Important Rules You Should Stick to When Selecting Bridesmaid Dresses

Your wedding party will sizzle with the perfect bridesmaid dresses that suit both your personality and the style of your bridesmaids. When it comes to choosing the gowns that are just right for your bridesmaids, it's important to select a style that flatters everyone and showcases the theme of the wedding for a cohesive look and feel. With these select tips, you'll be in store for a relatively stress-free shopping trip with the girls.

Stick to Your Style

At the end of the day, it's your wedding. Your opinion of what the bridesmaid dresses should be like is the one that counts the most. Of course, you should take your friends' preferences into consideration; but don't let their opinions overwhelm your own. If you like red carpet glamour, then browse through one-shouldered gowns with beautiful ruching and asymmetrical details. For modern and flirty, check out short dresses with uneven hemlines and pockets. Brides who prefer traditional or princess styles can search through dramatic full-length gowns with empire waists and full, flowing skirts. Stay true to yourself and your style when selecting bridesmaid gowns and you will always be happy with the results.

Reflect Your Wedding Theme

Are you planning a summer wedding? Is it a themed event, like a beach wedding in Hawaii or a natural and organic wedding outdoors? Then be sure that your bridesmaid gowns are appropriate for the occasion. If spring is your thing, consider light and airy dresses with gorgeous floral detailing. Simpler, more casual styles, like a strapless gown with a flattering A-line skirt, are great for beach weddings or low-key affairs. For a grand church wedding, think about floor-length bridesmaid dresses with plunging V-necklines and ruched bodices. By keeping your dress styles along the same lines as your wedding, you'll end up with a beautiful and harmonious effect.

Find Flattering Shapes

There is a perfect dress out there for every bridesmaid, regardless of her shape and size. Beautifully detailed A-line dresses will flatter any body type since it creates an elongated line and features a full skirt for universal appeal. A strapless dress with trumpet curves will accentuate hour-glass and petite women in all the right places while cap sleeves and V-necklines will give shorter women the illusion of height. Emphasize the top half of a pear-shaped bridesmaid while subtly concealing the lower half, like with an off-the-shoulder gown featuring a beautifully beaded bodice and A-line skirt. With so many shapes out there to choose from, you can easily accommodate bridesmaids of any size and shape.

Jordan Brown is a freelance writer who writes about weddings and specific products such as bridesmaid dresses.

Choose the Right Color

Finding the right color can be the hardest part of buying bridesmaid dresses. That's why it is important to stick with what you know and like. If cooler tones are your thing, then find the right shade of blue or green that comes across beautifully in a dress. For pastel lovers, select a soft tone that will make a graceful complement to your wedding gown as well as the groomsmen's outfits. Once you find a color you like, be sure to look at it in all different sorts of light to make sure it will be flattering in any scenario. And don't forget to see how the color looks on each woman in your party. You don't want to unwittingly wash out your bridesmaids' complexion or have the color clash with a redhead.

Pick Material That Works

Pay attention to the material of the dress you like so that you can know how it will hold up throughout your big day. For an airy and light effect, look through dresses with chiffon detailing that will come alive as your bridesmaids stroll down that aisle. Satin and sateen bring a rich, luxurious shine to any gown while charmeuse is a more lightweight, yet still shiny, option. Know how to clean your dresses before you buy them so that you can be prepared for stain or wrinkle emergencies. Choose a high-quality material and you will have incredible dresses that will hold up from the altar to the ride home.

Select Stunning Accessories

Be aware of the types of accessories that will and won't work with your bridesmaids' gowns. If the style you like has an elaborate bodice with exquisite detailing, you don't want to go over the top and choose a large necklace that also features a lot of detailing. Instead, choose pieces that nicely balance out the gowns selected so that they serve as a complement and don't compete for attention with the dresses. Shiny satin shoes, sparkly earrings, and a beaded clutch would work wonders when paired with a teal halter gown with a beaded bodice. When purchasing accessories, gather up all of the things that you like and then edit with a careful eye.