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Inspiration and Ideas for your Bridesmaids Style

All the inspiration for your Bridesmaids / Bridespeople!

So, you’re engaged, you’re getting engaged, you’re dating someone, chances are you’ve probably thought about who would be in your wedding party when you get married. Maybe you have a ton of friends, or perhaps you want no one at all. Well, if you have a wedding party, then you’re thinking about what they are going to wear standing beside you on your big day. Will they be matching? Will they be in neutrals, something shimmery, maybe jewel tones, there are so many different styles and types of bridal parties nowadays. I am here to help give you a few different options when planning!

For the sake of this blog post were going to refer to the wedding party as Bridesmaids/ Bridespeople. I do want to acknowledge that some weddings have parties without any specific gender pronouns. I am excited to see the shift in wedding language in the coming years to be more gender-inclusive. For the purpose of this blog post,  I’ll refer to the bride and her maids, even though I recognize sometimes there are no brides at a wedding.

Colorful Wedding Party Inspiration at Colorado Wedding | Josie V Photography

Wedding Parties + Color Palettes

Once you have your wedding date and venue, you can begin to plan the details of the day. One of the biggest things I have seen couples, especially brides, struggle with is their wedding party’s style. My advice would be to start with your wedding colors. If you don’t have colors, start with your wedding date. What colors will be around you at the time? Snow in the winter? Red and yellow leaves in the fall? How can you create a color palette that naturally compliments the colors of the space around you?

I love how M + T choose a complementary color palette to the rocks at the Riverbend in Lyons, Colorado. The blue suits contrast with the yellow leaves at the time. The slate blue bridesmaids dress reflect the lichen on the rocks behind them. The pops of red in the bouquets then compliment the pocket squares the groom’s people are wearing. If you are working with a planner or even a photographer, you can always ask for their help in creating a color palette or check out this color palette generator.

I also love that while the bridesmaids have matching color dresses, they have different style dresses. The Bride got them all matching jean jackets for the chill that came on in the fall afternoon. If you are getting married somewhere where the weather may turn cold, consider some sort of jacket or cover for your bridesmaids to wear later in the night. I love that the jean jackets create a laid back vibe.

Slate blue Bridesmaids dresses | Josie V Photography

Bridesmaids with Jean Jackets Rustic Colorado Wedding | Josie V Photography

Stand Out Maid of Honors

One of the more recent trends in Bridal parties is to have the Maid /Matron of honor wear a differentiating dress from the rest of the bridal party. You can see this example in the glittery dresses worn by the “more important” wedding party members. These dresses are a great way to add a little bit of sparkle to the wedding party, especially if you don’t want to add a lot!

Fun Bridesmaids Photos while getting ready | Josie V Photography

Pink and Glitter Unique Bridesmaid Dresses | Josie V Photography

Grateful Dead Wedding Party Style | Josie V Photography

The Classic Bridesmaid Style

The classic or traditional style for bridesmaids is for everyone to be in the same matching dress. Sources believe that this tradition originated from when the Bride would have her handmaidens dress up to confuse jealous suitors that would try to steal the Bride! Regardless the traditional norm is to have all of your bridesmaids in the same style and color dress. Here are a few examples of this classic look. Notice that these are both traditional, but the colors vary from jewel tones to muted neutrals.

Champagne Bridesmaids Dresses with Classic Bride in Wilmington NC | Josie V Photography

Classic Wedding Colors | Josie V Photography

 

Champagne pink Bridesmaids dresses and style | Josie V Photography

 

Classic Bridesmaid Style at Outdoor Colorado Wedding | Josie V Photography

 

Same Color, Different Style

One of the most common bridesmaids trends today is to have the bridesmaids wear one color, but get whatever style suits their body types. Different styles are an excellent option for a wedding party made up of a diverse range of body types! By being able to choose their dress, bridesmaids feel more comfortable and are generally a little happier with the dress pick. (at least that’s the rumor I hear…) Most brides will want to approve the dresses if this is the case so that they can continue to have the same color throughout. If you say blue and don’t specify, you can end up with a wide range of colors, something possibly opposite of the intention.

Bride and Bridesmaids with Pale Pink Color Palette | Josie V Photography

 

Mismatching Bridesmaid Dresses | Josie V Photography

 

Mismatching Gold and Glittery Bridesmaids | Josie V Photography

On the flip side, you can opt for everyone to get the same dress but in different colors. I love the way that Abby had her bridesmaids in four different shades of the same dress, this added to her overall bohemian flair at their summer wedding.

Boho Bridesmaids with mismatching colors by Lulus | Josie V Photography

Boho Bridesmaids Style in Colorado | Josie V Photography

Getting Ready Bridesmaids Style

Consider that beyond the actual outfits of your bridesmaids, you will most likely want some sort of coordinated getting ready outfits for the group. The photographer will be there while you are all getting ready, and the photos will look 100x better if you all are coordinated in some way. (trust me) Many people choose to get matching robes for everyone, sometimes embroidered with everyone’s name. I have also seen everyone wear matching flannels or button-down shirts. You do want something to wear that you can easily change out of without messing up anyone’s hair. Most brides will give their crew a gift during this time as well. This gift might be jewelry, a flask, the robes, anything special. I love that Abby opted to create headbands and bracelets for her bridesmaids, also making one for herself to coordinate. These small touches are what make your wedding unique to you!

Bridesmaids whimsical getting ready robes | Josie V Photography

Bridesmaids Getting Ready Robes | Josie V Photography

Bridesmaids getting ready robes at the Riverbend in Lyons, Colorado | Josie V Photography

Boho Bridal Style | Josie V Photography

Bridesmaids and brides getting ready in robes | Josie V Photography

Matching the Wedding Party

Lastly, you want to make sure that your bridespeople match the level of dress of your groom’s people. (or any other gender-inclusive pronouns!) You want to make sure that everyone is on the same page, fancy wise. If your wedding is more boho, you might not want to use fabrics like velvet for the dresses, and vise versa, if your wedding is super fancy, then cotton might not be the fabric you want to use for your bridesmaids, you would want to look into silk or velvet. Below are some examples of different wedding parties that did an excellent job coordinating their style across the aisle.

Boho Wedding Party Style in Colorado | Josie V Photography

Navy, maroon and Champagne Wedding Party Style | Josie V Photography

Bridesmaids Style Inspiration at Colorado Wedding | Josie V Photography

Downtown Denver Wedding | Denver Athletic Club | Wedding Photography | Josie V

 

Finally, don’t forget to have fun with it! Find inspiration from these photos, but know that in no way are these things strict guidelines when creating your wedding party’s look. And if you need a little more help starting to find your style, start with our post here. Also, keep in mind when deciding these things, they should be around the same timeline as your dress! You want to make sure that everyone has ample time to get their outfit in and get it altered if need be.

If you’re in the middle of planning your wedding, make sure to get in touch to set up a consultation call today!

  1. Steven Stemmler says:

    This is great inspiration for how to coordinate bridesmaid style. Well done!

  2. Morgan says:

    I love all the different styles you’ve shown here!

  3. jarrah says:

    Yess! So many gorgeous bridesmaids!

  4. Ursha says:

    Planning and coordinating wedding party’s style can become quite overwhelming, I love how you put together this inspiration – I think it can give couples a great basis for starting to think about it!

  5. Traci says:

    I love when bridesmaids do not match.

  6. Sabrina Kaye says:

    Love how true to color your photos are! Stunning!

  7. Lauren Han says:

    Oh my gosh!! I love these different colors and styles. It’s so great to see how different and personal all the bridesmaids can be!!

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