Teh One Who Knocks
05-18-2015, 11:16 AM
By Tamara Ikenberg - Alabama.com
http://i.imgur.com/X97bQ1z.jpg
A prom dress made by Mobile designer Destani Hoffman was deemed too provocative for the Pensacola High School prom.
Hoffman custom-made the gown for Seminole, AL. resident and J.M. Tate High School student and regional model Alexis Craft.
Craft, 16, went to the prom on Saturday, May 9, with a Pensacola High friend and was asked to leave the event because the dress's slits were too high and defied the dress code, according to Pensacola High School Dean Marsha Regina.
"It had panels in the front cut all the way to the crotch all the way around," Dean Regina said. "When she walked it was up to her crotch and it swung open and she had nothing else on underneath it."
Craft said she was wearing underwear and was not aware of the dress code. She had already worn the gown to the J.M. Tate prom with no problems. Dean Regina said each Pensacola High School student who purchased a prom ticket got a copy of the dress code.
To add to the confusion, Craft's dress was initially approved by women at the entrance who showed signs staying either "stop" or "go" to let prom-goers know if their dresses were acceptable.
"I made it to the ticket booth and I handed in my ticket and I was about to walk in the door to the dance," Craft said. She said another school official then stopped her and asked her to turn around.
Craft was then asked to go back to the women holding the stop and go signs.
Craft said that one of the dress-approvers lifted up the middle front panel of her dress.
"I didn't give her permission," Craft said. "She picked it up, looked at my underwear, and said 'That's not appropriate.'"
Craft was then asked to leave, and given the option to return with a proper dress. She did not return.
"I felt humiliated, like I was harassed by adults, and I lost a lot of my confidence," Craft said. "I just wanted to leave as soon as possible because I didn't want to cry in front of the people who embarrassed me."
Dean Regina said nobody lifted up part of Craft's dress and "nobody embarrassed her."
Dean Regina also explained why Craft wasn't ousted upon the first review of her dress.
"We let her in because when she walked through, the panels were laying flat and it looked like she had on a big coat of some kind," Dean Regina said. "When she turned the corner and walked" it was evident how high the slits were.
Craft said several other girls were also kicked out of the prom for wearing dresses that were too risque.
Craft asked Hoffman to create her prom dress because she likes the designer's edgy, unique style. The model and the designer had previously worked together at various fashion shows.
"I knew that she would make an amazing dress," Craft said. "I wanted a prom outfit that was "un-prom" and pushed boundaries, something that was different than all the other dresses."
Hoffman was happy to oblige.
"(Alexis) asked that I make her a prom dress incorporating the high slits that are all the rage on the red carpets at the moment," Hoffman said. "She asked for an edgy but classy- more runway than 'prom' gown and that's what she got."
Hoffman, a graduate of Spanish Fort High School and the Savannah College of Art and Design, has shown collections at Mobile Fashion Week and Coastal Fashion Week and recently designed a dress for an actress attending an Atlanta premiere of the fim "Divergent."
She said she's disappointed that Craft was punished for wearing something daring and original.
"The dress is not see-through, covers all of her inappropriate areas, and actually is classy and very one-of a kind," Hoffman said. "They think that she is being provocative because she has slits in her skirt? That's just confusing to me."
http://i.imgur.com/X97bQ1z.jpg
A prom dress made by Mobile designer Destani Hoffman was deemed too provocative for the Pensacola High School prom.
Hoffman custom-made the gown for Seminole, AL. resident and J.M. Tate High School student and regional model Alexis Craft.
Craft, 16, went to the prom on Saturday, May 9, with a Pensacola High friend and was asked to leave the event because the dress's slits were too high and defied the dress code, according to Pensacola High School Dean Marsha Regina.
"It had panels in the front cut all the way to the crotch all the way around," Dean Regina said. "When she walked it was up to her crotch and it swung open and she had nothing else on underneath it."
Craft said she was wearing underwear and was not aware of the dress code. She had already worn the gown to the J.M. Tate prom with no problems. Dean Regina said each Pensacola High School student who purchased a prom ticket got a copy of the dress code.
To add to the confusion, Craft's dress was initially approved by women at the entrance who showed signs staying either "stop" or "go" to let prom-goers know if their dresses were acceptable.
"I made it to the ticket booth and I handed in my ticket and I was about to walk in the door to the dance," Craft said. She said another school official then stopped her and asked her to turn around.
Craft was then asked to go back to the women holding the stop and go signs.
Craft said that one of the dress-approvers lifted up the middle front panel of her dress.
"I didn't give her permission," Craft said. "She picked it up, looked at my underwear, and said 'That's not appropriate.'"
Craft was then asked to leave, and given the option to return with a proper dress. She did not return.
"I felt humiliated, like I was harassed by adults, and I lost a lot of my confidence," Craft said. "I just wanted to leave as soon as possible because I didn't want to cry in front of the people who embarrassed me."
Dean Regina said nobody lifted up part of Craft's dress and "nobody embarrassed her."
Dean Regina also explained why Craft wasn't ousted upon the first review of her dress.
"We let her in because when she walked through, the panels were laying flat and it looked like she had on a big coat of some kind," Dean Regina said. "When she turned the corner and walked" it was evident how high the slits were.
Craft said several other girls were also kicked out of the prom for wearing dresses that were too risque.
Craft asked Hoffman to create her prom dress because she likes the designer's edgy, unique style. The model and the designer had previously worked together at various fashion shows.
"I knew that she would make an amazing dress," Craft said. "I wanted a prom outfit that was "un-prom" and pushed boundaries, something that was different than all the other dresses."
Hoffman was happy to oblige.
"(Alexis) asked that I make her a prom dress incorporating the high slits that are all the rage on the red carpets at the moment," Hoffman said. "She asked for an edgy but classy- more runway than 'prom' gown and that's what she got."
Hoffman, a graduate of Spanish Fort High School and the Savannah College of Art and Design, has shown collections at Mobile Fashion Week and Coastal Fashion Week and recently designed a dress for an actress attending an Atlanta premiere of the fim "Divergent."
She said she's disappointed that Craft was punished for wearing something daring and original.
"The dress is not see-through, covers all of her inappropriate areas, and actually is classy and very one-of a kind," Hoffman said. "They think that she is being provocative because she has slits in her skirt? That's just confusing to me."