why? (wedding question)
 

something that i have never understood is why do the majority of brides pick ugly dresses for their bridesmaids? is it a low and desparate attempt to make sure that you are the best looking woman at your wedding?:confused:

Re: why? (wedding question)
 

When I was planning my wedding, my bridesmaids made it VERY clear that if I put them in anything ugly/unusable/unearthly color/ looks like you should put candles in it and make a wish, my body would not be found for a very long time. ;)

So short answer, I don't know. I was afraid to pick anything ugly.

Adrienne
:D

I guess I have been lucky, the weddings I have been in, the bridesmaids dresses have been very pretty. The only thing I could complain about is the colors. All light pastels. I can't wear light pastels again. Most of the dressier parties are in the winter, so I prefer to wear darker colors.

Honestly, I don't think brides pick ugly dresses on purpose. I mean, look at the bride's gown itself. Every bride thinks her gown is gorgeous, yet I have seen some that you would have to sedate me to get me into. So maybe it's just a case of the bride having poor taste?

Also, there really aren't that many pretty bridesmaids dresses out there (in my opinion)!

It's not legal unless your bridesmaids have butt bows. :p

I was very kind to my BMs. I picked out a very attractive, light blue, sleeveless dress that wasn't even very expensive ($150 or so).

I was very flattered when my MOH wore the dress I'd picked out to another wedding. (She, I, and the bride are all AEPhis. ;) )

I haven't understood that either. I always say that when I get married I won't subject my bridemaids to horrible dresses. I want them to be able to wear the dresses again since they have to spend their money.

believe me bridesmaid dresses are a lot better than they used to be. I think sometimes the bride gets overzealous in her attempt to save $$$ that they get something fugly. The prettiest dresses I've seen are on the expensive side.

It's also really really hard to find something that fits everyone unless you are having Fembots as your bridesmaids. I mean when I think about my possible maids, there is a good 100 lbs. between two of them - it's hard to find a dress that will work for both those people.

I haven't been super nuts about my maid dresses, but there were no butt-bows, and they were cheap.

It's really hard to find a dress that between 5-8 people find pretty, are flattering on them AND is affordable to them all.

If your BMs can afford Vera or Thread or Amsale dresses, there are some really pretty options.

I have 5 BMs, one is in PA school, one in Med school, one in Grad school, one is a new mother...I can't ask them to spend over $150 on a dress for MY day. I think the dresses I've picked for them are nice (like AEPhiAlum's, light blue, sleeveless and under $150), but someone may call them fugly

I AM making sure the BMs have a different neckline than I am. My dress is strapless and I want to stand out as the only strapless in the pictures. But I want them all to look beautiful - and they will; I have some gorgeous (and smart!) friends!

Yeah, it's essentially to make sure that the bride is the best looking one there. I think there's actually research out there on this.

When I was engaged I had 6 bridesmaids. I picked out the color but let them all pick the style of dress (it came from a collection line at David's Bridal). So as long as they were the same color, I didn't care. I mean, really having the same dress for girls who are ages 14 to 22 (at the time) and stick thin to busty is a little much to ask for.

Every wedding I have been in has had ugly dresses. The bride has also raved that the dress would be wearable later--- I am not sure where I would wear those dresses.
I would like to think my BM dresses were wearable. A-line, solid black--very simple.
I agree it is hard to find something to fit a variety of heights, weights, shapes, etc.

-wendi

Re: Re: why? (wedding question)
 

Shorter answer: YES (at least it was in my case..) ;)

www.uglydress.com

LOL, I saw this on the Cool sites forum, thought it should make another appearance here :)

Okay, in front of GreekChat and the rest of the world, I will come clean and admit that...

MY BRIDESMAIDS HAD BUTT BOWS ON THEIR DRESSES!!!

Ok? Not only that, but I had a butt bow on my gown as well. And it was a big one, too! (not my butt, the bow. I actually had an exceedingly cute and perky butt, thank you very much)

And they had pouffy sleeves. And they wore satin ballet slipper-looking shoes. There was no way in he** any of them would ever wear that dress again, and I knew it. But I didn't care because I WANTED THEM IN THOSE POUFFY, BUTT-BOWED DRESSES because I liked them.

And it was 1992, and butt-bows were popular then.

Not that it makes it right...http://www.handykult.de/plaudersmili...sad/ponder.gif

HAHAHA my roomate just finished picking out her bridesmaids dresses. THEY ARE SO UGLY...the reason according to her is that "she wants to look better than everyone else" and "doesn't want any bridesmaid to look better than her or attract attention"

Gosh....I REALLY hope she doesnt ask me to be a bridesmaid!!!!!

AT MY WEDDING THOUGH....

Not doing the ugly dresses. I want everyone to look very elegant...most likely in Red or Black

I'm taking the easy way out...

all of my "bridesmaids" are men :)
3 guys on his side
3 guys on mine

not a bridesmaid's dress in sight :)

I'm lucky in that I pretty much got to pick out the bridesmaid dresses for one of my little's wedding (which isn't until March 2005...... long time away). She knew the color she wanted, and I was the first bridesmaid to go, and we found an awesome dress that we both loved and i'd definately wear again. No poufiness, no butt bows. Fairly simple, very cute dress. So i'm happy :)

Here's another question about bridesmaids dresses?

Why so often in pastel colors? No one looks good in pastel colors.

I guess b/c most weddings take place between the Spring and Summer months. Dark colors are mostly used for Fall and Winter weddings.

If the right shade is picked, people can look good in pastel colors. :)

Re: why? (wedding question)
 

Every bride wants to be the best looking woman at her wedding. :D However, I don't think that they all choose ugly bridesmaids' dresses to accomplish this. (I'm sure that some do, but not the majority.) I've been in several weddings over the years and was pleased with all but 2 of the dresses I've worn.

When I got married this year, I got all of my bridesmaids together for a shopping trip. I picked the color -- one that I thought would complement each girl's hair and skin tone -- and the girls picked their dress styles. They looked beautiful on my wedding day, and I was so proud to have them by my side!

ETA: I got married in October, so there were no pastel colors in sight! :D

Bridesmaid dresses
 

All of my bridesmaid dresses had butt bows and my dress did, too! The dresses were semi-bright pink and teal! But, they only paid $15 for them, and the dresses could be maid into really nice pillows!
Silver
:)

I guess I understand wanting the bride to be the most beautifull women there, but think about the pictures. Would it be a good (or even nice picture) if the BM looked ugly? I don't think so.


As some one said, when I get married I will make my BM go to Davids bridal and pick there dress in said color. I would have to approve, but other wise they can decide on cut and what not.


Christia

I gave my bridesmaids the option of what gown they could get. The colors was navy and they looked on the Davids Bridal site and chose the one they wanted. I paid for their gowns. No butt bows for any of us and we looked pretty spiffy

http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/4...c3a10000001610

Woah lass . . you getting married soon? Picking out dresses and didn't tell us?

Isn't the bride supposd to pay for her maids' dresses? theya re wearing the dresses for her.

That was nice of you Jill:)

It's really up to the individual bride, James. Some do, some don't. But when the average cost of weddings these days is $25K and up, some may not want to. There are some absolutely gorgeous dresses out there that can definitely be worn again, but they are often in the $200-500 range.

With the exception of my oldest sister's first wedding, I thought all the bridesmaids dresses I wore were okay. (Aforementioned sister was married in 1994 and we wore horrible pastel floral-print dresses with poufy sleeves, scalloped hems and butt bows. Yak! Her second wedding was better: short-sleeved, floor-length, scoop-neck in butter yellow.)

And anymore, there are no "rules" as to what colors should be worn in what season. My other sister was married in July and we wore bright red dresses. I was just married this past September, and my girls wore a deeper red color. Please don't fault the bride in her personal taste (or seemingly lack thereof), wedding planning is stressful enough as it is! :)

I like this. I like this a lot. :D

The reason I paid for my bridesmaid dresses:
We had a destination wedding (Las Vegas). So if they had to pay for their airfare (from Toronto, Charlotte, and Baltimore) the least I could do was pay for their dresses. My husband paid for the tuxes for the fellas

I've really lucked out (so far) about the bridesmaid dresses. I've stood up in one friend's wedding, and she chose a very flattering hunter green dress (that other bridesmaids helped pick out the style) that I have just taken in for tailoring so I can wear it to go to a party or whatever (whenever that may be :cool: ). I have another friend getting married this next September and I'm a bridesmaid, so hopefully it'll be a flattering style and something I can wear over again. I've paid for my bridesmaid dress in the first wedding, and I'm sure I will be again for this next wedding. Pastels don't look (too) bad on me, and really, it is the bride's day, so if I can't wear the dress again after the wedding, maybe I'll make it into a blanket or something else crafty :D

It's not mandatory that the bride pay for her maids' dresses. There are so many other expenses that come with a wedding that it is tough for some brides to handle bridesmaids' dresses on top of everything else. Some brides choose to buy the dresses as their thank you gift for being part of the wedding party. Others do other types of thank you gifts -- maybe by purchasing the girls' shoes or jewelry, paying for their wedding day hair and makeup, or treating them to a manicure.

I let my girls pick the dresses they liked. That way, they were able to stay within their own budgets. We got the dresses at David's Bridal, and they ran between $115 and $130. (My matron of honor chose a slightly more expensive style.)

As a thank you, I bought their jewelry, paid for their hotel rooms, and gave them a gift basket full of things that they like (wine, picture frames, bath & body items, etc).

Jill,
I love the picture you posted! Your dress and the bridesmaids' dresses are so timeless that you don't need to worry about looking back in 20 years and cringing! lol

And I love black and white photography - it's so elegant :)

blush...why thank you hon! I have seen too many tines where I have seen BM dresses from hell. My only rules were:
To look fab and to have a blast! No bridezilla here! :D

hijack:
here is a funny site speaking of weddings and bridezillas
www.etiquettehell.com

Jill,
Nice wedding pic. Very classic and chic. :cool: :)

Ah, my dearest Killarney Rose, the truth will set you free! LOL :D

I don't think bows are that bad. *shrug*

KR, you should post your wedding picture. :D

BEAUTIFUL!!:D

I concurr! Jill, that's a beautiful pic!

Y'all are making me want to get married (to whom though :confused:, LOL)...I rarely normally think about this kind of stuff.

I belive that your bridemaid's are a reflection of you--specifically how pretty their dresses are is a reflection of YOUR taste (heck, it's YOUR wedding), therefore they should look pretty. When I get married, my bridesmaids will be wearing beautiful, elegant, yet timeless dresses. The details will be different though (like if my gown is strapless, their dresses will have spaghetti straps)...

Most of the time, the bride is glowing anyway, just b/c it's her special day. :D That glow allows her to outshine all of the bridemaids several times over.

When I got married, December 2002, I gave my 10 (yes, 10 bridesmaids and 500 guests) the choice of a $250 dress that is definitely wearable for many events or a cheaper dress from David's Bridal that ran about $120.

Everyone of them chose the more expensive dress. It had a higher quality of workmanship and had a much more elegant look. They were black velvet halter tops with a black satin skirt. I had an ivory and cafe au lait dress. We all carried red roses and the church was decorated with red roses and white lights. (It was Dec. 21st...)

I think it should be that the bride gets noticed before the bridesmaids. But, I don't think a bride should try to make her friends look bad! One of my attendants (my cousin) was in Playboy. I didn't try to make her look like crap just so I could look better. I think that's disrespectful to your friends to do that kind of thing.

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Tippiechick
[B]When I got married, December 2002, I gave my 10 (yes, 10 bridesmaids and 500 guests)

:eek: :eek:

Is she doing anything this weekend lol ;)