The Patch Guide to Avoiding Disaster on Prom Night

After months of preparation, your look finally is complete. Your dress is amazing, your hair is gorgeous and your accessories compliment the whole ensemble. Then the unthinkable happens.

A strap to your dress breaks. Or the heel falls off your shoe. Perhaps your once-coiffed "do" is a mess after hours of dancing.

What’s a girl to do? Hide the rest of the night? We think not. Cranberry Patch talked with the experts and brings you a go-to guide for fixing -- and avoiding -- prom disasters.

Disaster Scenario Number 1: Wardrobe Malfunction

What happens if you look down at the gown of your dreams and realize it is slowly falling off your body?

While you may not be able to fix a broken dress strap in the middle of the dance floor, Cheryl Hahn, of Custom Creations by Cheryl in Evans City, has another solution.

“Safety pins," she said. “You can always take a travel sewing kit in your bag and attempt to sew the strap, but the quickest and easiest thing to do is pack some small pins in your purse.”

Depending on where the break occurred, do your best to place the pin as inconspicuously as possible.

“The smaller the pin, the less chance someone will notice it,” Hahn said.

If your straps are holding up just fine but your hemline is too long, then bust out the one thing Hollywood starlets won't leave home without.

“Double-sided tape is perfect because it’s quick and easy, and nobody can see it,” Hahn said.“Tape the hem to the appropriate length and it should hold the rest of the night.”

Speaking of wardrobe malfunctions, prevent yourself from making a Janet Jackson-at-the-Super-Bowl type mistake by donning the proper undergarments first.

Depending on the dress, you may need a strapless, or even backless, bra to make sure your silhouette looks smooth. Seamless panties also are available and make sure that nothing is visible underneath your gown.

If your dress is intricate, or you're not entirely sure it will stay where it's supposed to on your chest throughout the night, consider using that double-sided tape elsewhere.

Disaster Scenario # 2: Your Shoe Breaks

Your best bet to keep your heels from breaking is to try out your shoes well before the main event. Slip on some gym socks and walk around the house in your heels. This will give you and your shoes time to get to know each other and reduce the chance that the heel will break.

If your heel does snap off on the dance floor, get through it gracefully.

According to wikihow.com, the best way to deal with breaking a heel is to hold on -- to someone else. If you feel your shoe is about to snap, grab on to your date to keep yourself from collapsing. Be careful though -- if the person isn't strong enough, you  both may fall.

Once you recover from your heel breaking, examine the shoe. Can you put the heel back in? Will it be sturdy enough to balance you? If not, you have a few choices.

You could be super-prepared by packing instant glue in your purse. Use this to glue the heel back in place. Or, you could go barefoot.

There are several benefits to going barefoot. First, you won't have to worry about your heel snapping again. Second, who likes to dance in heels anyway?

Kick off your other shoe and make your way to the dance floor. You’ll probably be the most comfortable girl there!

Disaster Scenario #3: Your Hair Comes Undone

You paid a ridiculous amount of money to get your hair pinned perfectly. But, after a night of boogying on the dance floor, your once exquisite up-do is a tangled mess.

According to Jamie Ryan, stylist at the Command Performance Salon in Gibsonia, the only way to tame your mane is to come to the ball prepared.

“Bobby pins and hair spray,” Ryan stressed. “Bobby pins and hair spray.”

Depending on your style, Ryan said, you should pay attention to how the stylist transforms your mane.

“If you have a lot of curls and pins going into your up-do, ask the stylist how she does each one," she said. "That way, if one does come loose, you will have an idea of how to put it back into place.”

Once the curl is properly pinned, make sure it doesn’t happen again.

“Criss-cross two bobby pins to make sure the hair stays in place," Ryan said. "Then use a firm hairspray for even more hold."

If you're wearing your hair down on your big night, sweating the night away on the dance floor, or humidity in the air, may cause your tresses to lose their luster.

Ryan has a fix for that, too.

“A spritz of hairspray at your roots throughout your hair will add volume," she said. "If you are looking to smooth out frizz from humidity, bring along a smoothing cream. A small amount will take care of any frizz or fly-aways.”

Disaster Scenario #4: Makeup Meltdown

Heat is a girl's worst enemy when it comes to formal events -- and not just because it can ruin hair or wrinkle a dress.

Heat causes sweat, and that can have a disastrous effect on your makeup. Ryan suggested bringing facial tissues to the dance to dab at your face should you begin to overheat.

“Just wipe your cheeks, forehead, and under your eyes," she said. "It will cool your skin off as well as get off any residue.”

To keep your look camera-ready throughout the night, Ryan said to lightly touch up your makeup after you blot your face.

“If you just reapply your new makeup over your old makeup, you will end up looking cakey, even in the photos,” she said.

Disaster Scenario # 5: Just About Anything Else

There's no telling what could happen at prom. To make sure you're prepared no matter what, pack the following in your purse:

• Tampons/sanitary products
• Makeup, including compact with mirror
• Stain-remover stick
• Breath mints
• Safety pins/sewing kit
• Hairspray/bobby pins
• All-purpose glue
• Toothpicks/floss
• Cell phone
• Deodorant/perfume
• Facial tissue wipes