Guests & the bridal party

I am having 7 bridesmaids (And FH is having a groomswoman)

The girls will be paying for their own dresses.

We have decided ANY black dress would be great! This way the girls will be comfortable in whatever they choose (And they can work around their own budget).

What are you doing?

Wow, that’s a good sized party!

I’m having 3 BMs and a flowergirl… none of whom have anything to wear yet. I’ll definitely buy the flowergirl & BM dresses, and the girls will buy the shoes & accessories. At least that’s the plan for now.

We are buying all the shoes and accessories.

And paying for the flowergirls dress

The boys aren’t wearing full suits, only pants, shirt and tie. They will have to pay for the pants (We are thinking $50 max), wear a white shirt they own (doubt they wouldn’t own one already) and we will buy the ties and shoes

I hope they are ok with this! (FH has said they will be).

What colour are you thinking for your dresses??

I have 3 bms and originally i wanted them to wear the same dress in 3 different shades of one colour, that didn’t work and now we  have ordered three floor length dresses in a really nice deep purple.

I am struggling to find dresses for my 4 bridesmaids. One of my bridesmaids who lives in Melbourne is on the case and I think she’s may found something suitable. It’s so hard. I wanted everyone to have different dresses but then am worried that they’ll clash. Also one bridesmaid lives in Alice Springs, one in Saudi Arabia and two in Melbourne. One of the Melbourne girls had a baby a month ago and isn’t quite ready to try on dresses yet (understandably – I haven’t asked her to). 

My mother-in-law to be has offered to go pattern and fabric shopping with me, that way we could find something different that suits each girl. This maybe the best solution, if the other dresses don’t work out.

I like your idea of black dresses, but it just wouldn’t suit our beach wedding

Alli, one of my bridesmaids gave birth about a month ago, and she is in the same boat. What I am doing is getting my dresses made (my dressmaker is making from a pattern and then changing it a little for 2 of the dresses and keeping it the original style for the other 2) and whilst the other girls will have their dresses made in advance, my new-mum-BM is having hers made about a month before, so she can lose the weight. My dressmaker suggested this, which is great! maybe getting yours made is a good idea?

if you keep the neckline or the skirt length or the shape of the skirt the same, they will be okay. keep in the same colour or same tones of colour. in the Sex and the City movie the girls didnt look odd at Carrie’s wedding even though they had different coloured dresses. Just keep the tone the same. – eg, all pastel, or all primary colours, all black, all shades of blue… 

a friend of mine is buying the material for her OS bridesmaids (all of which are os) and sending it to them and they are getting something made that suits them. so the material is the same.

my girls are wearing black with a rosemary coloured sash with a sparkley brooch and white tulle to give the a-line skirt volume. its an 1952 vintage vogue pattern. two will be strapless, two with straps, same neckline though. the A line skirt and black is very flattering to my various sized gorgeous girls!

Mine are wearing black, with a red sash and red roses. The boys are wearing black pants, with a light pin stripe in them and black shirts with red ties.

We have four of each.

We bought everything, but their shoes.

I have dresses! One of my lovely bridesmaids has been on the lookout for me and she found the most beautiful dress in Myer. Its strapless, with box pleats & a blue/green colour by Maticevski Sweethearts. I bought all the dresses as I wouldn’t have had time to send pictures to everyone and get group approval. 

The girls can buy their shoes, as I don’t really care what type. Silver will work best, but flats or heels is their choice. I’ll buy a necklace for them to wear. I am so excited to see this coming together!!

I just bought the bridesmaid dresses. I only Have 1 BM and a flower girl.

I got tea length tafeta in the basic aline design with spaghetti straps and a sash. The colour is Olive green with a sage sash and are by teh american brand forever yours.

I managed to get them on ebay, I fot 3 dresses for 120, including shipping and currency conversion. I was so lucky the dresses were in the colour i wanted and the right size for my BM and FG, i got a junior bridesmaid dress that would fit one of my nieces so i am thinking  will add her to the party.

I saved a bunch of money, i love ebay!!!

I have a large bridal party as well . We chose five bridesmaids and they all have different financial situations. Because a couple of the bridesmaids are in a situation where it is not ideal for them to have to pay for their expenses ( especially when the dress I love is over $300 ) we chose to pay for their expenses. We then decided it was unfair to pay for some and not the others so we decided to pay for all of them, which now means we may be having to find a less expensive dress ( I hope not, we need to properly analyse our budget before we make a final decision on which dress) but in return the bridesmaids who are more financially stable are giving us rather generous gifts ( eg. Wedding night accomodation). 

The dress I LOVE and pray that we can afford is a long black strapless flowing style, with a top layer of organza ( i think) and an ivory sash just under the bust line.