Winter formal help -- picking out a dress/hairstyle?

hi all :) well, my school's winter formal is about a month away and i kind of want to get started picking out a style. i am barely 5'6 " with dark medium length brown hair (with sideswept bangs), blue-gray eyes, normal build, and a little tan still from the summer and the tanning bed.. oh, and i also have short legs. i am for sure going to get a short length dress rather than a long one (made that mistake last year!) but i'm a little stuck on a color i should look for. although the traditional winter color is black, i'm not really looking for a black dress. i want color :) any ideas?

also, i am very fond of this hairstyle (http://i21.tinypic.com/snjxqh.jpg) .. would this be something i could pull off? if so, should i just show my stylist this picture or would i have to include elaborate details?

thank you all for answers :) i'm open for them all!

Winter formal help -- picking out a dress/hairstyle?

Lol I have winter formal and no clue waht to wear either I really like the hair..... Umm here is what I was thinking mayb you wanna try similiar...

Dress-http://shop.nordstrom.com/S/2953684/0~23...

Or---http://shop.nordstrom.com/S/2952979/0~23...

Or---http://shop.nordstrom.com/S/2949026/0~23...

Shoes-

1st-http://shop.nordstrom.com/S/2940425/0~23...

2nd-http://shop.nordstrom.com/S/2942324/0~23...

3rd-http://shop.nordstrom.com/S/2954702/0~23...

And the dress im really considering...

http://www.saksfifthavenue.com/main/Prod...

Winter formal help -- picking out a dress/hairstyle?

The hairstyle is adorable, but you'd definitely have to go to a salon.... Just the picture would be fine.

If you want some dress ideas, pick a pretty, but not-too-bright color, such as lilac, gray, or light pink. However, you can pull off the bright colors, like red or green, gold and hot pink.... The list is endless. Just make your accessories bold for not-so-bold dresses, and not-so-bold for bold dresses.

http://shop.nordstrom.com/S/2963210/0~23...

http://shop.nordstrom.com/S/2907178/0~23...

http://shop.nordstrom.com/S/2949026?refs...

http://shop.nordstrom.com/S/2957354/0~23...

ALL OF THESE ARE PRETTY DRESSES, HOPE YOU LIKE THEM!! LET ME KNOW IF MY ADVICE HELPED!!