Bridesmaids dresses - where/how to buy?

Knottiea3cfa9579f72b16c

Where is everyone buying their bridesmaids dresses?  Local boutique, chain, online?  If online, what stores are you looking at?  I'm only having two in my party, MOH and one BM.  The problem is all three of us live in different states so can't shop together.  If I find a couple styles I like in a local bridal salon, I'm not sure how that would work since I can't have them try them on.  I was thinking David's Bridal would make sense because they'll both have access to one.  How are you ladies with out of town bridal parties handling this?

artbyallie

I told mine to pick something blue and knee-length. Anywhere. Two bought at David's Bridal and actually wound up with the same dress in different shades. One bought at a different bridal boutique. The other two bought from different department stores. My bridesmaids were in five cities across three states.

ei34

I had three ladies in my party and had told them to pick a color (they chose black) and length (they went with long, since I was married in February). They were then free to wear any long black dress- one wore one she already owned from Macy's, another bought one at Macy's, and the third bought from Nordstrom.  We were all in the same city, but department stores and Davids Bridal are easiest.

ahyatt87

For one wedding I was in where the bridesmaids were  spread out across North America, the bride just picked a bridesmaid dress she liked from David's Bridal and told us to go buy it.

When I got married, I first went out looking for dresses with my MOH and got a sense for what styles/colours we liked. I then picked a designer that was within everyone's budget and that was offered in bridal stores close to each bridemaid and asked them to pick a dress in the specific colour and that was knee length from the designer.

With bridesmaids all spread out, it is probably easier to let them pick their own dress. Trust them, they know what will look good on them, and they will probably be happier with the dress.

Knottiea3cfa9579f72b16c

Thanks everyone.  I know what color I'd like them to have, but agree I think it would be best to let them pick the style.

cowgirl8238

I went through David's Bridal and told the 4 BMs to pick whatever style they liked in X color.  I was married in August so most of them went short and they all picked a light and airy chiffon/georgette material.  It worked well since the look was still coordinated but they could get something they felt more comfortable in than say making everyone wear a strapless satin dress.

MesmrEwe

Knottiea3cfa9579f72b16c said:

Thanks everyone.  I know what color I'd like them to have, but agree I think it would be best to let them pick the style.

Letting them choose makes it easier to fit their budget as well.  You can be as specific or not specific as you choose, just be reasonable.  David's is fantastic because they can go into any store anywhere in the country to select something and you can choose from a ton of colors, fabrics, and lengths.  

MandyMost

Knottiea3cfa9579f72b16c said:

Thanks everyone.  I know what color I'd like them to have, but agree I think it would be best to let them pick the style.

David's Bridal isn't the only way to do this. There are lots of designers of bridesmaids dresses that are carried widely in bridal stores across the country. I had a friend pick a line of bridesmaids dresses she liked at a local bridal store, and then send us (the bridesmaids) a list of all the local stores that carried that line. We were able to go to our local store to try on some of the different styles and pick the one we liked, then order it in the color and length she had chosen. 

Think about shopping for your wedding dress. Lots of stores carry the same brands (Allure, Maggie Sotero, etc.). Same thing for bridesmaids dresses. 

LCBo8907

I'm having the same dilema. I was hoping David's bridal would work but they only carry a few dresses in my color and I don't like any of them. I originally told my girls to just get what you feel comfortable in and thought a mix match look would be cute but with only two bridesmaids I started to think it would clash. Plus after I got my dress and got all the guys suits taken care of I changed my mind what I want my girls in. 

CMGragain

@LCBo8907, you might want to start a new thread about this.  This one is several months old.

To address your comment, I had only two bridesmaids at my own wedding (years ago), and they did not match.  My MOH wore a turquoise dress, and my other bridesmaid wore a different pink dress.  Those became my colors.  (Super budget wedding!)  It looked fine.
You might investigate Alfred Angelo.  They have stores around the country.  My daughter's bridesmaids all went there and got their dresses.  They wore different shades of hydrangea blue in different styles.  She just said to get anything light blue in a cocktail length.  It looked beautiful!

SP29

LCBo8907 said:

I'm having the same dilema. I was hoping David's bridal would work but they only carry a few dresses in my color and I don't like any of them. I originally told my girls to just get what you feel comfortable in and thought a mix match look would be cute but with only two bridesmaids I started to think it would clash. Plus after I got my dress and got all the guys suits taken care of I changed my mind what I want my girls in. 

It wont clash because there are only two.

I also only had an MOH and BM (who lived in different provinces). I told them midnight blue from David's Bridal, cocktail length. One chose a satin calf length dress with wider shoulder straps, the other chose a cotton (though it had a bit of sheen to it) knee length strapless dress. They both looked great!

David's Bridal tends to get the monopoly because they have stores everywhere and online, but there are other bridal shops that carry the same larger lines (such as Alfred Angelo).

I would still try to find a designer that is easy to find at a store then give them a colour and possible general style (i.e. short vs long) and let them pick their own dress.

divarhd

Got mine on Amazon.  $38 (that's my sister )

knottie78c11d9fe14972fa

I bought mine from this online boutique called KF Bridal. I bought their apricot color dresses for my bridesmaid. If you guys like to try a different boutique.

beachwedding2017

I'm in my sister's wedding this summer and my wedding is a few months later. All of us are in different states, so ordering online was easiest. For her wedding, we all ordered online from a company called Azazie. She gave us a color, fabric, and length. We each got to choose our style. I like that idea because everybody has a different taste and body type. Prices were reasonable too. If all goes well, I will probably do the same for my bridesmaids.