Even though Miss Teen USA has not aired on television since 2007, it is still interesting to watch the results unfold each year. Since there was nothing better to do (okay, maybe that’s debatable), I had no choice but to watch the livestream of the pageant. And let me say, it was time well-spent!
The most exciting part of pageants has always been the evening gowns. Judging the gowns as the girls walk across the stage is a spectacle that never fails to lose my interest. So in this article, I am back at it again with my take on the evening gowns! I did it before, and I am doing it again.
The only bad thing is that the gowns were all created by Sherri Hill. If I am not lying, all of the contestants were required to wear Sherri Hill gowns. Sherri Hill has some nice gowns, don’t get me wrong. But with the effort and money spent on preparing for the competition, the girls should still be able to pick a gown from any designer of their choosing. After all, they only have one chance to compete on a national level and impress the judges.
With that said, I have to judge based on what I see. And based on what I saw, here are the good gowns, bad gowns, and the copycat gowns.
Good Gowns
Zoe Hunt- California
I love this gown, oh my god! Seeing it for the first time made me think to myself, “I want that gown!” The blue color, the style, and the placement of embellishments made a memorable impression on me. It was honestly my favorite gown of the night, and I would have placed Zoe in the top 5 just for wearing it!
Ki’ilani Arruda- Hawaii
Ki’ilani gets a special shout out from me for not only winning the whole thing, but also for being memorable from the get-go! She did what she had to do to make herself unforgettable, from the yellow gown to the yellow flower on her head. I was very happy for her, and she deserved to win. Congratulations, Ki’ilani! Wishing you well on your reign!
Montana Cencarik- Nevada
Remember when my favorite evening gowns from the Miss Universe Philippines pageant were mostly red? Well here comes another red gown that’s among my favorites! This is a gown I would love, and unsurprisingly, it is one of my faves! The color, style, and overall presentation is pleasant. I’ll take this gown for $1,000!
Brooklynn Baton- Utah
Now some of my readers will probably want to refute this next gown with me, and go ahead. But it’s the glimmer that does it for me. I’ll be honest. This gown would’ve looked more luxurious if better material was used for the background color. Nevertheless, I still put this gown in the “Good” section, because it works for what it is.
Jinnie Tomes- Indiana
Jinnie’s gown is reminiscent of the type of gowns I have seen on the red carpet. Because of that, it left an impression on me while thinking about the best evening gowns from the competition. I would be content with seeing her wear it on a red carpet.
And as content as I am with these gowns, this is where the “Good” section ends. It’s time for me to balance it out with the “Bad” section.
Bad Gowns
Zoe Bigham- Mississippi
I won’t lie. This gown is not as bad as it could have been. I’ve seen worse gowns, and black and pink go together. However, there was definitely not going to be a top 16 placement with this gown. If it was in just one solid color, then maybe the odds of a semi-finalist placement would’ve been higher. Simply put, this gown was not it, chief.
Kiera Pipeling- Vermont
The style of this gown is definitely not the best. The waist and skirt parts together look cheap and do not make for a fabulous gown. The color is nice, though. A more coordinated gown with all parts suiting each other would’ve been great.
Olivia Lulich- Wisconsin
A similar critique to the last gown, but the difference is that the top and skirt do not go together. I’ve seen this kind of gown in pageants before, and it does not work the majority of the time. The style of the skirt definitely ruins the whole thing. Love the red color, but not the gown.
Izabel Kreger- South Dakota
Why, oh why is the gown so wrinkled? I don’t understand it. I know that’s how it was made, but still. That gown shouldn’t have come out so wrinkly. I would’ve been okay with it had it been smooth with a little bit of embellishments placed at the top part.
Amya Caldwell- Virginia
It reminds me of a shirt I could buy at Belk. Nothing wrong with Belk clothes, but the whole thing looks pretty cheap. Though the sleeve part receives a whole bunch of “no” from me.
Now that I’m through with speaking on the bad gowns, I want to bring up the fact that there are Sherri Hill designs that have been recycled and some Sherri Hill gowns that are similar to past gowns. Let me get into those right now!
Copycat Gowns
Sabrina Ripley- Idaho (Reminiscent of Stefanía Fernández’s gown from the Miss Universe 2009 Pageant)
While Sabrina looked nice in her gown, looking at the photo can’t help but make me think about Stefanía Fernández’s gown from the night she won Miss Universe. I know that some of my readers are wondering, “How so?” Well, look at the photos! You be the judge. This was probably more by coincidence than anything else, but it is something I want to highlight. Even the hair has some similarities.
Audrey Eckert- Nebraska (Reminiscent of Karlie Hay’s gown from the Miss Teen USA 2016 competition)
Maybe this is another thing that happened by coincidence, but Audrey’s gown makes me think that it’s an altered version of Karlie Hay’s gown. I think Karlie’s gown is more interesting, but I cannot get the resemblance out of my mind.
Peyton Brown- North Carolina (Reminiscent of Tianna Tuamoheloa’s gown from the Miss USA 2019 competition)
Here is the first example of a Sherri Hill design actually being recycled. Peyton’s gown is very close to what Tianna wore at the Miss USA competition a year and a half prior. And that’s not even all of them.
Mattie Barker- Kentucky (Reminiscent of Birta Abiba Þórhallsdóttir’s gown from the Miss Universe 2019 competition)
This is another example of a recycled design. When I saw Kentucky’s gown, I immediately said, “That was the exact same gown Birta wore last year.” Birta was Iceland’s representative at the previous Miss Universe competition.
Marianne Bautista- Washington (Reminiscent of one of Pia Wurtzbach’s final gowns as Miss Universe)
After seeing Marianne’s gown in a photo, I thought back to the pink gown Pia Wurtzbach wore on her final night as Miss Universe, which was also designed by Sherri Hill. The straps make the gown slightly altered, but not by much. The skirt part is clearly the same. See what I mean?
Sophia Martino- West Virginia (Reminiscent of Kelly Hutchinson’s gown from the Miss USA 2020 competition)
Now before I go, here is an actual example of two different girls wearing the same gown in the same year. Same gown, different color. This is what happens when everyone is required to wear the same designer.
Speaking of which, a similar article about the Miss USA gowns will be out soon!
