August 2014

[louandivy]

Those dresses are gorgeous Emma, do you prefer the midi or maxi version?

 

[foquita]

i don't think it's silly at all, it's a beautiful dress! i would go for it!

 

[Mummy May]

I bought most things before my dress xx

 

[DanielleM]

I like those bridesmaids dresses. Both my bridesmaids are small 5ft and 5ft 2 so we made the decision to have midi dresses as neither of them feel comfortable in long dresses.

 

[xemmax]

Thanks girls!

I actually wanted maxi dresses but I like the midi. I haven't even decided on how many bridesmaids yet (I want 5 but have only asked 2 so far). The 2 bridesmaids I currently have both prefer maxi as they don't like their legs.

If I have 5 bridesmaids I really would like them matching but they all have such different body shapes and heights that I think it would be hell to find one dress that fits all, so I'm open to having different dresses.

Now we are having a bit of a nightmare with the bridal party anyway - Nick can't cut his list down from 5 ushers and a best man. We both feel its too many but they're all such good friends and family. What do we do?! Would it look like a circus if he had them all and I had 5 bridesmaids? The costs would be insane too

 

[Mummy May]

You could always ask if they minded contributing to eir suits/ dresses xx

 

[Tasha]

I think it depends on your wedding size if you had 5 bridesmaids and 5 ushers and had ten other guests it would look like a circus but if it is a fairly big wedding that isn't a problem. Five ushers and five bridesmaids work well but like you said it is the costs, even just the dresses for the girls would be a huge amount.

 

[xemmax]

Originally I'd planned to just buy the dress for the bridesmaids, I don't mind them having odd shoes as they'll be hidden by the dress anyway and that way they can get something they like and can wear again. I'll hopefully get their hair done for free but they can choose whether to pay for their make up or not. But I don't know how to go about doing it similarly with the guys - could we just set a budget and say anything over that they'll have to pay themselves? I feel so cheeky but we'll have to do it if the bridal party is that big!

That's a good point Tasha, the guest list is altogether 115 I think so it's a big-ish wedding. Do you think that'd be ok? Honest opinions are very welcome!

 

[Tasha]

Yeah I think that is the fair way to do it tbh. Give the men a budget and then over they deal with the extra.

With a wedding that size, that many is absolutely fine IMO.

 

[Mummy May]

Yeah I think it's fine for a wedding that big too my suits were £86 each to hire just to give you an idea xx

 

[emyandpotato]

Thanks girls!

I actually wanted maxi dresses but I like the midi. I haven't even decided on how many bridesmaids yet (I want 5 but have only asked 2 so far). The 2 bridesmaids I currently have both prefer maxi as they don't like their legs.

If I have 5 bridesmaids I really would like them matching but they all have such different body shapes and heights that I think it would be hell to find one dress that fits all, so I'm open to having different dresses.

Now we are having a bit of a nightmare with the bridal party anyway - Nick can't cut his list down from 5 ushers and a best man. We both feel its too many but they're all such good friends and family. What do we do?! Would it look like a circus if he had them all and I had 5 bridesmaids? The costs would be insane too

I'd just go for it. It's your day and I think it's such a lovely thing to be able to have so many people you're close to included, and it's wonderful to be able to remember having too many friends Cost wise how about just letting ushers wear a suit they own and buy them each a matching tie?

 

[xemmax]

Thanks girls!

Mummy May where did you hire your suits from? DF thought it might be cheaper to buy high street suits but he has very.. shall we say.. specific taste (as in annoying as hell because his attention to detail is insane so nothing is ever just right) and for a basic suit that he liked even at Topman was £140+.. totally out of budget if he needs 6 of them, plus one for my dad

emy that's so true! And that's a good idea.. I don't mind mismatching suits although I'd be scared someone would show up in a horrible one

 

[emyandpotato]

Thanks girls!

Mummy May where did you hire your suits from? DF thought it might be cheaper to buy high street suits but he has very.. shall we say.. specific taste (as in annoying as hell because his attention to detail is insane so nothing is ever just right) and for a basic suit that he liked even at Topman was £140+.. totally out of budget if he needs 6 of them, plus one for my dad

emy that's so true! And that's a good idea.. I don't mind mismatching suits although I'd be scared someone would show up in a horrible one

You could always set a general rule like they all have to be navy/grey etc, and ask well in advance what they're wearing so you can just check they're okay. I think that ushers can go quite unnoticed though really, and if you and your OH, LO, and BMs look great then no one will notice them unless they look ridiculous.

 

[Jo_Bean]

I think it would look better if you had 5 bridesmaids to go with his 5 ushers. If you only have 2 if could be a bit one sided.

I think the photos would look lovely too.

If it were me, I would have matching dresses if it was 2 bridesmaids but if you had 5, I love to see the same material or colour but in individual styles. Maybe they would be prepared to pay towards their dresses if they were made to fit their shapes?

Did you see Peaches Geldof's wedding? Her bridesmaids all had different styles dresses. They were ivory, but I liked the styling. It seemed classy but laid back.

I think there's something very stylish about embracing differences. If you can't get things to match perfectly, I would always make it look delivberately different, just so people know it was a conscious decision.

 

[emyandpotato]

^^ I'm another who's a big fan of different dresses.

 

[xemmax]

I think you're right there actually emy, will have a chat with Nick and see what he thinks!

I'm totally with you on that Jo - I've always wanted different dresses but if I have 5 I thought it would look better to have them looking more similar. I definitely want different colours if possible so matching material is a good idea!

The chances of me finding 5 dresses I like are pretty slim though

 

[Jo_Bean]

Hmmm yes. It might be a bit difficult to find them like that. What about getting them made? It's not always as expensive as it might seem. Then all you have to do is pick the material and styles.

 

[emyandpotato]

Have you seen Ghost dresses? They cost a lot but they're gorgeous flattering cuts and all sort of go together even though styles are different.

 

[emyandpotato]

Or something like Two Birds.

 

[xemmax]

Wow just looked up Ghost, I am blown away! Too beautiful and just what I want. Too much though I know what you mean about them complementing each other so well, so stunning.

I thought about having them made but the only site I've found and loved is Maid to Measure and the dresses are £200ish, way too much for me. Maybe I could find a local dressmaker though, I didn't actually think of that before so thanks. I'm always scared in case I don't like what they make but I think I'm just being silly!