The Bridesmaids' Dresses That Were.

A while back, I gave my five bridesmaids the choice to buy any dress* they wanted. (*Stipulations included 1. picking from J. Crew's silk chiffon options in Light Shell or Deep Rose; 2. Choosing a custom Sarah Seven dress in a coordinating color; or 3. Finding a different dress altogether but getting my OK before buying it).

Two of the girls opted for J. Crew's Juliette dress in Deep Rose, below.

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The other three decided to try out the custom route and order dresses from Sarah Seven. Luckily, Sarah is very generous and will give you discounts if you buy more than one dress. Her prices became fairly reasonable (~$200) and the girls placed their orders: 2 flock dresses (1 in peachy-pink and 1 in dusty rose) and 1 tulip dress (in peachy-pink). Measurements were made, payments were sent, and the wait began.

Sarah's dresses understandably take quite a bit of time to make. And with a very recent boom in her business, it didn't come as a surprise when it took, well, longer than expected (about two weeks longer, putting us about two weeks from the wedding. Eek!).

And, unlike Ms. Mouse who had a very good result arrive at her doorstep, my girls were, um, not as happy. The peachy-pink color came out very close to J. Crew's Light Shell, but the fit wasn't quite working. Bridesmaid Georgia models hers below--you can see how the fabric hung lower than the corset, showing BG's under garments.


In the next picture, you can see how the corset pushed away from her chest and sagged along the side.


Her dog, Bronco, seems to like it though! MOH A, modeling hers below (along with Jackson Puggle), liked hers a bit more ("with some alteration") but the color, which is supposed to be the same as J Crew's Deep Rose (at top) is quite a bit more coral-y.

I apologize for the tiny pic. iPhones don't make for great blogging photos.

At first, I got nervous. Sarah's site says no returns (no exceptions!) and I knew alterations would cost my girls an arm and a leg more. I immediately e-mailed Sarah and she responded quickly--readily offering a refund or even to pay for alterations(!).

I gave my bridesmaids their options and they all decided to return the Sarah Seven dresses and (quickly) order J. Crew dresses.

Which did they pick? We'll see! They get them this week. Fun surprises two weeks before the wedding.

How did your bridesmaid dress hunt go? Successfully or did it take a few tries?

The Final Bridesmaid Dress Dilemma

Well, hive, I've narrowed it down to three choices for my lovely ladies. You see, I just don't have a vision of what I want them all to look like which is making it really hard for me to pick out a dress. What I do know is that I want the girls to feel like themselves, to want to wear the dress again (I know!), and to get it in a color that suits everyone. You've seen the J. Crew and Watters trial. Then you saw the custom dress maker that I heart. Now I present to you my three delectable options.

But, first, let me share some color inspiration with you (peach, dusty rose, pink, and gold). 

(Thanks Martha)

(Thanks Again Martha)

(My Aren't You Generous, Martha!)

Option Numero Uno (silk taffeta; around $200):

J. Crew Lorelei Dress

J. Crew Sangle Dress

One of these styles in J. Crew's Barely Peach which hits stores in August. I ordered in both dress styles in other colors just to try on the dress itself. I'll let you know what they look like. I also got an itty bitty swatch of Barely Peach and love it. 

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Option Numero Dos (chiffon; $200 each):

Sarah Seven Flock Dress

Sarah Seven Flock Dress

Hive, I really need you to use your imagination here. Think solid color (no birds) and knee-length. This is where I'm having trouble with color, although Sarah would send me fabric samples before making the dresses. These dresses might be these colors:

The color of the curtains which is basically Barely Peach

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Something brighter like this amaryllis

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Option Numero Tres (variety; name your price):

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Or do I take inspiration from the discerning Ms. Apple Cider who had a good enough eye to catch this trend? Let the bridesmaids pick out their own dresses with set rules: in a certain color range, knee-length, particular fabric, etc. In the past, when this was done, I've seen bridesmaids stress over it and buy a dress last-minute. I've heard they like to be given more structure than this. But, I love the way it looks in the end.

So, hive, help me out! Vote for option 1, 2, or 3 below.