So once I had chosen the perfect dress for me, I began searching for the perfect dress for my bridesmaids! I kept putting off this decision because I could not decide for the life of me what color I wanted them to wear! Originally, when I chose our wedding colors (pink, brown, silver, and white), I was all about dark brown bridesmaid’s dresses. But as our wedding style developed, I began to feel like this might be too dark for the otherwise light, romantic, garden feel. This left pink, silver/grey, and a lighter shade of brown as options. I was more particular about the dress fitting the overall style of the wedding than finding a particular color.
When in search for a stylish bridesmaid dress, there were a few different options that stood out to me:
Option 1: There are a ridiculous amount of bridal designers in existence. I didn’t even have the time to look through all of them, but I found the photo galleries on www.theknot.com and www.brides.com very helpful because they allow you to sort the dresses into categories like price, silhouette, neckline, color, and designer. These were my top contenders in the bridal designer category:
^ Dress #1
Designer: Watters
^ Dress #2
Designer: Alvina Valenta
^ Dress #3
Designer: Alvina Valenta
^ Dress #4
Designer: Alvina Valenta
^ Dress #5
Designer: Melissa Sweet
^ Dress #6
Designer: Melissa Sweet
^ Dress #7
Designer: Priscilla of Boston
^ Dress #8
Designer: Jim Hjelm
Option 2: Two lines of bridesmaid’s dresses available online that I found myself immediately drawn to were J.Crew Weddings and Vera Wang Maid-to-Order.
J.Crew – They’re simple, stylish, and easy to order. I ordered fabric swatches in various shades of cotton cady and silk chiffon and was very impressed with the store’s wedding department and the quality and presentation of the swatches I received.
According to J.Crew’s website, cotton cady is an “elegant, crisp cotton with a subtle shimmer, ideal for structured silhouettes that fit the body well.” I really liked the color “peppermint”, which is a soft, cotton candy pink that would look great combined with neutral accessories and bouquets of various shades of pink flowers. (The color “peppermint” is now discontinued, but here are the styles that I considered:)
“Alexa”
“Erica”
“Serena”
“Sydney”
The above picture shows the peppermint cotton cady dresses in action on the right! So cute! (Photo source: Style Me Pretty)
My other fabric option, silk chiffon is “whisper-light with a subtle crinkle texture. It’s loose and drapes beautifully.” The color I liked best in silk chiffon was “graphite”. It’s a medium grey color that would look really cute with silver accessories and pink bouquets. These are the silk chiffon styles that I considered:
“Juliet”
“Sophia”
“Twist-tank”
Another plus to J.Crew dresses is that their simplicity makes them really fun to accessorize and wuold allow each girl to show off her unique personality.
Vera Wang Maid-to-Order– Vera Wang dresses in my budget, and available online? When I heard about this option, I was all over it! Here are my four favorite styles from her spring collection:
Option 3: Originally, this option was my ideal plan. I searched and searched for the right dress at some of my favorite stores, especially hoping to find one at Anthropologie! But sadly, I was never able to find one that fit the style of our wedding. I found a lot of other cute dresses though and am envious of those of you who went with this option! It’s so cute and convenient!
I have chosen a bridesmaid’s dress, and I promise to reveal it soon! It’s one of the dresses in this post. What’s your guess?
The Juliet and Erica are my faves. I almost bought one of them just to have!
I love dress #1 by Watters and I think Juliet by J. Crew is fabulous.
I decided on JCrew for my girls, but in the silk taffeta, and they all love their dresses!
I can’t wait to see what you chose!
I had the same problem you did with the off-the-rack dresses. I wish I could have done them because it would make life so much easier, but I couldn’t find anything that matched my (really basic) criteria, and so we wound up ordering ours through a bridal boutique.
Option 1, Dress #2 is available for way less then Bridal stores sell it for at Forever21, Old Navy, and J. Crew! I just ran across it a whole ton yesterday while looking for BM dresses for my girls.
that very first dress is TO DIE FOR! i’m guessing it’s that one or JCrew.
Did you look at the dresses on etsy? I really love my dress from Amanda Archer.
Oooh, I love how these looks don’t really scream bridesmaid dress! I can really see myself wearing these dresses elsewhere — a nice dinner or a cocktail party! If I got to choose, it would be dress #4 just because it fits my body type. But of course, choose whatever you like! I think the tougher part is finding a dress all girls will be in agreeance with (almost impossible in my opinion). I finally decided to choose a line, a color, material and dress length, and I allowed my ladies to choose whatever style they wanted and felt most comfortable with. Worked out best for us! Good luck and I’m sure your ladies will look great with whatever you choose!
I like the Sophias! The BM dresses were among the hardest part for me (decided on various Alfred Angelos in wine). Feelings, body types, etc. come into play, and it’s no easy task, methinks.
I love all the dresses you posted! I have to say, I am a huge fan of the cotton cady dresses from J Crew. Especially the Lydia (it’s a halter dress w/ a full skirt.)
I actually own 3 of them. And one of them is peppermint. It’s a beautiful color. And the material is so nice!! It’s such a great dress. And definitely something your bridesmaids can use again.
I adore that gray and white Melissa Sweet one! I’m actually super obsessed with the FG version of that dress – if only it wasn’t so expensive!!!!
I know which one it is, so I’ll keep my lips zipped. 
oo all pretty choices!! can’t wait to see what you have chosen!
i don’t want to pick. they’re all lovely. but i wish that model in the first dress didn’t have her arms crossed over the front of the dress. i want to see the details and her arm isn’t exactly see through
I would totally wear the first one again – it doesn’t look bridesmaid-y. J Crew is always classic of course. And in general you have excellent taste
Mrs. Turtle, Central California Age and Occupation: 21, Art Student/Teacher Fiance's Age and Occupation: 22, English Student Engagement Date: August 16, 2008 Wedding Date: July 2010 Venue: Mr. Turtle's Grandparents' backyard, Arroyo Grande, CA About Me: I am a California girl who loves the beach and the mountains, but is quite satisfied living right in the middle where I can enjoy the best of both worlds. I am happiest when traveling to faraway places, wandering through museums, watching old movies, or baking up a storm. Mr. Turtle and I are high school sweethearts and fellow book nerds who both drive Mini Coopers and are most likely to be found browsing in antique stores. We're having so much fun planning our European garden wedding with a vintage twist and can't wait to share more of life's adventures together!
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