Wedding Wednesday: Bridesmaids Dresses

From the very moment we got engaged I started looking at bridesmaids dresses. And from Day 1, I had the hardest time making any decisions. I went from blue to seersucker, to raspberry, white to green and everything in between. Picking colors for our wedding was probably the hardest decision we had to make, so picking outfits was seven harder. Once we decided that the guys would be wearing traditional blue seersucker - we needed to go with something to compliment it. I almost chose raspberry and then changed my mind to yellow {see yellow backpack comment below} and I loved it! It made the whole wedding bright and cheery and my girls looked amazing in it! So after the color was picked... it was on to the dresses. My inspiration came from an Etsy collage in a Martha Stewart Weddings magazine. Etsy had just taken-off and they were featuring some of the wedding ideas you could get from artists on the store. The dress they posted was this:

via Nostalgia.

The dress was fun and flirty and very original. We are not very formal folks and we were getting married in Orange Beach, so we wanted to go more casual. While also keeping in mind that we were having a very traditional Catholic Mass, we wanted it to be somewhat traditional. 

Well, after visiting her site on Etsy - I found another dress I loved! I wasn't really sure how this was going to work, since I couldn't see an actual dress and since my BM's were all over the country - there would be no in person appointments. I decided to order a sample in a different color to wear for my Engagement Party. 

and this is the actual dress...

Mols & I / J & I with my Parents at our Engagement Party.

The dress didn't really fit when it arrived just in time {the Friday before our party}. Thanks heavens for mommas who know how to sew. I had asked for pockets on the side... and the crazy looking slits on the side of the dress didn't show - thank goodness. I wore it anyway and was glad I did. The pictures turned out great. But... it was now on  to finding a dress maker that was willing to take my idea and make it a reality!  I went through many appointments, calls, emails and such until one of my bridesmaids mentioned her sister, who was just about to graduate from design school. Of course, I jumped on the idea and ran with it!  

Meet Jamie and the Jones. Two best friends with crazy talent who are making it big!! They have an amazing new spring line out, {if anyone is interested} and have been a huge success on the Nashville Scene. Now, I wouldn't say that J&J are really in the business for more BM dress making, but they did a smashing job and I am so thankful for the favor!  

The dresses couldn't have turned out more beautiful! Of course, my beautiful friends make the dresses, but I was so happy with the color and fun funky flower/ruffle. Thanks for wearing yellow for me gals, you all looked amazing, no matter what you say!  The final results...

What was your inspiration for your Bridesmaids Dresses?

Mine. The Yellow L.L. Bean backpack I wore throughout high school and college. 

Photography by Mary Beth Tyson.