Wearing Boots (NOT cowboy) with a bridesmaid dress?

Wegl13

I thought it might be more comfy for the bridesmaids because it's December (Alabama but still chilly), and there's no firm footing from the parking to the venue. I would also love to take bridal party pics out near a pond where FI proposed and want everyone to be comfy. Is this something you guys can see looking nice or does this sound tacky? Something like the attached would be great.

lyndausvi

Not a fan.    

CMGragain

The only possible exception to my personal "no boots" rule is a surgical boot for an injury.  NO!!

lilacck28

Boots of any kind are expensive. And even if not of the cowboy variety, fairly specific. If you buy them for your bridesmaids, okay. That's fine. I'm not a huge fan (I think boots and bridesmaids dresses is most definitely a passing trend) but if you like it and are paying, that's what matters. But I would not tell your bridesmaid's "Any pair of boots!". Rather, I would say "I want you to be comfortable. Anything that's in the nude-tan- light brown variety!" (that is, if that's the color you want, or if the color even matters. I'm going to tell my bridesmaids "whatever shoe you think will look good with your dress")

ETA: I like those boots a lot. 

doeydo

It's not really my taste, unless you are having a really casual wedding.  Here are just some pictures of bridesmaids in similar boots so you can kind of see what it might look like:

slothiegal

Eh, not my cup of tea.

artbyallie

Boots do not go with dresses. Well, maybe if they were really dressy boots with a sexy heel, but that would defeat your purpose, no?

Dignity100

Not my cup of tea.  Myself, I'd feel awkward in boots instead of a more formal shoe with my formal gown.

AddieCake

Not a fan. 

jenna8984

I personally find those boots as ugly as cowboy boots. How about a ballet flat? 

goldchocobo.defunct635829490514903826

One of my friends is getting married and as the bride, she's wearing cowboy boots.  In Ontario, Canada.   We couldn't be more opposite.  That's just her personality though.   I saw a girl on Four Weddings wear converse sneakers under her dress.

Bridesmaids though....ehh.  Boots can be just as pricey as heels if not more.  And it ventures into robo-BM territory, where everyone starts to look the same.  Proceed with caution.

If it is purely a comfot thing, I'd go with a dressy set of flats.

climbingsingle

Sorry. I don't like it.

Wegl13

http://www.alfredangelo.com/Collections/Bridesmaids/7281S We chose this dress in ivory and "once upon a time" which is like a grey-blue. Not sure about the shoes but I think we're going to go with something nude and dressy for the ceremony and then boots (either grey or brown, that they likely already own) just for the outdoor bridal party pictures. The good thing is that I don't think the shoes are going to have to be such an early decision, and I think the lace can go either way relatively well (we really liked that bridal party with the umbrellas, so maybe just different strokes for different folks here).

Wegl13

These colors. I feel very ballsy going with ivory!

chibiyui

It's a very pretty BM dress.

My thoughts are that one shoulder anythings do not go with boots. You might want too look into a shawl or cardi to go over top the dress. 

Also, if you're just having them wear the boots for pictures, you need to either let them wear something they already own or buy them yourself. Sleek riding boots are going to look the best with dresses, and they can get pricey.

Good luck!

Majelin86

I'm not a fan of the boots with the dresses, sorry! If you have to do boots I would try and do a bit shorter ones, like ankle boots.

Maggie0829

Wegl13 said:

http://www.alfredangelo.com/Collections/Bridesmaids/7281S We chose this dress in ivory and "once upon a time" which is like a grey-blue. Not sure about the shoes but I think we're going to go with something nude and dressy for the ceremony and then boots (either grey or brown, that they likely already own) just for the outdoor bridal party pictures. The good thing is that I don't think the shoes are going to have to be such an early decision, and I think the lace can go either way relatively well (we really liked that bridal party with the umbrellas, so maybe just different strokes for different folks here).

Maggie0829

Grrrr!!!  It won't post what I wrote....hopefully this time it will work.

Sorry but boots do not go with that dress, like at all.  In fact, boots do not go with any formal dress.

Also, if it is really cold outside when your wedding rolls around I would rethink making your wedding party take pictures outside.  I mean if that pond is really special to you and your FI then you two can go out and take pictures but if I were in your wedding party and made to go take pictures outside in winter with only that dress and boots on I would not be a happy camper.

And hold up, you are wanting your BMs to wear a pair of shoes for the ceremony and then boots for outside shots?  So you are basically wanting to make them buy two sets of shoes?  Yeah, no.  If you insist on the boots for outside shots (please rethink those winter outside shots) then you need to pay for them.

JoanE2012

Boots (or sneakers) do not go with formal dresses.  If you want comfort, there are plenty of flat options that would look much better!

theartistformerlyknownas

I love the dresses, but don't like the boots idea at all with them.

Wegl13

Just to be clear, again: if we went with boots during any part of the wedding, whether that was the entire wedding just the pictures, or "man it would be nice to have something covering my cold calves while I run inside to the venue".. They would be boots already owned by the bridal party. Being matchy wasn't really the idea here. And I think right now we're at "this is not that big of a deal, bring some boots you've got on the day we get married and maybe we'll pull them out and put them on." And obviously I'm not going to torture my bridal party to get good shots- it's Alabama in the winter, not Maine. If it's raining, we're not going out there, if it's freezing, we're not going out there. I'm still on the fence about how the dress will look with boots if we decide to go that route, but I think since we found a dress that we love, it's one of those things that really doesn't matter (ie I wasn't going to only buy dresses that worked with the boot vision). But guys, guys... Seriously. I'm not going to torture my best friends by making them stand outside in freezing wet weather, and I'm not going to make them buy new wedding boots. I PROMISE.

JoanE2012

Wegl13 said:

Just to be clear, again: if we went with boots during any part of the wedding, whether that was the entire wedding just the pictures, or "man it would be nice to have something covering my cold calves while I run inside to the venue".. They would be boots already owned by the bridal party. Being matchy wasn't really the idea here. And I think right now we're at "this is not that big of a deal, bring some boots you've got on the day we get married and maybe we'll pull them out and put them on." And obviously I'm not going to torture my bridal party to get good shots- it's Alabama in the winter, not Maine. If it's raining, we're not going out there, if it's freezing, we're not going out there. I'm still on the fence about how the dress will look with boots if we decide to go that route, but I think since we found a dress that we love, it's one of those things that really doesn't matter (ie I wasn't going to only buy dresses that worked with the boot vision). But guys, guys... Seriously. I'm not going to torture my best friends by making them stand outside in freezing wet weather, and I'm not going to make them buy new wedding boots. I PROMISE.

Your original question asked if boots with formal dresses was tacky.  Just about everyone responded that it's not a good look.  You keep trying to justify your reason to do it.  Not sure what else you're looking for.

Wegl13

Actually, they responded with "it's not a good look" (got it, reconsidering) and also a bunch about "don't make them buy two pairs of shoes" and "don't make them stand out in the cold." All I was trying to say is no shit Sherlock, I'm not planning on doing that.

[Deleted User]

Love the dress you picked out and I have seen picks where boots work, but I think the dress you are going with is too formal for boots, even for outdoor photos. I totally get your reasoning for wanting to go with the boots and I think it's great that you are thinking of your girls comfort and saftey. However,  I think you would be better off buying your girls some flats for the outdoors photos and for walking on the parking lot. I think you'll be much happier with that look then boot when you get the photos back.

artbyallie

Are they not going to be wearing pantyhose/tights for warmth anyway? I was in my cousin's wedding last December and we were in short dresses. I definitely wore the thickest stockings I could find. I still froze during her outdoor pictures even though we were able to wear our coats for part of them. Boots IME are not much warmer unless worn with other warm clothing (socks, jeans, and so on).

Maggie0829

Sorry but a pair of boots is not going to keep me warm when the rest of my legs and arms are exposed.

Look, boots look shitty with formal dresses.  Period.  I would just forget this idea completely.

theartistformerlyknownas

Here's the thing... why would you want pictures taken with boots that don't look good with their dresses? So you're trying to keep their legs warm, keep them stable on the ground near the pond, they don't have to spend any money, OK. But what happens when you get your pictures back and think "oh, well that looks like shit together. That was a giant waste of time." We're just trying to keep you from wasting your time.

Dignity100

I'm doing the same BM dress but in long with lilac as the background color! What's funny is I was just thinking yesterday that I should have looked at it with a blue underlay instead of the lilac. I am also doing the ivory overlay. As far as shoes go, we selected a silver wedge. I say 'we' because both me and my MOH (and only BM) saw the shoe and both had to have it (it was kind of like that car insurance commercial with the two girls shopping and the purse they both gravitate to at the same time). I may or may not wear the wedges for the wedding, but they're REALLY comfortable.

Wegl13

So what kind of flats would even work? I basically only wear flats with dress slacks- when I wear them with dresses they accentuate my short legs, so I always thought they looked weird. Could you do like a grey? Silver wedges sound epic but I think we are going more in the neutral palette.
And guess what tights didn't even occur to me because I never wear them. Again it's one of those things where "they look weird on me" becomes "doesn't even exist as an option."

Hopefully this is the only time in my life I will ever be responsible for guiding the outfit of another adult. I am clearly not up to the task.

southernbelle0915

Wegl13 said:

So what kind of flats would even work? I basically only wear flats with dress slacks- when I wear them with dresses they accentuate my short legs, so I always thought they looked weird. Could you do like a grey? Silver wedges sound epic but I think we are going more in the neutral palette. And guess what tights didn't even occur to me because I never wear them. Again it's one of those things where "they look weird on me" becomes "doesn't even exist as an option." Hopefully this is the only time in my life I will ever be responsible for guiding the outfit of another adult. I am clearly not up to the task.

The bolded made me chuckle! you're fine tbh, I would just tell them what you'll be doing/where you'll be going/what the conditions will be like and let them choose what they want to wear on their feet. Have your photographer take pictures from the knees up if you hate their choices and/or don't worry about what shoes they're wearing. Take some other photos in their normal garb somewhere else so you get the traditional head to toe shots.

The other, simpler option would be to just take photos here with your FH. My H and I took a bunch of photos with our WP and then we sent them up to cocktail hour while we did about 20 minutes of photos with just the two of us. Perhaps this is an option for you if it's too complicated to get the entire WP out to this special spot.

[Deleted User]

I can't get back to your original post to see what colors you are doing. But if I remember correctly you said the girls dresses would be purple with an ivory lace overlay? You could do a simple nude flat or a light gold or silver metallic option.