Flamenco Dress Shopping Like a Bo$$

I am on a glorious mission to find my feria dress for 2018.  It all started last year when my friend took me to a few shops in the area and introduced me to the art of feria dress shopping. Now, the older I get, the less patience I have for shopping and I don’t like to shop in groups. But I have always had a thing for dresses and, according to my mom, used to throw a fit when she wouldn't let me wear one to school. Don’t ask me why, I don’t know why. What I know for certain, is that I like the gorgeous, colorful, frilly and fancy dresses worn during the Andalucían tradition of Feria de Primavera (Spring Fair). 

Feria typically takes place the weekend after Easter, marking the end of the pious Lenten season and the start of jovial days and warmer weather.  Each town hosts its own feria, with Sevilla being the most exclusive of the towns. The feria festivities are similar to a county or town fair but a little more fancy. In fact, ladies have been known to dish out upwards of $400+ for a tailor made on-of-a-kind dress. Since I’m balling on a budget and don’t want to shell out that much cash for a dress that won’t clean itself, I will likely save my coins and go for a pocket friendly piece. I purchased a “pre-loved” dress last year, which fit me to a “t”! 

This year, I started my quest less of a novice and more like a champ.  And since I’ve gone to a few feria events and put in a few hours shopping by this point, I thought I would be kind and share my process.  This is not set in stone and subject to change based on availability and cost and weather patterns.

1. Figure out the color.  I see yellow everywhere I look. I’m somewhat drawn to this color even though it’s not my favorite. But I know it will look divine on my complexion, so I decided that since this is the year of yellow I’m going to buy a yellow dress.  If I can’t find a yellow dress that I like and within my price range, I’m going to get yellow accent pieces. These include the shawl (mantoncillos), hair piece (peineta), flowers, maybe a purse and whatever else comes to mind. 
2. Start early. I bought my dress early last year. By early I mean 3 months before Feria kicked off in my town. This year I decided to start looking as early as January for an event that’s set to take place in April.  I heard that some shops mark down the prices on older inventory, so I’m hoping that by starting early, I’ll at least have a chance at snatching up a discounted dress before the newer inventory floods the racks. Starting early also helps minimize impulsive and last minute "urgent" shopping.
3. Consider multiple rounds of shopping. Look. You don’t want to purchase the first dress you see. Half of the fun is trying these bad boys out! So, go to a few shops, take some photos and weigh your options. Be prepared to fall in love with the more expensive dresses. It’s natural to be attracted to high quality items but if you know you’re not spending the equivalent of a car payment on a dress, then take a photo for memory’s sake.
4. Go to a fashion show. I invited a squad of fashionistas to the Pasarela de Flamenca show hosted by Tio Pepe in Jerez.  It was incredible.  We were treated to complimentary vermouth and witnessed beautiful creations by a few local fashion designers.  I’ve never been to a professional fashion show, so this was fabulous with a swish! I loved whispering my likes and dislikes to the ladies sitting next to me. It was also pretty nice to walk around and look at the vendor showcase where I purchased a nice pair of earrings. 
5. Don’t get rid of your previous dress. My Spanglish friend told me that the trick to Feria is keeping your old dresses. She said that a lot of the women go to Feria multiple nights in a row and they want to wear a different dress each night. This is true. I wore my first dress to Rota and Jerez. It was chillier in Rota than in Jerez and I wore the little white jacket over my dress in Rota. A few weeks later, I wore the same dress, sans jacket, to the warmer Jerez feria, where I baked in the sun. While I wore the same dress both times, the jacket created a different look. Of course this "don't throw out your dress" rule assumes you might be attending multiple feria events multiple years in a row. 
6. Make it a group effort. Whether you go shopping with a group of friends or post your top 3-4 dresses on your favorite social media platform, it’s more fun when you’re not the only one. This is the second year I asked people to help me vote for the best dress and it helped.  I’ve already gone shopping with my Spanglish friend, and by the time I publish this post, I’m sure I will have gone on at least one more feria dress shopping adventure with a group of flamenco fly ladies. 
7. Have Fun. As always, make sure you have fun. It's not supposed to cause an aneurysm or stress.  Enjoy the experience, get what you like and rock that dress like no one else. 

To all my flamenco fly fashionistas out there, go ahead and add your two cents to the post. Tips and ideas are welcome!