While a wedding is all about the bride (and maybe the groom, too), when it’s your turn to stand at the altar, you’ll also be sharing the spotlight with a handful of your very favorite ladies. These are the girls that knew you when you had braces in high school, and were kind enough to destroy all photographic evidence. They’re also the girls who celebrated your victories and mourned your losses with you. So when they stand by you once again on your wedding day, you also want them to look – and feel – like the beautiful women they are. But how can you choose one bridesmaid’s dress style that will flatter all of them? Easy, don’t choose just one. We’ll give you the lowdown on why many brides are now mixing it up – from different cuts to different colors – for a trendy new take on the traditional matching bridesmaid’s dress.
Individualized Style
More often than not, your bridesmaids are likely going to be very different shapes and sizes, from voluptuous to pencil thin. And, of course, they also each have their own unique personality. Choose a different bridesmaid’s dress for each girl that flatters both their body type and their unique style. Give the fun and flirty girl a dress with ruffles. Find a conservative, knee-length A-line dress for your conservative friend who enjoys art galleries and independent films. If you do go this route though, make sure there is at least one aspect of the dresses that is consistent throughout, whether it’s matching accessories or matching colors. You want some form of uniformity to make sure they still look like they’re an important part of the party – not just another guest at the wedding.
Playing With Color
Another trend that brides are falling in love with is choosing bridesmaids’ dresses in colors that are complementary to one another, but not the same. If your wedding ceremony is being held on the beach, play with different shades of blue, neutral and gray. If you’re getting married in a garden, consider pale pinks and creams. You can even take it one step further and use the same base color, but assign slightly different shades to each girl. So if you decide to go with purple, the bridesmaid standing farthest away from you would wear the darkest shade of purple, like plum or violet, and each bridesmaid next to her would wear a slightly lighter shade of purple than the girl before her, leading up to you – the bride – in white.
No matter what bridesmaid’s dress you choose, make sure to pick a day to get together with all of your girls to try them on before making your final decision. While, ultimately, the decision is yours to make, it’s always nice to let the other girls weigh in on their top picks and ideas as well. Then maybe when it’s their turn – they’ll return the favor.
