Trying to remember the name of the store where I actually purchased this dress took me on quite a trip. I found my old dress again!
The first name coming to mind was 5-7-9, but then the logo looked totally wrong. I remember thinking this store was fancy. Was Contempo Casuals “fancy” in my small town brain?
A folder on an old hard drive called “2018-0618-garbage” means that the dress is legit 22 years old at the time of this reveal. I wore it to Homecoming in 1996. My mom went shopping with me. I love the color green, so this was the dress for me. They did not have my size, so a new one was shipped from a different store.
When we went back to the mall to pick it up, my mom felt the need to inspect the dress. There was one thread snagged on the skirt in the front. The cashier suggested we just pull it some more. The other option was to wait for a replacement from five states away. We took home the snagged version.
I’m still searching for the one picture of me in this dress at my date’s house before Homecoming. When my cousin got married and I wore it again because I really did think it was the coolest thing, all backless and layered.
Are you ready for this? My Google search tried to explain what’s coming: A 20-year-old green polyester garment turns maroon primarily due to fume fading, where nitrogen oxide gases from the air react with the dye, often turning blue-based colors like green or blue into red or maroon. This chemical reaction, combined with aged dye decomposition, causes a permanent color shift.
Whoops. Can’t wear that again. Or can I?
My search for which store sold me a Blondie and Me Evening by Linda Bernell dress (using only words) led to a link for an A-line dress from the same label in a size 7. It’s the same dress!
Honesty, maybe I didn’t trash it, someone cleaned up my donation, and tried to flip it. My pictures were taken in 2018 when we were getting ready to move. This listing looks like it expired in 2026. My dress probably went in a big bag of garbage.
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