Bridesmaid Dress Ideas

I’ve been a bridesmaid twice in my life. I got very lucky both times because for the first wedding we were all able to pick our own dresses, and the second wedding all of our dresses were an elegant blue chiffon fabric. No 27 Dresses, please! (A tribute to Katherine Heigel’s movie about the atrocious 27 bridesmaid dresses she had to wear to her friends’ weddings.)

My honest opinion is this: choose a color, or a range of colors, and let your bridesmaid choose their own dresses. This will give them more choices, allow them to select a dress that they are comfortable in, and that fits their body type. Plus, they are much more likely to wear it again and they’ll feel beautiful when they get all dressed up on your wedding day in a dress they picked out and actually like.

I personally love to see multiple styles of dresses of a similar shade surrounding a smiling bride on her wedding day. My friend Lexi did this for her wedding and each of her bridesmaid’s dresses were all a slightly different shade of mint green. You can hand your bridesmaids paint swatches to show them the color palette you’re okay with.

For you future bride-to-be’s out there, I rounded up some of the best bridesmaid dress ideas based on style and color. Most, if not all of these styles, come in multiple colors. So if you see a style you like, click on it to see more color options.

If you’re a wedding guest, make sure to check out my guide on wedding guest dress options.

Pink/Blush Dresses

Lace Dresses

Black Dresses

Knee-Length Dresses

Blue Dresses

Red Dresses

Unique Colors

Dresses Under $100

Shop My Bridesmaid Dress Ideas Look:

Eliza J Dress | Asos Veil | Icing Earrings + headband | Lulu’s heels | The Daily Edit bag

5 more tips for choosing a bridesmaid dress:

1. Check with the bride on hair accessories as she may already have something in mind.

2. Please remove your apple watch on wedding day. It never goes with a bridesmaid dress.

3. Always steam your dress and allow it time to dry afterward. It makes such a difference in photos not to have wrinkled dresses. (You can also use the steam setting on an iron.) It makes the world a difference. Just be careful and read the label instructions regarding iron, steaming, etc.

4. Order your dress a few weeks before the wedding so that you have time to get it altered if need be!

5. It never hurts to have a backup on hand. If I cannot decide between two dresses I will bring both with me to the wedding. That way if something happens to one I have a backup on hand!

Photos by Taylor Lynn Photo