Having your best friends standing next you on your wedding day is the best! And one of the fun parts of the wedding planning process is going bridesmaid dress shopping with them. There are so many ways to go about this so we’re sharing the facts in hopes it’ll help you and them feel confident in what they’re buying… and hopefully eliminate any unnecessary drama!

Basic Info

Nowadays with so many great online websites, some brides don’t even go dress shopping with their bridesmaids. They simple send the link of the dress or tell them specific colors they have to buy and in the click of a button the dress is purchased. However some opt for more of a boutique experience and either is completely okay!

Before you head off to the dress store or send them that online link, here are some things you need to decide as the bride:

Color – All in the same color or different?
Style – Will they all be wearing the same dress or mismatched styles?
Material – Is there a specific material you want to go with the season or formality of your day?
Budget – Not yours, but theirs! Yes, it’s ultimately your day, but it’s nice to be considerate of your besties too!
Your Dress Style – You’ll want the dresses to go with your look too!

Process

The process looks different for every bridal party. Some take the whole bridal party at once to choose the dresses. This is great because you can get everyone’s opinion at once, however just like wedding dress shopping this can be super overwhelming with too many opinions and if some don’t agree it can cause chaos.

If you’d rather opt against having everyone go at once initially, it’s common to take just a few of your girls first to see what styles you like and get a feel of what would look good on everyone and be within everyone’s budget. Then you can relay the details to the rest of the bridal party and/or have them come a different time to show them what you’ve chosen and/or have them pick their dress if doing mismatched dresses.

Timeline

The earlier the better, however it’s suggested to go no later than seven to eight months before your wedding.

Tips + Tricks

Buy your wedding dress before choosing the bridesmaid dresses!

If your friends are in between sizes, tell them it’s always better to size up and have it taken in. Some bridesmaids go smaller, however that can stress brides out thinking of their wedding dress not fitting or having them be uncomfortable day of.

Give everyone a deadline that their dress needs to be ordered by to ensure they will be in on time and so they’ll have time to fix any issues if need be.

If someone is out of the country or unable to go to the store you’ve chosen, have them get professionally measured and send in those measurements.

Questions + Things to Consider

Ask your dress boutique how the ordering works. You’ll want to make sure all dresses are from the same dye lot if the bridesmaids are all doing the same dress so there’s little to no variation in hues.

If friends live out of state, it’s easier to choose nationally owned bridesmaid dress stores, stores that you’re able to work with online, or ones that are able to just take measurements.

Your friends may not want you to know just yet, but make sure if they’re pregnant or trying to have a baby that they let the dress boutique know.

Remember, your friends are putting their money into this dress so you want them to like it. However it can be hard to compromise when there are disagreements. But good friends will respect it’s your day and usually go with the flow when it comes to bridesmaid dress shopping.

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