Pretty Maids All in a Row

I just sent the final contract for the bridesmaids’ dresses!!!

I’m so excited to see them all together… I can’t believe we have to wait till April!

So here’s the story with my BM dresses… Originally, I was just going to have each girl pick out any knee-length dress in some shade of plum or eggplant. Easier said than done. There were not very many options in that color, especially not in the price range we were aiming for. Plus, once I picked out my dress, and we decided on an evening wedding, I realized we would need something elegant and classy for the girls. The bodice of my dress is satin, and I thought, especially for the sake of the pictures, that it would be nice for the BM dresses to be satin as well. (I guess I might as well give in and show y’all my dress. Everyone except my future husband has my permission to click here…. Isn’t she lovely? *sigh*)

Back to the story… Over the summer, I started working at Bella Bridesmaid, an adorable little boutique in downtown La Jolla. There are locations all over the country, and I highly recommend them if you are still looking for Bridesmaids dresses! The La Jolla location carries some incredible designers, including Jenny Yoo, Coren Moore, Vera Wang, and Priscilla of Boston. But despite having so many lovely dresses right at my fingertips, I was still planning to have the girls find dresses from a department store or something in order to cut down costs. I just couldn’t ask my sister and best friends to spend upwards of $200 for a dress. Fortunately, my employee discount was far greater than I had imagined! I ended up getting the best of both worlds… the perfect dresses, at wholesale prices. My bridesmaids are loving it :)

I told the girls they could pick any knee-length Priscilla of Boston or Melissa Sweet dress in Satin or Silk Charmeuse. I decided on a deep purple color called “Fig,” and it’s exactly the shade we’ll be using in the invitations, decor, etc. And it looks great on everyone! I couldn’t be more pleased with the dresses that everyone ended up picking… and no one fought over a particular style!

Here they are!! The third dress down is shown in the correct color, so you just have to use your imagination and try to picture them all in that lovely shade of purple. The last dress is the one my mommy picked out, and she decided on a beautiful gray-blue color called “Slate.” It will match my FMIL’s dress perfectly!

style #MS107

My Older Sister/Matron of Honor (she’s getting married this May… my poor mom!) will be wearing this gorgeous dress. The sash will be a silver-gray color to match our color scheme.

style #MS223

My BFF/Maid of Honor (we’ve known each other since we were 3 years old!) picked this saucy little number. I love it! And it has pockets!!!

style #MS128

Curt’s younger sister is tall, thin, and gorgeous. This dress looks amazing on her!! This is what the “Fig” color looks like… I can’t wait to see all the dresses together in the right color!

style #PB214

I met T in fourth grade when we auditioned for The Wizard of Oz (she was Dorothy, I was Glinda the Good Witch, and the aforementioned BFF/Maid of Honor was the Wicked Witch of the West!). The three of us were inseparable in Middle School and Junior High. T got married in June and I was honored to be in her wedding. She picked this beautiful dress, another one with pockets!!

style #MS114

And this one was K’s pick. Without K’s help, Curt and I might have never started dating!! She acted as our intermediary during that awkward “Do you think he likes me?!” stage, and she persuaded Curt to (finally) ask me out… she was probably sick of us flirting all the time :)

style #1422 (Vineyard Collection)

Last but not least, my mom’s dress!!! She found a really cool vintage brooch to wear at the bottom of the V-neck. We might also try to find a pretty wrap or bolero for her. Anyone have a good recommendation?

I’d love to hear your bridesmaid dress stories!! Did you have a hard time finding the perfect color or style? Did you change your mind during the process? Has anyone had to wear a bridesmaid dress they hated??