Girls elegantly walk through the door of the Stamford Marriott hotel with their hair pinned tight.

Eyes veer straight to the girl while many whisper under their breath, “Those dresses are so cute.” But, of course, how cute a dress is differs from year to year. Here are some tips to picking the perfect dress for the perfect night.

 BRING ON THE SPARKLE

This year, the Counties dance has sparkles written all over it. Divya Dewan ’16 strongly supports the sparkle trend because, “It looks pretty and it adds detail to a plain dress”.

Sparkles are the perfect way to take an ordinary dress and turn it into something extraordinary. They are just the right touch of fun without the dress becoming tacky.

SHOW SOME SKIN

Another trend predicted for girls’ dresses this year are cutouts. Dresses with just a glimpse of skin showing are going to be big this year. In the past years, they have made occasional appearances at dances, but this year, the Girls Class of 2016 group loves dresses that are missing pieces from their front, back and even sides.

While shopping for her own Counties dress, Erin Munley ’16 found that cutouts can be a great addition to a dress.

“A slight and subtle cutout can make a dress look cuter and more unique” Munley ’16 said. However, she did warn that showing too much skin can come across as too much, but if done the right way, cutouts can be very tasteful.

BLACK IS THE NEW BLACK

Another trend to watch out for is dark colors. Dresses colored with hues of grey, black, navy and red will fill the ballroom. Jenny Vogel, an employee at Winged Monkey, noted that dresses this year have subtle, muted colors.

DON’T BE A COPY CAT

Junior Girls, past and present, know the tale of constant Facebook notifications prompting them to find a dress as fast as humanly possible.

This year is no different and junior girls’ phones are buzzing with posts that say, “this is mine, please don’t steal,” “ordered it today” or “this might be mine.”

Junior girls are constantly feeling the pressure to not wear the same dress as someone else and try to claim a dress they like instantaneously.

KEEP CALM AND LOVE YOUR DRESS

Some fear that their dress ideas might be stolen, so they won’t partake in the high stress of the group.

Jenna Levantin ’16 is one of the select juniors who has chosen a relaxed approach to selecting a dress, just like the senior girls this year.

“I opted out of posting my dress because I don’t see the big deal in wearing the same dress as someone else,” Levantin said.

While Levantin may be a minority among junior girls, the entire senior class has opted out of posting dresses.

Many students agree that not having to deal with all the stress has been blissful. “It’s really nice”, Jess Shaw ’15 said. “I’m not getting nearly as many notifications and honestly it really doesn’t matter if someone is wearing the same dress.”

The differences between how juniors and seniors are dealing with dances are huge, but one thing that will remain the same is how breathtaking the girls will look on the dance floor.

Whether a dress has sparkles or slits up the side, Staples will be rocking the dance in style from head to toe.