bridesmaids: no matchy-matchy

(photographer: Stephanie Williams. See the rest of Haley & Brent's wedding here)

When I got married in June 2006, I found it impossible to find a wedding dress anywhere that was my style (but that's a WHOLE other post). I also had a real hard time looking through bridesmaid dresses.

As you may have figured by now, I like breaking the old wedding rules when it comes to design. Here's what I considered: I had 2 Maids of Honor (my sisters) and 2 bridesmaids (my bff's). My sisters are both older than me, one was 4 months pregnant- she's the short one, maybe 5 foot 2" or so, the other one is the tall one, maybe 5 foot 8" or so. The tall one is long and lean, the shorter one voluptuous and pregnant. My 2 best friends- one just had a baby 4 months previous to my wedding, the other has a tiny thin body and is also a VERY picky fashion designer from New York. To top it all off, each and every one of these marvelous ladies has COMPLETELY different taste in fashion. There was no way I was going to stuff them all into the same dress. I really didn't even want to do that, I have never really connected with the idea.

(Photo from my wedding)

For me, asking them to be my bridesmaids and my Maids of Honor meant that these ladies were pertinent in my life, I respect them for their individuality amongst other things. So wouldn't it be sort of inconsiderate of me to ask them to wear some dress they wouldn't even like? And that they wouldn't feel confident in? Here's what I decided- I was going to give them a color and let them figure it out for themselves. I was SO STOKED that I made that decision. They each wore a dress that they were comfortable in & that matched their body type. And they each looked beautiful and confident in their dress.

(Photo from my wedding)

Here's what I say: Let's break up the whole "matchy-matchy" bridesmaids thing. Honestly, I really love how sweet it looks when each lady is wearing her own dress.


(Photographer: Red Photo Co. Via Snippet & Ink. See the rest of this wedding here)


(photographer: One Love. See the rest of Erin & Greg's wedding here)

If you are concerned that people may not know who the bridesmaids are since they're not matching, just tell them that they are the ladies holding the bouquets and walking around looking totally bitchin' in some dress that they really really love. Let's remember too- that the colors don't have to match EXACTLY, we can have shades of a color, similar hues, or a complimentary palette, and still get the point across.

For example.

(photographer: Tinywater. See the rest of Chrissie and Brian’s wedding here)


And this wedding is to die for. I love the old-school influence... so if your bridesmaids are a little lost and not sure where to begin, I say a good place to start is always in the beginning. Go vintage.

(photographer: Raya Carlisle. Via Once Wed. See the rest of Hannah & Kyle’s wedding here)


(photographer: Andrew Thomas Lee. See the rest of Ben & Brooke's wedding here)

Here's some old folklore: initially bridesmaids were supposedly designated for the purpose of confusing the demons that were thought to torment a bride on her wedding day. The demons would think that the bridesmaids were in fact the brides and therefore would leave the real bride alone on her special day. I say, why not confuse the crap out of those pesky demons. Besides, they're probably not that evil if their job is to just hang around at weddings all the time...

Thanks to all the seriously talented photographers who shared their work with me for this blog, And all the beautiful brides & bridesmaids with impeccable taste!

xo Noa (feather love photography)