If I could afford to pay for all my bridesmaids’ dresses, I would. An especially heart wrenching moment for me was when Mr. Penguin’s mom was asking Mr. Penguin’s sister what she wanted for her birthday, and she asked her mom if she would help pay for the $300 Vera Wang Bridesmaid Dress she was going to wear in an upcoming wedding.
A bridesmaid dress for her birthday? I almost passed out right then and there. Needless to say, Mr. Penguin and I will be buying his sister’s dress for our wedding. She’s a graduate student on loans, and…well, enough said.
My parents aren’t paying for my dress, and the added cost of having to pay for maids’ dresses as well would probably knock me over dead. Fortunately, custom dictates that its perfectly acceptable for your maids to pay for their own dresses. But this doesn’t mean I haven’t lost sleep over it. I set a budget of under $200 (including a reasonable tailoring cost) which meant that dresses over $150 were out of the question.
My favorite casual dress designer is Ella Moss. Ella Moss dresses are typically cotton, and they usually retail for around $160. Her dresses usually come in a variety of colors, perfect for a casual bridesmaid. The “re-wear ability” factor is very high. The best part about a cotton/jersey knit dress is that it usually doesn’t need hemming/tailoring. Here are a few from the Ella Moss Website:



Another great option for solid colored dresses are Velvet by Graham and Spencer. Their knit dresses are also very re-wearable. Here are some Velvet dresses from Anthropologie.com:
From top left: $118, $178, $118. $118
I figured that since we’ll be outside in June, something similar should work just fine, however, my wedding-savvy bridesmaid vetoed them, saying they might look a bit too informal next to my dress. Oh well. You can’t say I didn’t try.
How are you trying to cut your Bridesmaids costs?
Honestly, I would try Macys if you’re looking for less expensive dresses. They have really pretty dresses that they could possibly wear again for better prices. Actually, you could try any of the department stores.