Your bridesmaids are your besties, your crew, your sisters. They are some of the closest people in your life. You don’t want to saddle them with an ugly bridesmaid dress, do you?
I didn’t think so. :)
In this blog post, I’m going to tell you exactly how to trick bridesmaids into loving the bridesmaid dress they wear to your wedding. If you’re wondering how that’s even possible, it’s surprisingly easy: choose bridesmaid dresses that don’t match. I know how it sounds, but believe me: they’re going to look incredible.
Allow me to elaborate.
Bridesmaid Dresses That Don’t Match
One major reason why bridesmaids typically hate the dress they wear is because it doesn’t fit them correctly.
And not in alterations per se, but in overall style. Perhaps they’d never be caught dead in a halter top, but alas, your wedding day arrives and there they are, rocking a halter neckline and trying to re-stick that adhesive bra you had to buy for such an occasion.
Tugging at an Uncomfortable Neckline
Or maybe strapless dresses cause them to keep pulling up at it all night or they don’t like how it makes their neck and shoulders look. The length is too short, the v-neckline plunges too much, or they want to rock short sleeves but your dress is sleeveless.
Wearing a Bridesmaid Dress in Front of Guests
To some, walking down the aisle and standing in front of a crowd of guests is a tough thing to do itself. Now imagine doing that, plus wearing a dress someone else picked for you. It’s not the most comfortable thing in the world, is it?
So, if you want to hand the reins over to your bridesmaids, give them the freedom to pick bridesmaid dresses that don’t match but look amazing on each of them, and make yourself known as the coolest bride ever, read on.
3 Steps to Picking Bridesmaid Dresses They’ll Want to Wear
This first step is crucial to the overall success of bridesmaid dresses that don’t match… but look amazing in photos. You don’t want everyone to look like they just showed up in whatever they want. You still crave some organization and cohesion but with a little compromise.
Do bridesmaid dresses have to match?
No. They ought to coordinate in color, length, and fabric, but do bridesmaid dresses have to match? No, not necessarily. I’ll show you how it’s done. Here’s how.
STEP 1: Choose a dress color.
First, choose one color for the dress that complements your wedding and looks great on everyone.
This color should be a tone that is easy to find in most retailers. One example is navy blue, as it’s pretty standard across the board, and navy blue at one store looks about the same as navy blue at another.
This is different than, say, cabernet, which may look totally different at David’s Bridal and worlds apart at Lulu’s. You get the idea.
Little black dresses? Long black dresses? They work for every bridesmaid crew. And most of your bridesmaids will already own a favorite dress they’ll love to wear to your wedding.
STEP 2: Select a dress fabric and length.
Second, select a fabric for the dress.
A satin dress has a different shine and reflects light differently than, say, chiffon might. Choose wisely and decide on a fabric that works great in your season, too. A bridesmaid might look out of place wearing a duchess satin gown in the hot, humid summer heat.
Then, decide on the length.
Do you want bridesmaid dresses that match in length? Personally, I think the same length looks better while the bridal party is standing at the altar or chuppah, and looks more cohesive in wedding photos, but you can make the decision.
Choose a length that works for all bridesmaids.
Here are some bridesmaid dress lengths to consider whether you make them match or not. This way, when you decide on the length, you’ll be asking bridesmaids to get dresses that don’t match in style but do have the same length.
Bridesmaid Dress Lengths to Match
Typically, you’ll choose bridesmaid dresses in midi, maxi, or high-low (a hem that is longer in the back).
► Midi: Dress that hits between the ankle and the knee
► Maxi: Floor-length dress
► High-Low: Dress that is knee-length in the front and longer in the back
Okay, now you have color, fabric, and length. Now for the fun part.
STEP 3: Ask bridesmaids to pick a dress in that color, material, and length.
This is the part where your bridesmaids will think, wow, she really is the best bride ever. :) You’ll tell bridesmaids that you want them to love the dress they wear, and feel confident and beautiful in it.
Therefore, they may select bridesmaid dresses that don’t match — but coordinate in color, fabric, and length.
Tell bridesmaids to have fun dress shopping!
This can be as simple as, “Please find any dress in black to wear to the wedding, as long as it is satin and maxi-length.”
Be specific, but then let them run with it. You can opt for them to send you photos of the dresses beforehand, just so you have a clue as to how everyone will be dressed. However, if you know your bridesmaids well enough, they’ll make you proud and select a dress that is suitable for the occasion and looks awesome on them.
One easy way to do it is to suggest a store, but you don’t have to make it all one retail location.
For instance, you can tell bridesmaids to head to Lulu’s here, where you can sort by color of dress, length, and fabric. Simply select the options for each, then voila – the possibilities of bridesmaid dresses they want to wear is right there at their fingertips.
Here are some suggestions that make shopping for non-matching bridesmaid dresses super easy:
• Lulu’s: Try this section
• Azazie: Navigate to this area
• EverPretty: Shop this collection
And here are some examples of the different styles your bridesmaids may select, if you suggest, say, slate blue in a maxi-length:
Or consider navy blue in a maxi-length, like these bridesmaid dresses:
Now let’s try it in burgundy for the fall:
See? It doesn’t matter what color you pick, every dress will look sensational together. And it will be fun for bridesmaids to see what every bridal party attendant selected to wear on the day of!
When you’re taking photographs, you’ll quickly realize it’s not important to have bridesmaids wearing the same exact style. It’s actually a bit more fun to have a versatile array of necklines in bridesmaid dresses that don’t match each other, but look really nice when standing together snapping photographs.
And as a result, bridesmaids will like the dresses they wore to your wedding. They picked them out! And they can even stay on budget if that is of concern.
So, there you have it: you’ve learned the secret to tricking bridesmaids into loving the bridesmaid dresses they wear. I hope it helps you as you invite your bridesmaids to pick dresses they love, rather than a style they’ll never wear again.
XOXO
Emma
