Argh! Bridesmaid dresses!

crumbcake82

Bridesmaid dresses have not been a huge concern for me.  I've only needed a few requirements 1)not cost an arm and leg 2) everyone feels comfortable and look nice in them. We finally agreed on a designer (Xscape) that made several black dresses with the same top and different silhouettes, so everyone could have the dress style and length they liked but they all coordinated.  I even spent about 3 hours on the phone with Belk to find one style in the right size that one of my ladies wanted because it was no longer available online (pain in the ass, I had to order that dress three times)   I found them all on sale even with a  coupon, ordered, shipped, delivered, and all was great.  

But of course, one of my ladies ordered her dress without trying it on.  So it doesn't fit.  And the next size up doesn't fit.  She's very busty, as in 36F, and it just won't work for her without looking either very silly or very inappropriate.  Sigh.  So now either I get them to return all the dresses and start over, which I really dread, or have one person look very different from the others, who already all look a little different dress-wise.   I have four bridesmaids, all with four very different body types, in different states, and getting them to agree on this dress was hard enough.  

So Frustrated!  

MikesAngie

We went a different route with the ladies because we were scattered all over.  I gave them a color swatch and said they could choose any style of dress they wanted. 

This is how they looked.

right1thistime

If they are already different, just let her wear something different-er.  It will not matter, I promise you.  Well, it WILL matter to her, she'll feel more comfortable, and appreciate that her dear friend cared enough about her to NOT care more about a dress or symmetry.  ~Donna

crumbcake82

 These are the dresses.  Would it look completely out of place to have one bridesmaid without the lacey sleeves?

coopsbaby

Nope, it will look fine.

MikesAngie

Nope it will look totally fine.  And she will be the happier for it. 

Sue-n-Kevin

I had a very similar situation to you, my BM were my then 16 y/o daughter as MOH, my 18 y/o step daughter, and 2 friends in their 50's. Their heights ranged from 5' 1" to 5' 10". Sizes ranged from a 6 to a 20.

I decided early on, like you, that they should have dresses they feel lovely in, that are black, didn't care if they were short or long. They all chose their own black, short dresses, the fabrics and styles were different. My daughter had a bolero and a small fascinator, because she was my MOH and wanted them.......I didn't care if she was different. One of my other friends had a sheer jacket, again I didn't care.

Here's how we all looked.



Trust me, no one will notice, and your friend will feel much better about herself in a dress that fits. Don't sweat the small stuff, and this is really small stuff.

Good luck.

reppunzel

It would look fine to have one girl without the lacey sleeves. But a lacey sleeve/wide lace strap like that should also be very simple for a good seamstress to add on ... or even to transfer over from the wrong-size dress she bought (if it can't be returned) to a strapless black dress that fits and flatters her.  Or a black lace bolero.

Just a thought.  As PP said, it'll look fine without them all having the lace detail; I sew a lot, and so I tend to look at dresses with that sort of "eye".   I'm doing something similar for one of my bridesmaids (using a chiffon shawl to tweak the look of a strapless dress so that it blends with the other styles). 

JVManning86

Have you tried tbdress.com? I'm ordering from there because it's the same with my 4 bridesmaids. If need be the dresses can be custom made on that site.

crumbcake82

I've pretty much just told my bridesmaid to find a black dress that she likes, and if it's strapless that'd be great because we cut add lacey sleeves.  If not, she's the MOH and we'll make it work.  My only worry with the black bridesmaid dresses is that they might look too much like the rest of the guests, but I think I'll get them some fascinators or something similar to make the dresses coordinate.

crumbcake82

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/special-topic-wedding-boards_second-weddings_argh-bridesmaid-dresses?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Special%20Topic%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:35Discussion:d4f47110-857f-4e1f-a6e0-41f824416c4cPost:419b691a-3fc9-47b1-8d76-d2f99b8abf50">Re: Argh! Bridesmaid dresses!</a>:
[QUOTE]I had a very similar situation to you, my BM were my then 16 y/o daughter as MOH, my 18 y/o step daughter, and 2 friends in their 50's. Their heights ranged from 5' 1" to 5' 10". Sizes ranged from a 6 to a 20. I decided early on, like you, that they should have dresses they feel lovely in, that are black, didn't care if they were short or long. They all chose their own black, short dresses, the fabrics and styles were different. My daughter had a bolero and a small fascinator, because she was my MOH and wanted them.......I didn't care if she was different. One of my other friends had a sheer jacket, again I didn't care. Here's how we all looked. Trust me, no one will notice, and your friend will feel much better about herself in a dress that fits. Don't sweat the small stuff, and this is really small stuff. Good luck.
Posted by Sue-n-Kevin[/QUOTE]

<div>The picutes look great!  I feel much better about the dresses now, thank you!</div>