I bought two pairs of those high heeled pointy elf toed boots when they were deeply on sale. Unfortunately, walking in them outside of the cushiony shoe department floor proved to give me several large blisters in the 500 feet from my room to class.
Sadly, I had to give those boots away to a transvestite. Give me round toes anytime. In that vein, has anyone seen what style the dress boots are going to be this year? My trusty beige square-toe boots finally died. 
Eve, dear, this is not a fashion dilemma. There is only one answer to this question. Get thee to that dressmaker now.
I’m very sure the bank would understand your need for a loan. Given all the facts the request is not unreasonable.
silk saris can be gotten for $45 and up. Acrylic for $8 and up. The acrylic saris that I get for test runs are about $25 to $30. The ball gown is going to be made of three acrylic saris that i found for $20 each. they have the same color pattern. cream base dyed magenta on one edge and teal on the other. The color fade to the cream forming about a 11’ border on each side. The fabric is a chiffon with a paisely pattern
in satin brocade patches. The pulla pieces are brocade, but a very soft one. It flows well and is eye catching, both good for competition ball gowns. The dress will be washable, if i ever finish it.
You’re in luck! In cruising the Nordstrom shoe site, http://store.nordstrom.com/category/cat_medium.asp?category=2376778~2372808~2372940&origin=sdlpdd I found oodles of round toes (and other freakin’ adorable shoes). I’ve sorted them by price…there’s plenty of affordable stuff in there!
Today I’m wearing a pair of BP ankle-strap leather-and suede w/4" heels. They’re cute, round-toe, and comfy. Poifect!
Oh…and the pointy shoes? Yeah…like all women want their feet to look three or four sizes bigger, right?
I don’t know how women walk in the elongated pointy shoes! I had to turn my feet outward just to move in them! I don’t mind pointy pumps if they’re the old kind. You know…just pointy? But NOOOOOOOOOO! they had to tack another inch and a half of length on them. Because elf toes are so FUCKING attractive. Feh. They need to die.
Now, see, I was just coming in to vote for the raw silk (in red)! You sound like SkipMagic when I took him with me to find a skirt for a job interview; I found a red, raw-silk number on sale, and when I held it up to him, he said, "But look, the fabric is all snagged . . . "
I’m not one of those people who thinks men (you know, ones who are NOT Versace) should be excluded from female fashion decisions (though I suppose I’m making assumptions that you are one)–in fact, Skip comes in handy when I’m on the fence about something (all it takes are the words “You look like a sausage” and it’s back on the rack 
), but I gotta disagree with you on this one.
Silk! Silk! Silk!
If I may add my two cents…
The dress is lovely, and having a couple made is a excellent idea.
However, I would have your seamstress “tweak” each dress a bit so they’re a bit different (apart from just fabric) - same line, same style, just add some different detailing so it doesn’t look quite so much like you have the same dress in two different colors.
Just a pet peeve of mine - it makes a lovely garment too “uniformy” when you have the exact thing in another color.
Well, I had not realised that I ever have a mental image of Dopers’ appearances, but I really would not have guessed Eve to be a fat, old anything!
It seems to me you have had a depressing tiem, lately, Eve so you simply reclassify the dresses into the category of “medicine” 
And whence all these “poofs”? And no-one objecting to the term?..Ah yes, language difference. Tee hee
Eve always gives herself a bad rap in the looks department. There are pictures of her around…She’s a doll. I’m sure someone will provide a link.
Hmmm…colors. I like the teal idea. I’m not sure about red. Maybe a really deep orangy-red. The silk sounds good. And there are degrees of “nubbiness” on the silk. I’d probably be more drawn to one with slightly less nub.