status report: bridesmaid dresses (part II)

Now that you've gotten to see some of the world's worst bridesmaid dresses let's get down to business: a real update on my (long and tedious) search for bridesmaid dresses! It turns out that selecting bridesmaid dresses is a lot more challenging than I expected for a number of reasons.

Reason #1: Bridesmaid dresses seem to fall into two categories: ugly or expensive. I feel like I have to look at hundreds before I find one that is even a remote possibility. Does this mean that I'm too picky or that I just have good taste? I'm just going to stick with the latter :) 

Reason #2: Picking bridesmaid dresses isn't just about you. You have to consider the (fabulous) girls who will be wearing them. This means taking each girl into account when looking at the color, fit, and price tag of a dress. This is where it gets really hard. There are plenty of dresses that I am head over heels in love with but they are either too expensive or in a color/fit that wouldn't look flattering on everyone, which leads me to my next point...

Reason #3: I'm a people-pleaser. I want everyone to feel comfortable and look great  and I also want them to be happy with the dress. To really, genuinely like it. I'm not even sure that this is possible, to be completely honest. Getting five girls to agree on one dress? Unlikely. My bridesmaids (BMs) have been great so far. No complaints, very easy to work with, etc. but I don't want them to look back on the wedding and talk about how much they hated what they had to wear, which leads me to...

Reason #4: The phrase "you can totally wear that again!" haunts my dreams at night. I feel like people expect brides to choose bridesmaid dresses that are re-wearable. Believe you me, this is REALLY HARD to do! I've considered straying away from my ideal vision of light colored dresses to go with black just so they'll be re-wearable. That's ridiculous right? Should I have to change the whole aesthetic of my wedding (black really goes against the rustic, romantic vibe, don't you think?) that I've been dreaming of just so the dresses can be re-wearable? I've decided, no. I'm going to try my best to pick something that is flattering on everyone but if it's not re-wearable, oh well. With that being said, when I'm a bridesmaid I will definitely be prepared to buy dresses that will hang in the back of my closet forever, never to be re-worn, as long as it makes the bride happy.

Any future/past brides out there who have run into similar problems/concerns? I have a feeling I'm not alone on this one!

Ok, back to the search for the bridesmaid dresses. I was originally leaning towards gray Priscilla of Boston dresses in a few different styles. I had planned on letting everyone choose their own style in the same gray or similar shades of gray. I loved this idea because it would create a cohesive look, but everyone would get to wear something that they loved. The problem? All of the styles that we liked came in a really thick, shiny sateen fabric. Unfortunately, that doesn't fit in with the feel of the wedding (it's a bit too formal than what I'm going for) so I've shifted my focus to light, romantic, ethereal dresses in grays, blushes, and taupes. Below you'll find some dresses that I'm swooning over lately.

As far as realistic options go, I love these first two from Jcrew. I'm thinking either in this color or the grey below:

photo courtesy of jcrew

photo courtesy of jcrew

And as for the unrealistic (but absolutely stunning) options...meet Sarah Seven, one of the most talented dress designers I have ever seen:

 

photos courtesy of sarah seven

Unfortunately the Sarah Seven dresses above are over $500 and therefore not an option. I wouldn't be able to sleep at night if I asked my BM's to pay $500 for a dress (first of all because I'd feel bad and secondly because I'd be afraid that they'd attempt to kill me in my sleep.)

Another thing I'm considering (that I mentioned briefly above) is mixing up the styles but having everyone wear the same color or having different colors and styles but a cohesive palette. This may sound a little wacky but I think it looks really good if done right....

photo courtesy of weddingbee.com

photo courtesy of weddingbellsblog.com

photo courtesy of lane dittoe

photo courtesy of hey gorgeous

See? I think it can look great! 

So that's where we stand as far as BM dresses are concerned. We still have a few months before we need to decide so the current plan is to wait and see if regular stores like BCBG and Anthropologie have any cute (and affordable) dresses in their spring lines. I'll keep you all updated as we make more progress! 

xoxo, 

zar