She and her parents spent $160 on a dress for her prom, which was last month — and even that amount, she says, was a real splurge for her.

“I’ve always been the kind of person that if I get something on sale, it feels more rewarding,” says Emily, who’s 17.

So, to balance things out, she got the pumps she wore to prom at Payless Shoes and wore $5 earrings. Her boyfriend used a tux he’d bought for a family wedding. And they decided to go all out on a $30-a-person dinner instead of spending $70 each on a “party bus” with friends.

Other students, she says, cut back even more, by wearing dresses they already had and going to McDonald’s for dinner.

And at some high schools, it’s also become more common for prom-goers to go the second-hand route.

Officials at the Savers/Value Village chain of thrift stores, for instance, say they’ve seen a noticeable increase in prom-related business. Some of it is due to the economy, while other teens are interested in the idea of recycling a dress or going for a unique look.

Petra Tank, a 16-year-old student at Concord Academy in Petoskey, Mich., spent $7.50 on a floor-length turquoise halter dress she found at a resale shop in her small hometown in the state’s northern lower peninsula. Her entire outfit cost about $42 and included a “two buck” broach she sewed on the dress as an accent.

“I had compliments all night long,” she says, noting that her date’s attire included a skinny black tie and Converse tennis shoes.

Stacie Freudenberg / AP Senior Maya Thomas tries on a prom dress as her mother, Lynette, looks on during a Glass Slipper Project event at Chicago's Farren Elementary School on May 3. The project is a Chicago-based charity that gives underprivileged girls recycled prom dresses and accessories to help defray the high cost of prom.

Now, Tank adds, she’s not in debt like her best friend who spent $170 on a coral beaded gown. “She has a payment plan with her mother to pay for the dress until August. It’s just ridiculous!” she says, laughing.

Eighteen-year-old Kubby Martin went to a previous prom in a borrowed maroon tux, but is going the more traditional route for his senior prom this year and renting a tux.

“It’s not so much that I want to spend that much — but it’s what I need to do to look right,” Martin says. He’s a senior at Bellevue High School in Washington state, where this year’s prom theme is “Old Hollywood.” Between his prom and the one he attended at his girlfriend’s high school, he figures he (and his mom) could end up spending close to $1,000 on everything.

It’s not easy, since he’s spending so much more on gas for his car. “But I just want it to be special,” he says.

Back in Chicago, Maya Thomas was certain her prom would be special, thanks to the dark blue, floor-length dress with rhinestones and matching accessories she got for free. She’d never worn makeup before, she said — never had a dress like this, never attended a prom until now.

Hearing Maya’s story made Glass Slipper co-founder Dorian Carter teary.

“I tend to cry all the time,” Carter says. “Anybody that comes in and leaves with a dress, I’m happy.”

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