bridesmaids...in gray.

OneLovePhoto

OH I just LOVED how our bridesmaids looked in their unique gray frocks.  I know it was a pain in the ass for these lovely ladies to find their gray dresses in the first place, but it looked so nice I can't help but be super pleased with how it all turned out.  I'm glad that I ended up going with the mis-matched dress look...I think it looked so PERFECT!!  The girls wore whatever shoes they wanted to as well - you can see they all have crazy good taste.

OneLovePhoto

Obviously, these ladies brought an element of beauty to my wedding.  But, they also brought an element of EXCITEMENT to the day for me.  They were there to help me get dressed, and to gush at me about how pretty I looked (hehe!)  they were there to calm my nerves AND pump me up!  They squealed with me, and laughed with me, and gave me plenty of high fives. They let me borrow lip gloss, and helped decorate our venue to be beautiful, and they were there to PARTY with.

I can't really even express my appreciation and love for these women.  They threw me parties leading up to the wedding (hello bridal shower...hello bachelorette party!)...they love me.  And I was going to miss them when I moved away.  Best friends and sisters are really really precious. 

I do miss them.  Each of them.  Everyday. 

OneLovePhoto

mother of the bride....style

I never, not once, ever thought about mother of the bride dresses...or if my dad would wear a suit or tux... or what Tommy's parents would wear to our wedding. I barely care what my bridesmaids wear!

Until, that is, they asked my opinion. And I drew a blank. I have no idea what mother's of the bride wear...no idea. Does it matter? Not to me....in the sense that I don't want to micromanage the details of such things. Except, this is an important day for my mom too, and she wants to wear something appropriate for our outdoor wedding. And she wants my opinion. I want to help her.

So she subtly asked me what Tommy's mother was wearing. I didn't know. Tommy didn't know either. A few days later I was talking to my future mother in law she asked me what my mother was wearing! It was then I realized that this must be tough.

Long skirt? Dress? Informal? Casual? Or black tie? It's going to be outside, so should they wear a jacketed dress? Or a shawl? What colors? Should they match the bridal party? Or not?

Seriously I had no idea. And seriously, as far as I was concerned, they can wear whatever they like!

So I did some online searches. Found a fab site that has deals on mother of the bride dresses from major brands: DesignerApparel. Some are really high fashion, with sequence and tulle and all the designer details a black tie affair would necessitate. And some are more casual - perfect for a breezy afternoon up in the mountains for our low-key outdoor event. I have noticed that their inventory changes...so many of the links I sent my mom aren't there anymore...but loads of new ones are up.

If your mom requests some help....send her the link!!

the stress of "pick your own dress"

via Green Wedding Shoes

So. Don't get all offended with this post...I'm just going to come out and say that first. If you are having your bridesmaids spend $450 on their bridesmaid dress don't get annoyed with me because I would never dream of doing such a thing. OK. Done with that.

I never wanted a matchy-matchy bridal party. Most people do. So again, don't be offended that I don't.* I was overjoyed when I started seeing the mis-matched look in wedding photos - I really think it looks crazy chic. Plus, I've never met a bridesmaid dress that I would want to wear in "real life" - and I'm big into buying things I will wear over and over again. (Also, I think bridesmaid dresses are ri-dic-u-lously expensive...especially for only wearing it once.)

I thought my choice to have my bridesmaids wear whatever they wanted in GRAY was rad. Obviously. Every bride thinks their choices are rad...right? Well, GRAY is my favorite color and I think it's flattering on everybody - especially as there are so many shades - blah blah blah.

Little did I know this would become an source of minor torture for my ladies. In early December one of them started looking for a dress, and contacted me because she wasn't finding ANYTHING. I searched frantically online and emailed her a few options. She immediately went out and bought one (a divine one none-the-less). But the fact that she was freaking out, made me freak out. So I started emailing dress options to everyone else.

Fast forward four weeks. The after Christmas sales have begun and three of the other ladies start looking for dresses. Individually they scoured the Phoenix and Scottsdale malls. Hit up every freaking department store, JCrew and Banana Republic. They were stressed. Like, actually stressed....like, "this isn't fun" stressed. My sister and one of the other bridesmaids actually bought the SAME dress on accident. Inducing more stress. I offered to go with my sisters, take back the redundant dress, and help them...because...well...they were stressed.

Holy nightmare of a day.

They tried on every effing gray dress we could find...dresses they didn't even like...but because they were gray they would try anyway. I started to feel our claws come out. They made me so stressed that half way through the painful afternoon I just gave up and told them to wear black dresses. That I didn't care anymore.

But. Miraculously we found some glorious gray ones...as luck should have it, the last store in the mall had oodles of lovely lovely lovely options. And everyone was happy again. (Yay!)

So. I guess picking out bridesmaid dresses for your ladies saves them the drama and stress of finding one on their own as it takes the guess work out of "what the bride wants." Except in this case, the only thing the bride wanted was for the girls** to wear gray dresses they chose, they liked, and one that they hopefully didn't spend a fortune on.

*I'm sensing that some people, in my real life, are taking offense to the fact that I don't want the same things that they had at their own weddings. We all are entitled to like different things! It's OK that I don't want the big princess gown, the professional up-do, the DJ with maracas, or to release butterflies. People can do things differently and it isn't "better" or "worse" - it's just different.

**Sorry for the stress ladies. Your are all so beautiful...and your dresses are fabulous!

diy: will you be my bridesmaid?

Using a template from here, and crazy straight up inspiration from the DIY tutorial at Once Wed, my ladies each got one of these cards with the words, "Will You Be My Bridesmaid?" written on the back. I personalized the little ladies with the hair color of my gals, and wrote their names on the dresses. All of the dresses are different patterns in various shades of gray, with a couple accents of yellow thrown in. I love how they turned out!

girls in gray

from Lake Jane's own wedding

It's official. My ladies will wear gray. And look divine.

Once Wed

Wedding Bee

Verbal Snapshots

Hummm...I sort of love this look too. Oh shoot.

this one's for the girls

Michele M. Waite photo found at Fiance Meeting You Here
(btw: does anyone know the blogsite of this bride? I know she does 100 Layer Cake, but her other blog??? I loved it and can't find it)

Hot damn I hit the jackpot whilst bridal blog browsing tonight! I'm a huge fan of this idea: where the gals pick their look. I think bridesmaids look amazing when they choose their own dress as it ensures they pick a dress that fits them well, that they are comfortable in it, and that they will most likly wear again (thereby reducing the chance that the dress will end up at the Goodwill the day after the reception). So far, it's the plan for my shin dig. I think it looks sharp, smart, and put together.

(ummm...and if you can't tell...I chose nearly every "greenish" look I saw as that is probably what I will choose...or grays.....ummmm...or yellows....but probably greens.)

In Style Weddings

In Style Weddings

Dingmoonment via Lavender + Poppies

Lavender + Poppies had some great ideas of how to incorporate this mis-matched look gracefully using a series of easy to follow suggestions.

Fiance Meeting You Here

Snippet & Ink via Lavender + Poppies

Martha via Lavender + Poppies

Melissa Dunstan photography

Wide Eyed Bride

Bride-On-Purpose was talking about her bridesmaids dresses just last week. They are each wearing a different dress, in a different (yet complimentary!) color - check 'em out - looks fantastic.