Bridesmaid dresses. Colours, style, cut, print, fabric, length - it always takes way longer than you think and by the end, the majority of brides end up picking a single colour dress in the same style. If you're set on something different, picking print dresses is a great way to make your bridesmaids really lovely for your wedding and can be easy if you start planning it from the beginning. Possibly this could start by -

1. Picking the general colour you want - pink, blue, yellow, green, white, navy, lilac, purple, red etc etc
2. Considering your bridesmaids' body shapes (usually easier to ask them) - keep a list of the cuts they prefer
3. Using the information from step 1 and 2 to start filtering your searches on online stores to work out what your options are but keeping an open mind. Just because you picked a colour in step 1 doesn't mean you have to stick with it if you see something else you love! It's also fantastic if you can get all of your bms to a store to try on everything to see what suits, but with girls often living away, travelling or with packed schedules, this isn't always possible. 

There are a number of stores which sell beautiful dresses specifically catered for bridesmaids. Some of my favourites are BHLDN, JCrew, Bridesmaids Only, Maids to Measure (a custom dress shop), Jenny Yoo and Nordstrom. 

There are other stores which sell gorgeous dresses which aren't necessarily tagged "bridesmaid". It is usually easier to find printed dresses in fashion stores (as I find that the bridesmaid stores naturally err towards stocking single colour dresses as they are the most popular). For these, I suggest Shopbop, Madewell, Revolve, Topshop, Asos (although the dresses can be a bit short), Net-a-Porter, Matches and Lover.

I've put together a few inspiration suggestions if you're looking to style your bridesmaids without depending on bridesmaid focused dresses (I'll put together a post on the dresses I love from my favourite bridesmaid dress stores soon too). 

A bright pink print dress is absolutely gorgeous for spring weddings (although bright colours are always lovely regardless of the season). The white pumps and pearl cuff keep the outfit ladylike and elegant and the light pink lipgloss will just add a lovely pink glimmer to the mouths of all of your bridesmaids. For strong colour dresses with a print, it is always helpful to keep the accessories more simple to avoid overwhelming the overall look.

Brunettes often look gorgeous in yellow so if you have brunette bms, that's an added bonus! :) Here, the yellow is offset by the navy and pearls which are a perfect complement. The lilac nails provide that extra tint of a widely flattering colour and the bouquet matches the lilac perfectly. The nude lipstick is also perfect with slightly more accentuated eyes for this look (as accenting the eyes helps to avoid the yellow print overwhelming your bridesmaids' faces). 

I hope you found this helpful! I've had a lot of girls mention to me lately that they want to look for dresses which are more fun than the typical bridesmaid dress and for this, gorgeous print dresses in bright colours are definitely an option. 

JYx

I have had the pleasure and honour of being privy to the innermost deliberations of many of my friends when it comes to picking out the colour scheme for their wedding. 

Everyone says this is a key decision which plays into your invitations, accessories, ceremony and reception decorations, flowers, bridesmaids's dresses, etc etc etc. Being reminded of the importance constantly is always a bit stressful though (but it doesn't have to be! Ta da!) 

My tip for picking colours is to forget about trying to pick every colour at once for each of these aspects. 

Often it is easier to first pick from one of a few loosely titled general themes e.g. "girly (i.e. bright pinks, purples, peaches), "sophisticate" (navy, blues, ivory, grey), "spring" (pastels in general) - going by some photos (Pinterest is a great source for this, or even a general Google image search), see what appeals to you in what you love - you might trawl through pages of photos until you see something that makes you SUPER EXCITED. 

In my experience, it is easier to pick aspects which work in tandem, say, the bridesmaids' dresses (as you can see below), as that will then inform the florist and your floral arrangements (as florists often use bridesmaid dress colour swatches to determine the colour of the relevant bouquets). 

See for example, a classically pretty pink and gold bridesmaid theme I put together, with the Arlequin crystal flower earrings (these can be made in antique gold btw, just ask and we will do what we can!)

I've deliberately chosen simple dresses (I will do a post on patterned dresses soon!) just so you can get an idea of how the colours work together.

Navy and silver is also another classic combo. This is updated by the silver pumps and the Danae pearl earrings (available in grey which would also suit this outfit). 

For the pastel theme, mint, pink and pearls is always a fresh and really lovely colour scheme. It's light, airy and with the Cheshire cream pearl studs and the Papillon necklace, something a little bit more special. 

Once you have an idea of the general colour scheme you like, you can work out the other specifics. 

Look out for my next post where I'll talk more about picking colours! 

JY x