How to be a Great Bridesmaid
With the holiday season being a popular time for proposals, you may soon find yourself being asked to be a bridesmaid! Being a bridesmaid in a friend or family member’s wedding is a great honor. It means you have been chosen to be part of a celebration of love. Being a bridesmaid, however, is not just a figure head position. While you will get to stand next to her and look pretty in your bridesmaid dress, the bride will also need your help as she prepares for one of the most important days of her life. After being a bridesmaid in several weddings, these are the key things I’ve learned about how to be the best bridesmaid you can be!
Communication
The first is to listen to the bride and what she expects of her bridesmaids. It is important to establish trusted communication so that the bride feels comfortable and confident talking to you and relating to you her concerns, as well as assigning you tasks. Also, be sure to talk about money early on in the planning of the festivities. Being a bridesmaid can be costly, ask the bride what her expectations are of you so that you are on the same page and there is no miscommunication later.
Responsibilities
The biggest responsibility for the bridesmaids is to plan the bridal shower, and hopefully, if you have a fun bride, the bachelorette party! If you’ve never planned a bridal shower before, you can easily search online for fun ideas/themes and checklists to help keep you on track. Most importantly, make sure you take the time to plan the bridal shower and bachelorette party with the bride in mind. Think of what the bride would personally want when planning these events. Sometimes it is easy to get carried away thinking about the type of things that the planners would want for themselves, and her preferences get overlooked, especially when it comes to the bachelorette party! While you want it to be fun, you don’t want to include anything that would make her feel uncomfortable.
The Dress
Of course the bride will want her bridesmaids to wear a certain type of dress at her wedding. Some brides may be more free spirited and allow her bridal party to choose any dress they like, but most will want some sense of uniformity. Respect her wishes and understand that the dress she has chosen is an expression of herself. Have faith that she is keeping you in mind and simply wants you to support her. It might be helpful to make suggestions about the bridesmaid dress by sending the bride certain looks and styles. It’s fun to be part of the creativity, and you’ll hopefully avoid any 27 Dresses type disasters! The last thing anyone wants is a closet full of dresses they’ll never be able to wear again. Stores like David’s Bridal are great for finding a large variety of styles in every color of the rainbow. So even if all the bridesmaids can’t find one specific dress that flatters their body, you can at least have dresses that are the same color.
Planning a wedding is stressful on a bride. As a bridesmaid, be sure to remember this is her special day and try to keep a sense of humor, she will be so thankful to you! Keeping these simple thoughts bright in your mind will keep you happy and helpful throughout the process.
This is a guest post by Priti Patel. All opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of ACWOM.
I think I am more excited to be a bridesmaid someday than a bride. Great tips!
Fabulous tips, but someone needs to tell brides to be NICE! I’ve dealt with one too many who turn into complete witches. It’s frustrating to try to do so much for them, when they demand more and more.