I was wondering if its wrong to make my bridesmaids pay for thier own dresses?? And how much is to much to ask them to pay??
2006-12-10 07:34:08 · 69 answers · asked by wrpsmom 2 in Family & Relationships ➔ Weddings
It is expected...just keep that in mind when picking a dress...nothing too expensive and PLEASE pick something they will want to wear again. No purple or teal taffeta!
2006-12-10 07:36:06 · answer #1 · answered by jessified 5 · 10⤊ 1⤋
I think now day it's common place for bridesmaids to help if not pay for their dresses. I've seen some wars over this though so a few pointers.
Allow them to have some say in the dresses. If they are paying for it they will want a stay in style and most importantly cost. I know many brides that picked two to three styles and the color and let each girl decide which one. This gave them flexibility for body shape and cost, but they all looked great together and with the rest of the wedding.
Make sure they understand up front what the cost will be. I know one bride that forgot to mention they weren't paying for the dresses until a month before the wedding! ANother bride I know underestimated the cost $100 per dress! You don't want this to ruin your wedding!
Keep it reasonably. It's easy to think damn I'd pay $200 for a dress to be in my friends wedding, if your the bride. If your the bridesmaid its harder to accept.
I would chip in as much as you can, just so it doesn't seem like you are expecting them to do everything. Make sure you also talk to each girl seperatly otherwise someone in a lower financial situation may get bullied into a dress she really can't afford because she is too afraid to say something.
Also approach them nicely. My friend always started out, "I really want you to be a part of this wedding, but I'm having to watch how much I spend. I was wondering if you could help out by.........
2006-12-10 13:03:23 · answer #2 · answered by masterjennjenn 2 · 2⤊ 0⤋
I have been in 3 weddings and I have bought my own dress in all three. I am getting married in February and my bridesmaids are paying for their dresses. I took them all a couple bridal shops to pick out their dress. I told them my only thing that I am requesting is that it is Brown in color. I didn't want to be responsible for the price range. They tried probably close to 20 dresses between the 4 of them and decided together on a dress that was $180 before alterations and accessories. I have now decided to have them made so that they could save some money but the same design.
Also I made sure to ASK all of my bridesmaids to be in my wedding. They laughed at me but I explained to them that I just didn't want anyone of them to feel like because I asked they have to be in the wedding! I know how much it costs to be in a wedding and if they can't afford to I would completly understand!!!
I am now going to make their jewlery for part of their gift and I have bought each of them a purse for the day, I made sure that their purse matched their dresses, all 4 of them have a different one and that the purse is something they will be able to use in the future for other special occasions. I am now throwing around the idea of paying for their hair also. So that will leave them with their shoes and dress to pay for.
Good luck and have fun planning, I have loved planning my wedding and I think I will sad when it is over!!!
2006-12-10 14:03:11 · answer #3 · answered by melodi_jean_99 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Best wishes on the wedding. Now days most bridesmaids pay for their own dresses. As some suggested please pick a dress that they can wear again, or want to wear again. lol
I would try to keep the dress under $150 a peice. Because remember they have to have shoes too. Bridesmaid will extras to pay for too. Hairdos, jewerly, gifts, nails and such. It would wonderful to hunt around and find the best priced dress for them. Bargain shop. It can be done. There are places that you could get them off the sales rack or order them. Chadwicks, JCPennys, or even Sears have some awesome sales. The dress could not even be label a "bridesmaid" dress, but be perfect for the occassion.
Honey, you have the most wonderful and special wedding day possible. Thank you for thinking of the young ladys purse strings, you don't hear of that often enough now days.
God bless us all...........
2006-12-10 09:13:36 · answer #4 · answered by totallylost 5 · 2⤊ 0⤋
It is the norm for the Bridesmaids to pay for their own dresses. Not everyone is rich. We are not having "daddy" pay for it. This is not yesteryear. I will pick the color/theme and the girls are picking the styles according to their body types so that they are comfortable. They are taking the dresses home with them. Now if I had a bottomless pit of money I would pay for their dresses but I woke up and realized I am in the real world. However, since we are having a church wedding they have to be appropriate dresses. As far as budget goes--you know what your friends can afford so that is really up to you. I might use David's Bridal because most of my wedding party is spread across the US and they have many stores. They have an awesome selection and are very reasonably priced (they have great sales). You should check it out. Good Luck!
2006-12-10 07:49:15 · answer #5 · answered by psyjessica 2 · 3⤊ 0⤋
Not only is it okay... it is a given that the bridesmaids pay for their dresses. Regarding how much, kinda depends on the group as a whole. You need to make an educated guess... if you are in the "Paris Hilton" category... money is no object. However, if you have average girls that come from average homes, then don't make them pay for an expensive gown. Believe me... it will cause you and them headaches. I think you can get a very nice dress for around $150.00... Also, if you go to the mall around Feb or March, some of the holiday dresses go on sale from the previous year. I bought 4 beautiful dresses for my bridesmaids in Feb of last year for a killer price. (they paid me back of course).... but they didn't mind paying a sale price.
2006-12-10 11:42:54 · answer #6 · answered by lester 3 · 2⤊ 0⤋
It's not wrong, especially if everybody is in good financial shape. I would make an evaluation based on what you know about their finances, whether you have been a bridesmaid at their wedding and price. If you find a decently priced dress, people may not mind. If one 'maid drops out because she can't afford and you can, then you could offer to pay or have you and the others chip in equally for her dress. It, to me, is a sticky situation, one that I avoided by not having any bridesmaids (we flew out to Hawaii and married there, no one attended). If a sister or cousin is a 'maid, you may have the family pay for those. I, personally, would discuss it with each and every one of them. Let them make their opinions known and then decide. How about having someone sew them all for a fraction of the price? EBay? Keep your options open and if worst comes to worst, stick to a color theme and have them search for their own dress in "crimson" or "magnolia pink" or whatever!! If they do pay for dresses that are steeply priced, you could offer to pay for the shoes and/or jewelry!!
I just hate when people expect you to fork over a lot of money when you don't have the means to afford it and/or you are also flying yourself out to the wedding!
Good L U C K!!
2006-12-10 07:55:22 · answer #7 · answered by Johanna T 2 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Yes, most bridesmaids pay for their own dresses, just don't make them spend more than they can afford. Let them choose the dresses together, you just choose the colour you want. They should also know, when they accept the role of bridesmaid that this is an expense that will be expected of them, at which time they can opt not to accept the role.
2006-12-10 08:07:41 · answer #8 · answered by LindaLou 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Yes, you can ask your bridesmaids to pay for their own dresses. There is absolutely nothing wrong with it. I would say anything over $200 would be a little too expensive, but it also depends on their budgets. You could always help them buy their shoes if you felt you needed to help out.
2006-12-10 09:55:38 · answer #9 · answered by usmcwife722 3 · 2⤊ 0⤋
It is tradition that bridesmaids pay for their own dresses and they should expect to foot the bill going into it. With that in mind, make an effort to choose something fairly inexpensive. Last summer, I was a bridesmaid in two weddings, and after paying for my dress, hair, and wedding gifts, I was broke!
Oh, and to the person who asked if you were that cheap: get a reality check.
2006-12-10 09:11:59 · answer #10 · answered by Galoshes 3 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Bridesmaids usually have to buy their own dresses...the average cost is around 150-200 for everything, but you can always go to an Ann Taylor type store and find great things there without having to go to a bridal shop for their dresses.
2006-12-10 11:16:25 · answer #11 · answered by VAWeddingSpecialist 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋