Wedding Party

Trouble deciding bridal party

Hello everyone,

So far, wedding planning has been really fun and low-stress for me. However, I am having so much trouble figuring out who will be in my bridal party. Sometimes I want to include 8 or 9 of my closest girl friends; other times I want to keep it at 4: my two sisters, and my two best friends. There are a handful of girls I could definitely see myself up there with, but people keep telling me to keep it small. My fiancé has selected 5 friends for his groomsmen. Any advice?

B

Re: Trouble deciding bridal party

  • It's harder to get a large group on the same page if you're doing matching dresses and if any of them want to host parties for you. And you'll also need to budget for extra flowers and gifts for a larger bridal party. Other than that, it's really about who is your nearest and dearest that you want to have standing next to you on your wedding day.

    I am a little biased as I have four too, but your sisters and two BFF's sound like the perfect bridal party to me! 
    Daisypath Anniversary tickers
  • More WP members means more bouquets and more gifts if budget is a factor in your decision.
    What did you think would happen if you walked up to a group of internet strangers and told them to get shoehorned by their lady doc?~StageManager14
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  • I think that any size can work, but costs and coordinating the group will increase with each additional person. Something to consider - Being a bridesmaid can be a lot of work and money (work that is offered not requested by the bride, budgets that are respected but still money that might not be spent if not in the bridal party) and it is nice to just be a guest and enjoy things without obligations. Sides do not need to match. Good luck!
  • ernursej said:

    I think that any size can work, but costs and coordinating the group will increase with each additional person. Something to consider - Being a bridesmaid can be a lot of work and money (work that is offered not requested by the bride, budgets that are respected but still money that might not be spent if not in the bridal party) and it is nice to just be a guest and enjoy things without obligations. Sides do not need to match. Good luck!

    A bridesmaid doesn't have any "obligation" beyond buying a dress and smiling for pictures

  • edited January 2016
    Pick the women (or men) that mean the most and you are the closest too. The people you can't see yourself getting married without them there. These people are your bridal party. For some people that is 10 for some people it's 1 or 2 (or none!)

    Don't pick people out of obligation or of even sides, just think about who you absolutely want to honor as important people in your life.
  • Hello everyone,

    So far, wedding planning has been really fun and low-stress for me. However, I am having so much trouble figuring out who will be in my bridal party. Sometimes I want to include 8 or 9 of my closest girl friends; other times I want to keep it at 4: my two sisters, and my two best friends. There are a handful of girls I could definitely see myself up there with, but people keep telling me to keep it small. My fiancé has selected 5 friends for his groomsmen. Any advice?

    B
    How far away is your wedding? If it's a year or more away, don't even worry about this right now. Friendships can change. Don't ask your wedding party until around 6 months before the wedding, just in case! 
    --

  • I think that any size can work, but costs and coordinating the group will increase with each additional person. Something to consider - Being a bridesmaid can be a lot of work and money (work that is offered not requested by the bride, budgets that are respected but still money that might not be spent if not in the bridal party) and it is nice to just be a guest and enjoy things without obligations. Sides do not need to match. Good luck!
    A bridesmaid doesn't have any "obligation" beyond buying a dress and smiling for pictures

    Absolutely agree, but any wedding I've been in, I've wanted to contribute my time to help the couple. So for me, that adds a lot of work.
  • drunkenwitchdrunkenwitch member
    First Anniversary First Answer First Comment 5 Love Its
    edited January 2016
    ernursej said:



    ernursej said:

    I think that any size can work, but costs and coordinating the group will increase with each additional person. Something to consider - Being a bridesmaid can be a lot of work and money (work that is offered not requested by the bride, budgets that are respected but still money that might not be spent if not in the bridal party) and it is nice to just be a guest and enjoy things without obligations. Sides do not need to match. Good luck!

    A bridesmaid doesn't have any "obligation" beyond buying a dress and smiling for pictures

    Absolutely agree, but any wedding I've been in, I've wanted to contribute my time to help the couple. So for me, that adds a lot of work.

    ____box___

    And that's why being a bridesmaid sucks.

  • How large your guest list is could be a factor too. Would you really want a wedding party of 15-16 people (not including if you want a flower girl and ring bearer) if your guest list is only 50?
  • Hello everyone,

    So far, wedding planning has been really fun and low-stress for me. However, I am having so much trouble figuring out who will be in my bridal party. Sometimes I want to include 8 or 9 of my closest girl friends; other times I want to keep it at 4: my two sisters, and my two best friends. There are a handful of girls I could definitely see myself up there with, but people keep telling me to keep it small. My fiancé has selected 5 friends for his groomsmen. Any advice?

    B
    I am having a smaller wedding and wanted to keep my bridal party small. I have four "sisters" (one bio, one SIL through my brother, other brother's FI, FI's sister) and considered keeping it to just them so as to keep things simpler and smaller. However, when I closed my eyes and pictured my wedding day, I couldn't imagine not having my two closest friends up there with me. So, I added them.

    I think that's what you need to do - who can you not imagine not having?

    Also, it doesn't matter how many your FI have. Sides do not have to be even. My FI has four and I have six - it's just not a thing.
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