my day: my (amazing) bridesmaids

My ladies, from left to right: Natalie, Lauren, Megan, Megan (youngest sister), Samantha (middle sister and MOH) and Lisa. I have known these girls since 6th grade (except for my sisters, obviously) and I absolutely adore them!  It is such a blessing to have friends who know you, the real you, the braces in 9th grade you, the ex-boyfriends you, the you you. You know?  They were rock stars, watching the SATC movie the night before and waking up at 4:45 to get the day going… Rock. Stars. And girls, even though you don’t read my blog, I still love you

(Yes, I am the oldest and the shortest… go figure.)

We got the bridesmaid dresses at J. Crew. I played with the idea of letting them all choose their own dress, but when it came down to it, I love the look of all of the girls matching.  I searched and searched for the perfect marigold dress. Actually, I take that back, I searched and searched for the perfect grey dress, and I just couldn’t find any I loved. Then, one amazing day I saw the new J. Crew color swatches and I died.

I let the girls pick their own shoes in whatever color they wanted (originally I said gold or silver but eventually I just didn’t care anymore!), wear whatever jewelry they wanted and I let them decide if they wanted pro hair and make up.  I was so glad that they all agreed to buy the dress and didn’t want to put them out any more money.

Tips: Yes, letting your girls pick their own dresses (and therefore budget) is the new thing and matching dresses may seem like ’so last year’, but ultimately you have to do what feels best for you.  I really wanted matching dresses. Matching shoes? Not so important. Matching hair? No way. But that is just me. Do what feels best for you, and just make sure you take into consideration your maid’s budgets. Not everyone can afford to get their hair and make up done, and in the end you want everyone to be happy… and not regretting the fact that they said yes

(Just an FYI, flower girls are in another post)

All images from Studio 7 Photography. Hire them!!