27 January 2011

the wedding party

i have to admit, one of the things that is stressing me out the most about the wedding planning process is picking the perfect dress{es} for my bridesmaids.  they are all dear friends, one sister, and one sister-to-be and i don't want them to shell out a bunch of moolah for a dress they're not going to wear again.  i'm really going back and forth between the whole i pick the color and fabric and they pick the dress schtick that j.crew has made so popular and my love for the nice, uniform, clean look of all the gals in one dress and color.  {i'm not ballsy enough to do it, but how much are you loving this pic of bridesmaids in various shades of blue amsale dresses?!?! so gorgeous and chic}.


until i make up my mind, i'm collecting images of dresses that i would love to wear in hopes that they would too.  and i am LOVING this ann taylor dress in classic navy. reasonably priced and chic? yes, please!

9 comments:

USCEmily said...

Just thought I'd pass this tidbit along to you- someone passed it along to me! Not sure if you knew, but The Limited now has a line of bridesmaid dresses. It's not an extensive selection, but I really did like a few of their options. And the price is perfect- $89 for most. I would have loved to have chosen a dress from their line, but they didn't have the color I was wanting!

Unknown said...

I have done both the Jcrew and Ann Taylor options and have reworn both a bunch. So those would be great. For my wedding I picked strait up gold satin bridesmaid dresses which were right at $200. Everyone in my wedding party has worn them again with tons of compliments, so you never know...
I have been able to re ware all the bridesmaid dress I've acquired over the years except a few hot pink ones. It is very sweet that you are being so considerate, but honestly I would think all your maids would be more than willing to wear whatever you pick without complaints. Have fun!

Anonymous said...

My best friend had all of us wearing various colors and dresses from j.crew and I thought it looked terrible. Maybe I'm just more of a traditionalist and I enjoy the streamlined classic look of having great dresses that match. Also, the dresses still cost close to $200 and most of the bridesmaids complained about the fit (jcrew rarely fits those with boobs) and the quality of the dresses was terrible. Mine has already graced the rack of goodwill. I say, pick what you like and the girls will figure a way to wear it after the wedding. ie cutting it off and making a cocktail dress!

Pink Champagne said...

Love that Ann Taylor dress! JCrew has lovely bridesmaid dresses too... I know you will find the perfect dress for your girls - don't stress!

Perfectly Imperfect said...

I really, really like the same color, different dress option. I always think it looks so good and then you usually have the girls wearing dresses that fit their body type. I personally did same dress, different colors which looked awesome, but the dress was better suited for some of my bridesmaids versus others. Just my two cents :)

Anonymous said...

It's good to know the personalities of your bridesmaids, their budgets, and their lifestyles if you are concerned about "wearability" My bridesmaids were 25, 24, 24, 17, and 16 years old. They had little money, and they never go out in anything nicer than sunday best. So I went with something under 70 dollars and more casual. My bridesmaids really appreciated it. If you have friends that have reasons for wearing formal outfits, do that. Otherwise your bridesmaids will be selling their dresses. That's another thing to consider - will the dress be salable? Asking women to be in your party is a big deal for them. So always remember their budgets and not just what you want.

katie lake said...

I ended up choosing a dress from an etsy designer. They are about knee length with a pleated ruffle collar at $189. The designer makes the dresses from their measurement. She has some great, basic, girly dresses. check amandaarcher.etsy.com

Anonymous said...

I was having the same problem!! I have bridesmaids from a size 0 to a 12. I wanted a certain style (Audrey Hepburn style dress) but I wanted everyone wearing them to love them. Not to mention my bridesmaids are more endowed than myself. We tried tea length dresses, millions after millions of them, and no one really felt comfortable and excited (as I wanted them to wear them again as well). Then someone suggested long flowy ones. PERFECT! They flattered all, went with the theme (garden/country wedding), light fabric, and relativly cheap! Now I just need a flower girl dress to match...

Barefoot in the Park said...

i wanted to do varying neutrals for my girls, but ended up with 1 dress, 1 color. everyone seemed happy and it turned out great! (my maids dresses were from bella bridesmaid, and they ahd a great selection!)