor, a trending homecoming dress store, described green, pink, and blue as the three most popular dress colors of the season, with green coming in number one. Though widely worn this year, vibrant color schemes have received some backlash. Senior class vice president Hannah Lucas-Dreiss has strong preferences in this area of homecoming fashion. 

“I hate bright-colored or over-the-top sparkly dresses,” Lucas-Dreiss said, “Anything a neon shade of blue or green is a no from me.”

Lucas-Dreiss’s inclination for casual yet tasteful dresses, as opposed to overbearing eccentric  styles, demonstrates the gradual reshaping of homecoming fashion. Throughout the past few years, girls have experimented with vibrancy, sparkles, and flashy dresses but are beginning to resort back to relaxed styles. Dresses have been evolving to be more simplistic, and shoes also follow in this trend. Heels are generally customary for pictures, but recently girls have been making the transition to sneakers or flats, preferring a more casual and comfortable approach to homecoming in preparation for a long night of dancing and partying. Freshman Tanvi De had to learn this the hard way. 

“Honestly, heels at homecoming should be banned- I made the mistake of wearing really high heels and I spent the night complaining and getting blisters,” De said, “This year, I noticed some girls wore heels, but a lot of them were smart and wore Converse.”

Homecoming fashion differs every year as students explore the margins of fashion and embrace the flexibility of homecoming as a semi-formal dance, prioritizing trends that concentrate on comfort and simplicity rather than extravagance.