How These Students Got Ready For Virtual Prom

When social distancing orders started going into effect earlier this year, there was a growing feeling of uncertainty around how long it would last. What many high school students didn't expect was for mandates to eventually cancel or postpone their major life events, including college admission exams, school dances, and graduation ceremonies.

While the importance of slowing the spread of COVID-19 can't be stressed enough, it's left teens all over the world disappointed. With people turning to virtual spaces for work meetings, birthday parties, and even weddings, it only makes sense that teens would use the same technology to celebrate their big moments, too. Now, virtual proms are starting to take place all around the country, which range from informal FaceTime meetups with friends on their cancelled prom nights to Instagram Live parties meant for anyone who missed their dance. Some schools are even creating hashtags so students can share their photos with classmates.

"I was really bummed when our prom got cancelled," says Nausikaa, a senior in California. "But I decided to celebrate it virtually because I hadn't seen my friends in so long and I wanted a reason to dress up and hang out with them, even if it was just over the phone."

We spoke to several teens about losing their proms, reclaiming this memory virtually, and the beauty products that helped them get ready. Check out what they had to say, ahead.