The Wedding Planners: Bridesmaid on a Budget!

Thursday, August 21, 2008

Bridesmaid on a Budget!

Next summer, my niece Carissa, is getting married. Once. LOL. She is planning one special day. Her sister, Kate, however, isn't merely in Carissa's wedding; she's also in two other weddings that summer. OY!

Isn't that the way it always goes? When one friend gets a ring, it seems everyone does. LOL.

But Kate's not laughing. She's calculating the high cost of being a bridesmaid. Bridesmaid dresses cost a bundle. In our neck of the woods, the bridesmaids also host the bridal shower and bachelorette party. And let's not forget the hidden costs. Does the dress require a special undergarment? What kind of shoes are required? What's everybody doing with her hair? And my personal favorite...is the bride requiring everyone to tan?

Wow! That one blew me away. Can brides really DEMAND that you tan? Yes, in this day and age they can. LOL.

My niece, only half joking, told me to watch a few episodes of Bridzillas to get an idea of how demanding some brides can be. So I did and I have to tell you I was shocked.

But I also saw Kate's point. In three weddings next year she will spend over $3,000. Just to be a good friend. LOL.

Here's the rundown for Brides to remember so that when they're thinking of demanding that each bridesmaid in their party go to the salon and get fake nails, they might pull back!

Dress (rarely less and sometimes more than) $250
Shoes $100
Undergarments $50
Bridal shower $200*
Bachelorette party $200*

*Please remember that's $200 per bridesmaid for the shower and the bachelorette party.

Hair (Updoes are all the rage now) $50 - $100
Tanning $20
Manicure $50 (in my area...in yours it may be higher!)
Pedicure $50

And let's not forget gifts for both the bridal shower and the wedding!

So Brides...Have a heart! Think of your bridesmaids' budgets when choosing their gown, their shoes, their hairdo, and any and all nail arrangements!

Audra

4 Comments:

Julie Hilton Steele said...: My daughter in law used all J. Crew dresses for her bridesmaids. They are chic and can indeed "be worn again." But when her cousin got married and did the J Crew thing too, my DIL got on line on eBay. Her cousin had said just to get a J Crew dress in X color. My DIL found one in her size on eBay for $10. Still looked like new.

That is one of the reasons I like the brides telling the bridesmaids to just wear a black dress in their favorite style, as well. Another thing I have witnessed is having no or only a maid of honor and having "honorary bridesmaids" who are mentioned, seated specially but don't have to put up with the dress up.

Peace, julie; August 21, 2008 at 4:55 AM
Brandy said...: I like the idea in the comment above mine! WOW on all that a bridesmaid is expected to spend!; August 21, 2008 at 3:43 PM
Shirley said...: My goodness! That's one expensive year!! I had my bridesmaids get their dresses at the mall, so they were pretty inexpensive--I think $40 each. I just didn't see the point in spending hundreds of dollars for a dress they'd wear once. I had done that too many times myself. I was just happy to have my friends there.

Shirley; August 22, 2008 at 8:36 AM
Susan said...: I'm a big fan of the "just wear blue" bridesmaid idea. First off, I love the array of fashion choices. Each bridesmaid gets to pick a style that fits her, but also...people attending the wedding get to see a fun assortment!

But also...it leaves the door open for the bridesmaids to really attend to their own budgets!

I LOVE the ebay idea! So cool! I have a friend who gets "important" clothes on ebay all the time. She can't afford new coctail dresses for conference parties so she goes to ebay and looks every bit as nice as those of us who spend $$$$ on new dresses!

And sometimes the clothes she gets ARE new!

susan; August 22, 2008 at 10:11 AM