Bridesmaid Dresses

I told my bridesmaids I would prefer for them to have it a month before the wedding, but really, up to 2 weeks out would be fine. If they choose to order late and have to pay a rush fee for alterations, that's their issue.

In my experience arbitrary deadlines cause stress. Just tell them how long they normally take to come in and make sure they know they’ll need to have it by the wedding or they’ll be a guest.

I dont like worrying that they wont get the dress. You need to be aware that any dresses you're looking at now could be discontinued when you want your girls to order them by. The bridal industry doesn't like to give warnings when it comes to discontinuing styles. If you find one you love then ask them to order ASAP so you know they have it. If you want them to order in October then maybe dont look until September. Also keep in mind some designers can take 3 to 4 months to come in especially if anyone needs to order special, like extra length for your tall girls - things like that usually cant be rush ordered.

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Good point!! Thanks for the advice!

We went BM dress shopping in March for our August wedding. My MOH's dress came in within about 2 weeks, 1 BM dress came in about 5 weeks and the other didn't come in until closer to 8 weeks. They know they need to get them altered so it's up to them to make sure it's ready by the wedding. I didn't give them a must have by date.

View Quoted Comment I'm just going to make sure they have a good variety of styles and look at the price comparison between them and David's bridal since they don't list prices online

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Sounds like that's the way to go! Instead of doing a have by date, just say that the dress takes ___ weeks to come in and that they have to take that in consideration so that they'll have it by our wedding date!

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Good point! I think I'll slip in there my preference for when they should have the dress by but ultimately leave it up to them on when they order it! Ball is in their court at that point, so to speak!

We shopped in April for my December wedding. You never know how long production or alterations are going to take, or when something will be discontinued.

I get that deadlines stress some people out but honestly being both a bridesmaid and a bride, I like the deadline. As a bridesmaid, I liked knowing exactly when I needed to have something ordered, when the money was due, etc. As a bride, I gave my girls the deadlines and they responded to it well and honestly all the dresses took longer than the store originally quoted so I was glad I got them with plenty of time. I didn't give the girls any sort of timeline on getting them altered or picking them up from the shop!

I just told mine how long the dresses were supposed to take to come in, and just to make sure On the day of the wedding they had the dress and it fit properly. They are all adults and can make responsible decisions. If the dress you are selecting will become discontinued between now and then, then yes perhaps point that out to them but no need to set a deadline. It also won’t take 3 months for their dress to get altered.