Wedding Party

BM dress price

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Re: BM dress price

  • The Melissa Sweet BM dresses I chose for my wedding are going to run them about $270!  I feel awful about it, but I have paid a nice penny for BM dresses before, and did not have a problem with it.  It is pricey- SO PRICEY!  However, I checked with all of them before I decided on this dress to make sure it was ok, and if not to please let me know, it would not be a problem (I completely would understand).  The dresses are not long, and are super cute!  They will definately be able to wear them again, to dressy events or other weddings.  I also set the order date a couple of months away so that they have time to plan and save. 
    Yes, it is expensive to be in weddings...
  • edited March 2010
    My culture dictates that the brides pay for bridesmaids' dresses.  My friends who have been brides, except for one, have always paid for their BM's dresses.  And because I asked the same friends to be my bridesmaids, I will gladly pay for their dresses, too.  The logic is --- they (BM) did not ask us (brides) to have them as our bridesmaids --- so they shouldn't be paying for anything.  And most of them are traveling from out of the state, or out of the country --- I cannot and will not ask them to pay for anything more.
    That being said, I chose a dress (with their approvals) that I think they can wear again.  I got a $99 dress from Macy's.
    When I was a bridesmaid for a friend that didn't pay for our dresses, I thought that $120 was a reasonable amount to pay.  Unfortunately, like everyone said, our expenses did not end with the dress.  Factor in travel expenses, bachelorette parties, hair & make-up, shoes, etc.... we're looking at $1000 for every time that we are asked to be a bridesmaid.
    I think the least that we can do, as the bride, is to pay for their dress.  ESPECIALLY, if we dictate what dress they will be wearing.  But then again... every culture is different.
  • futurenmiller;  check with pearl's place to see if she carries your BM dress.  She runs a lot cheaper than most bridal stores & websites.
  • I feel so guilty....my BM dresses are $280. I really struggled with asking them to pay that much, but they all insisted they loved the dress and because they could actually wear it again, they were OK with the cost. I did change the color from Champagne to Chocolate Brown so it would be more wearable later. The dress doesn't need to be altered either so they don't have the added expense. I'm letting them pick out their own shoes and have asked that they not get me any gifts as being is the wedding is gift enough. Professional hair/make-up will be optional.

    The last 2 weddings I was in the dress was between $200-$220 and required alterations that added about $50. I was MOH in one of them and that only scratched the surface of the cost to be in the wedding. The catered couples shower and elaborate Bachelorette party combined with the dress, shoes, make-up and hair set me back close to $2K. I had to wait a couple of months after the wedding to buy a wedding gift and when I gave it to her she said "I was wondering if you were going to give me a gift"....   She is now my MOH and I still can't bring myself to ask her to spend much for my wedding!
  • The dresses and shoes they picked were a total of $120, which was a great price. They were all very happy with the dresses and the prices. And the out of town BM, I paid for her dress quietly to offset the expense of her flight. I've been in out of town weddings and they cost alot, so I'm keeping that in mind with my planning.

  • xoxo, what culture is this? Just curious.
  • I picked dresses that were $70 plus shipping from www.lightinabox.com. They came and they are BEAUTIFUL!!! My ladies LOVE them and FYI my four bridesmaids are all different sizes...Ones an 8, 12, 18 and 24

    These are them...Only in Daffodil!
    http://www.lightinthebox.com/2009-Style-A-line-V-neck-Knee-length-Taffeta-Bridesmaid--Wedding-Party-Dress--HSX120-_p24111.html
  • kee80kee80 member
    First Comment
    My BM dresses cost a little more than I had originally planned, which I've balanced with having them wear their own shoes & Jewelry, as well as paying for their hotel rooms & hair.  Everyone agreed to it!

    Also, I made sure that they all liked the dress, and that it was a style that could be worn again.
  • I did the same thing because all my girls had different body shapes and sizes. Some ended up spending more than I'd hoped (b/c they needed good bras and wanted shoulder cover-ups, which are not cheap at DB) and other's are getting away with just the dress and not even alterations. Luckily the ones spending more are family and my mom has offered them help paying for it if they need it.. I didn't ask my BMs for a budget, but to be fair, I didn't know that I should. And am rather cheap, so I was trying to find the cheapest value for the money anyways. I hope I'm not causing stress for them like some of these brides!!!
    Baby Birthday Ticker Ticker
  • I've been in 4 weddings and each BM dress was always between $150-200.  This seems normal to me I guess!  My BM's dresses are $180, BUT I also let them pick it out themselves and they all agreed on that dress... so, I guess that's the norm for them too??
  • I think that between 150-200 is TOTALLY reasonable.  Maybe costs differ depending on location but I didn't find any cute dresses under $200.  My girls got a discount because they purchased at the salon I got my dress which brought the cost to $155 or $170ish after tax.
    Some of the dresses we looked at were $220-280.  I told them I would for sure keep it under $300 which I thought was reasonable.  I paid $240 for my last BM dress.  And for another friend I flew to her destination wedding costing lots of $$$.  Fortunatly I'm not someone who has 3 weddings to be in in one year because that would be budget busting but being in a wedding costs money.....of course being conscious of your BMs budget is important and the less expensive the better but I don't think that $200 is too much.
  • edited March 2010
    In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_wedding-party_bm-dress-price?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:37Discussion:309d37f9-6ef2-4ebf-9d2f-bbb586a7eb62Post:5e50264e-9896-433d-aa5f-f2a1e4d73bb2">Re: BM dress price</a>:
    [QUOTE]xoxo, what culture is this? Just curious.
    Posted by emilyinchile[/QUOTE]

    Filipino.  In the Philippines, brides pay for BM dresses.  But here in the U.S., Filipino-Americans usually take the American culture of having the BMs pay for the dresses, which is also understandable -- since they grew up here and it is an acceptable/usual practice.
  • My BMs dresses were 160, all four of the girls picked them out together so I kinda left it up to them....
  • My BMs paid $170 for theirs.  I narrowed the field down to 5 and they got to pick which ever one they wanted.  They opted for the slightly higher price one because it is not a traditional BM dress.  They were all very excited on the ability to wear it again and not have it look like a bm dress.   
  • I wouldn't want my girls to pay more than $100. They are all short so I just found a short dress at DB so they don't have to worry about alterations. If you buy your dress at DB all of the BM get $20 off their dress purchases so my BM will only have to pay about $80 for theirs!

    http://www.davidsbridal.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplayView?storeId=10052&catalogId=10051&categoryId=-49998974&currentIdx=1&subCategory=-49998976|-49998975|-49998974&catentryId=6142385&sort=

    They will be wearing these in Marine. It's super cute and really comfy! I also think it's something they may wear again. My wedding will be pretty casual though, so I guess it depends on your wedding style.



  • The last bridesmaid dress I bought cost almost $300. The good part though is that living in South Louisiana I can actually wear the BM dresses again to Mardi Gras balls(as long as they are long). I've worn my last dress to four different balls over the last 3 years. I think I am going to give my BMs a few choices in different price ranges and let them decide.
  • I voted $100-$150.  My bridesmaids' dresses were just under $100, though.  In all honesty, though, I find a hard enough time finding dresses for other uses that are below $100 unless they're massively on sale...so why expect to pay less for a bridesmaid dress.  Note: my bridesmaids dresses only cost under $100 b/c they were on sale.
  • I think $100 - $150 tops, due to all the other wedding expenses. I am letting my BP wear whatever they want as long as it's the same color (doesn't even need to be the same shade) and I told them nothing shiny (satin is fine, I mean like sequins and stuff). My sister is in the BP and we went shopping for a dress for her middle school winter dance (such a big deal!! Oh to be 14 again lol). We got it for 16 dollars on sale at Ross. It's a gorgeous shade of blue that goes down to just under her knees. I absolutely love it because it shows off her newly developed figure without being tasteless or too old. If she still fits in the dress for the wedding that just might be her dress! Her choice though, I don't want to make her feel like she has to reuse the dress. But I LOVE LOVE LOVE it Laughing 

    (Ha - she made me promise to block out her face. God forbid anyone see her modeling a dress in a dressing room )
  • Really, think of your WP and keep your eyes open. I started (casually) looking very early and came across a cute party dress at Victorias Secret. It started at $78.00 and when it went down to $50.00 I ordered a few to check them out. I got lucky with a perfect color, fabric and fit. I ordered the rest and by that time they were on clearance for $35. With shipping....each dress was $50.

    I tried to be as considerate of my bridesmaids as possible. 2 of my bridesmaids are getting married within a month of my wedding, 1 is flying in to be in the wedding, and 1 is pregnant. I'm a bridesmaid in the 2 other weddings so I know how much it gets to be with dress, alterations, hair, shoes, showers, gifts, transportaion....ah! One of the girls ordered our dresses from Nordstroms--$70. The other....$178 for a cute but plain dress from a bridal shop. Not excited about that.

    In the past, I've paid $160 for a dress I would NEVER wear again and $215 for one that I've worn at least 5 times. That was alright for me at the time because I didn't have anything else going on. Usually I would opt for a little more expense for a dress that was wearable again. But I was not pleased with the recent $178 dress--I'm broke already because of the wedding and she only looked at one place! Bridal shops rip you off big time on WP dresses.

    Just a good rule of thumb to consider ALL the expenses your wedding party will be responsible for and be considerate of them!
  • my BM dresses are $220 but i am paying for half of their dress as their BM gift.
  • I voted for the $100-150 range, since my BMs are choosing their own styles, I know my sister/MOH went with one for $175, but I'm pretty sure my other BMs are going to be under $150.

    By letting them pick the style, it gives them the opportunity to keep it within a budget they are comfortable with.  And so far, they all love their dresses!
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