The "Not-So-Traditional" Bridesmaid

For many people, the vision of a wedding day includes a big white gown, a black and white tuxedo, 5 or 6 (or 10 or 12) bridesmaids and groomsmen, all wearing identical dresses and suits. Of course there's a cake and flowers too, but we'll touch on that later. Today I want to talk about those bridesmaids.

For as long as there have been bridesmaids, there have been matching bridesmaid's gowns. It's the only time you can show up at a social gathering wearing the same outift as another guest, and not feel the urge to rip the linens off the tables just to cover yourself up, and head for the nearest exit. Matching bridesmaid dresses signifies to other guests that these girls are special, that they are part of the event. But in reality, getting 5 or 6 (or 10 or 12) bridesmaids to all agree on one dress style, shape, length, color, price, is like trying to get a tribe of monkeys to sing the national anthem on key.

Which is why this new trend of "not-so-traditional" bridesmaids gowns is a hit! There are many ways to make your bridesmaids stand out, without forcing them all into the exact same not so flattering gowns. So here's a few ideas on how to change it up: 

1. Same designer, same color -  different styles.  - This is what I decided to do when I got married this year. I wanted my girls to feel beautiful and given that they were spending some money on their dresses, I wanted them to be able to choose the one they liked best. So, we all looked around online (my girls were spread out from Seattle to San Francisco to Los Angeles to Phoenix to Raleigh to New York! So there was no group shopping trip in store for us!) We came to a group consensus that the J Crew line of bridesmaids dresses in the Dusty Shale color would be a good fit for what I had for my vision of the day, and the girls went about picking out their favorite styles.

Aren't they gorgeous? I mean, I may be biased, but I think my ladies are STUNNING! I told them to pick out their favorite color of shoes to go with the dress (I had hoped there would be a range of colors and surprisingly, they each picked out a different color. It was perfect for what I had envisioned.) I also told them to pick out matching jewelry to go with their shoes.

I love how it turned out... on top of being my favorite people in the whole world, my bridesmaids outfits were one of my favorite design elements at my wedding! (I'm sure they'd love to hear I'm referring to them as design elements!)

By the way, i have no idea what I found so hilarious at this moment... whatever it was, it was good! It was probably my fabulous photographer, Bambi Cantrell saying something hilarious... as usual.

2. Same color - any designer, any style.   One of my weddings in October of 2011 pulled this look off really well. The bride told her girls to pick out any cream/taupe colored, knee-length dress and I thought it turned out gorgeous. She didn't restrict them to any designer or any style, just gave input on color. Thank you to Rachel Barker of Millie Holloman Photography for this beauty!

3. Same designer - different styles, a few different colors - these are all in the J Crew line of bridesmaid dresses too. The bride picked (3) colors that complimented each other and her ladies chose the style that most flattered their body shape. Love it!

4. Choose a color (such as blue) and let your bridesmaids find a dress within the blue range. Some may choose the lighter baby blue shades while others may go for turquoise.  This works best when you try to stay in the same range of colors.

5. Same dress, same color - varying lengths. (perhaps the Maid of Honor wears the long version while the rest wear short, ) like this May of 2011 wedding we had at the club. PS - this bride... is one of the classiest, sweetest girls you'll ever know. Love her. And thanks to Kellie Kano for the gorgeous shot!

 or... same style, same length, but Maid of Honor wears a different shade like this October of 2011 wedding we had at the BHI Club. And PS - Brynn's wedding gown was one of my all-time favorites. And nine months later she popped out the cutest baby boy from that little bod. And FYI - she's back to that tiny little bod. Yes ladies, we can be jealous. Thanks to the ever fabulous Rachel Fesko for capturing this image!

6. Any style, any color, any designer - Try something new like having all the bridesmaids wear different dresses but matching shoes. Love this! Especially with the varying textures and patterns of the dresses. Very cool.

7. Same length - any color, any designer. - Tell the girls "Pastels" and you get this beautiful look:

Or say "Jewel Tones"  like ruby red, emeral green, royal blue (think Carrie Bradshaw's wedding in SATC - the movie!)

The one size fits all bridesmaid dress of years past doesn't work for everyone. So get creative. See what you come up with. I'm sure your bridesmaids will thank you for it! Happy dress shopping ladies!

xoxo