Destination Weddings and Honeymoons

Gray Bridesmaid Dress

Enlarge Photo

I don’t know how many of you have seen the movie 27 Dresses, but that’s essentially what my closet used to look like. That being said, one thing I’ve loved about weddings recently is how more and more brides are picking shorter (re-wearable?) bridesmaid dresses. That was one thing that was important to me, way before I was even engaged. My thought was, I’ll just have my gals pick short, black dresses that they can wear again!

I think every bride at one point has that thought. And then the control freak (bridezilla?) steps in. Which — yes — that happened to me.

When the time came for me to pick out their dresses, I knew I wanted my ladies to pick their own, but I also wanted the gowns to come from the same designer’s line and in the same color. My bridesmaids range from 5’3” to 6’1”, so I knew finding one dress for all of them was probably not going to happen. And in all honesty, my ladies are all so different in personality, style and height, so I really wanted that to shine.

Working in the industry I do, I see amazing bridesmaids dresses every day — and had fallen in love with a particular dress by Watters & Watters. It was sort of the inspiration for the dresses we ultimately ended up picking. Tracey (my MOH), my mom and I went to the bridal boutique I knew carried that particular dress, along with others from the same line. But as soon as Tracey put on the dress I had in my mind as the “dream” dress, we all knew it wasn’t the one for her. She found a different one in the same line that was so perfect on her that we were all jazzed!

I sent an email out to the girls telling them to find a Watters dress in Falcon gray chiffon, and they all hopped to. I think they were just excited to have some direction from me — being the one giving marching orders has been hard for me! Two of my gals and I went shopping after work one night, and the two out-of-towners went solo to try on the options. The dream dress wasn’t available at most of the boutiques my ladies visited, so it was quickly forgotten about — until one of my ladies went to Chicago to see her family and happened to find it in a bridal salon there! SCORE! She tried it on — and loved it! Once all my ladies had picked their styles, I felt a huge sense of relief — one more thing to cross off my list and one less decision I had to make. Next up — shoes!

Miss one of Lauren's blogs? Click here for more from DWH's very own destination bride!

Related Articles:

Our Top Wedding Ideas and Inspiration Whether you draw on seasonal elements, highlight your locale or focus on a theme, these accessories should give you some much-needed inspiration!

Perfect Timing: Destination Wedding Checklist Need to get started on all of your destination wedding planning? Here’s a helpful timeline for taking on those must-do wedding tasks.

For the Groom: Tips on Choosing Wedding Attire The Fresh Hubby of BrokeAssBride.com offers tips to help your guy get the most from his wedding wardrobe.

30 Ways to Stretch Your Wedding Budget We brought in planning pros from around the country and asked them how to stretch a budget without sacrificing style.

Wed Like a Celebrity! With some inside knowledge, you can have your dream wedding with star treatment at one of these spectacular wedding venues.