Mount View High will hold its formal at Hunter Valley Gardens while Kurri High will mark the occasion at Harbourview Function Centre, Newcastle.

Cessnock High will wait until after the HSC for its Year 12 formal, to be held at Peppers Creek Barrel Room on November 19.

Mount View students Kendall McCallum and Maddison Grey are both excited about tomorrow. With their graduation ceremony in the morning and the formal that night, it is a day they have been looking forward to for some time.

“It’s a whole day to spend with each other and our teachers, and a night where we can chill out and enjoy everything,” Kendall said.

“It will be good to let our hair down and have a break before the (HSC) exams,” she added.

“It’s finally our turn,” Maddison said.

“It (leaving school) is a bit scary, but exciting too – it’s a new chapter.”

The girls are well-prepared for the formal, with Maddison having bought her dress in the July school holidays and Kendall buying hers back in January.

Cecily Sutherland, owner of Vincent Street boutique Fashion Alley, said cocktail gowns have been popular in her store this year, with purple, green and lemon the most sought-after colours.

Bright colours have also been popular with the boys this year, according to menswear store owner Les Beveridge.

Apple green, hot pink, aqua, yellow and electric blue are among this year’s orders.

Transport to the formal is always a big deal – sometimes the vehicle you show up in is as important as what you’re wearing.

About half of Mount View’s Year 12 class will be travelling on the Shadows Double Decker bus to the formal.

It is a cheaper option, Kendall said, and a chance for everyone to see each other before arriving at the venue.

And after dresses, shoes, handbags and accessories, spray tans, nails, hair and makeup and of course, a ticket, the formal is a costly exercise.

Marney Bombolas, creator of online school formal directory Aussieprom.com, says the school formal industry is worth about $500 million to the Australian economy every year.

According to 2006 research by Griffith University, Australian students spend about $1300 in preparation for each school formal they go to.