Weddingbee Blog

if you go the jcrew route then try to go with the bridesmaid dresses from their sales section or one of the dresses that cost 200 or less. A lot of them are $250-350 and as a bridesmaid if I were going to pay that amount there are better designers our there that cost as much or less that I’d rather be forking out cash for then JCrew. I think that amount for something from JCrew is too much to ask. Or look for discount codes to cut the price.

The good thing about jcrew is that people could get the cut that is most flattering to them. If you want a uniform cut for everyone then find a fit that looks good on the hardest to fit bridesmaid…chances are it will probably look good on the others.

The Sophia dress is very nice and has more potential to be worn again than something floor length. Also, something off the rack might not need as much alteration, which can help reduce the overall cost for a bridesmaid.

If you’re looking to make a dress re-wearable, definitely go with something knee-length (and not a crazy color), not a lot of people have black-tie events to go to where they can wear a full-length gown.

My bridesmaids wore J Crew dresses! (except the MOH) I think they were $110 each, but they were even less formal than the one you show above, but it was great just having them all in the exact same color, even with different styles. And, I’ve seen pictures of one of my bridesmaids wearing her dress at not one but TWO separate occasions in the 3 months since my wedding! I think the real issue with re-wearability is material & length, and I think going with non-bridal-shop dresses is probably the best way to find good options.

I’m using Jcrew’s silk chiffon sophias for my bridesmaids dresses and my girls love it! MOH chose the lyndsey dress in the same color. Since they happened to be on final sale, I just decided to buy my bridesmaids their dresses. Have you given any thoughts to financing some of the cost of the dress? I agree it is hard to please all of them, especially if they have different body types. That’s why I think Jcrew is great because you can just choose a color and the bridesmaids can chose the dress they like best when it comes to the style and fabric; thereby increasing the chance they will re-wear it. I was worried at first the different materials would come out looking different but I think Jcrew did a good enough job of matching them as close as possible. Another great thing about off the rack is the flexibility to order more dresses if your bridal party changes or simply because they decide they want to go with another dress. Hopefully they make the decision in the same collection season so they have the colors you want.

Here’s a tip, if you order directly from the Jcrew store, you get free shipping! The one I went to had a special red phone solely for the purpose of calling in catalogue/online orders. If there isn’t a store near you, there are always coupon codes available for free or discounted shipping and sometimes even %discounts when you purchase above a certain amount.

I bought my dresses at a store in the mall Georgiou. They are very figure flattering and also very inexpensive ($75). I have 7 bridesmaids and 4 of them have worn the dress already, BEFORE the wedding. That makes me feel pretty darn good.

My bridesmaids wore the short Sophia dress from J. Crew in black! The dress looked great on all of them (ranging from 5′2″ to 5′9″, very different body types) and they loved that they could easily wear it again.

I absolutely love the J Crew dresses. The fabric is excellent, and they look just great.

An even lower-budget option is the Isaac Mizrahi collection at Target. Dresses can be found for as little as $30 on sale. We went with the strapless dress in white, and it’s been a hit so far. The dresses will get a splash of color and texture with some nice homemade sashes. Shipping is free, and if the sizing doesn’t work out, online purchases can be returned at the store.

Love the J.Crew option, especially because they almost always go on a great sale. I was going to go this route as well, but if any of your bridesmaids are particuarly busty, you’ll find they don’t make a lot of styles that will work. I think the best option for those who are much bigger than a C was a cotton dress, and my wedding is more formal than that.

I think going for basic black and telling the girls to show up in something “knee-lenght, black, not too cleavage-y” gets a nice result. I left a post on miss penguin’s BM thread, saying I got my dresses at Chadwicks for 16 bucks each (there was a sale when you bought two), and added a sash. They were casual but very cute, we got a LOT of compliments and “I need to know where you got these I have a friend who is planning her wedding” comments. Best part was, ALL of the girls have worn them over and over again. If you go casual but modest enough, the girls can wear the dresses anytime in the summer, to the beach, to a BBQ, to church, or on a date.

If you want a more casual dress that’s not too expensive, I’d check out the following (although look carefully, you’ll find some “old lady” stuff for sure):
chadwicks.com
laredoute.com
dress barn (I’m not kidding, sounds awful, but they DO have some really really cute dresses mixed in with fuddy-duddy stuff).

something like this is very cute in black, and would work well on many women:
http://www.us.redoute.com/clothing/LAURA-CLand201MENT-Crepe-Dress.aspx?PfId=98932&DeptId=14054&ProductTypeId=1&PurchaseType=0

This can be dressed up or down:
http://www.us.redoute.com/clothing/Tie-Dress-with-Balloon-Hemline.aspx?PfId=98917&DeptId=14054&ProductTypeId=1&PurchaseType=0

Don’t be afraid to look at places you normally wouldn’t shop. If you can keep a dress under 100, your girls will be happy for sure.

I’m not totally sold on JCrew. I had a friend get married recently, she used JCrew brown dresses very similar to the one you have above, and I believe her girls spent 150 on them. I saw almost the exact same thing at Kohls for 45 bucks. It definitely helps to look around.

If you’re interested in strapless and short:
http://store.delias.com/item.do?categoryID=424&itemID=48305&sizeFilter=&colorFilter=&brandFilter=

I would definitely look at Target’s website as well, as Terry mentioned. If you can’t find something the girls will wear again, MAKE IT INEXPENSIVE so they’ll be thankful.
http://www.target.com/gp/detail.html/ref=br_1_11/602-2238071-2744606?ie=UTF8&frombrowse=1&asin=B000NXYNHK
http://www.target.com/gp/detail.html/ref=br_1_12/602-2238071-2744606?ie=UTF8&frombrowse=1&asin=B000GVWX0I
(also available in blue and pink)
http://www.target.com/gp/detail.html/ref=br_1_8/602-2238071-2744606?ie=UTF8&frombrowse=1&asin=B000M97XSQ

Just do your homework. Look around, order a dress to try it out on a couple of your bridesmaids, you can always send it back. We ordered two dresses online, I LOVE the color of both, and let my bridesmaids pick which one they like the most.