I’ve been a bride, and thought I did a pretty good job keeping my maids happy. No one had to deal with any crazy bridezilla moments (although, maybe you’d want to ask my sister and mom about that), and I’d hope I didn’t annoy any of them by talking about my wedding - a reasonable amount of times - during my engagement. But now that I’m a bridesmaid in two weddings this year, I thought I’d flip the switch and shed some light 💡on some things that truly make bridesmaids as blissed out as they can be during the whole wedding planning process. And I got some help from Le Rose, the experts in luxury keepsakes and fashion for the bride and her tribe - because being a well-dressed crew is pretty high up there on the priority list.
Oh, these also go beyond sending a cute ‘will you be my bridesmaid?’ box just to pop the question. Gone are those days… especially now that brides have thrown out the simple bachelorette for more epic vacations with the girls.
Disclaimer, though, things don’t have to be expensive. they just have to be cute, thoughtful, experiential in nature, and postable. Four things that millennials are pretty fluent in.
From matching pjs to pastel sweet treats and emoji-inspired pool floats, the things that can make bridesmaids smile are really all over the map these days. But there’s a certain amount of nostalgia that comes with them, too. The perfect bridal party experience is extra in all the best ways. And can involve a lot of throwback comforts.
Thoughtful.
Yes, when the ladies sign up for your wedding girl squad, they know they’re part of just that. A squad. A collective. But when a bride can go out of her way to make each ask, event, gift thoughtful and personalized, it means the 🌎. That can seriously happen as simply as letting each girl pick her dress. Eliminating the one-size-fits-all archetype can take a bridal party from 😭 to 😁.
Experiential.
A great bridesmaid situation also calls for some spontaneous and serendipitous activities, outings, etc. to liven things up, get everyone acquainted, and also ((sometimes)) to help shut the bride up a littleeee bit, when she’s getting too bridal for her britches. A good bride knows how to break up all the ‘me me me meeeee’ talk after a while. Especially if it means she can go to spa, drink all the wine, shop till she drops.
Postable.
The evidence of a perfect bridesmaid experience is an Insta feed full of lots of pretty - from the gorgeous box of hand-painted sugar cookies brimming with that all-important ask, to the first day you met your fellow squad members at the engagement party and took that first pic all together, to the extra-sassy satin pjs you got to wear the night before the wedding - and a hashtag to commemorate it all. Think my sister hit the JACKPOST with hers: #BaumSquad2018. We all don’t get that lucky with our new last names…
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We partnered with Le Rose to share some sweet ways to make your bridal party game next level. As always, thank you for supporting our sponsors!
So, yes, being a bride is no joke. You might not even remember the last time you were this stressed. But it’s not exactly a walk in the park for your bridesmaids. They know you love them, and wanted to include them in your most special day, but they also understand they have certain responsibilities to uphold in the bargain. Handling the stressed texts at 3am over color palettes, driving all over creation to find THE boutique that’ll have your dream dress, watching YouTube flower tutorials to figure out how to arrange peonies and garden roses for your bridal shower. So, we teamed up with a total boss in the bridesmaid world, Le Rose, to give you some easy ways to make them feel awesome. Awesome, well-dressed, less-stressed, all good things 👌. Read on for some suggestions, and don’t be afraid to go a little rogue. Your girls will appreciate any and everything you do for them as a thank you for standing up on that altar with you.
Tell your ladies you can’t say ‘I Do’ without them - and do it in OMG-THIS-IS-SO-CUTE-HOW-COULD-I-SAY-NO kinda way. We’re obsessed with beautiful sweet treats, and think that sending a box of masterpiece-looking cookies inscribed with your ask is a great way to do it. 🍪
Plan out a flashback-style slumber party to get the girls all met up. And to start the wedding planning off right. Break out the bridal magazines, the movies (Bridesmaids and Bride Wars, of course), and treat each of them to a pair of satin pajamas that they’ll remember from your tiny Limited Too days. These ones are all grown up - and come with a bubbly glass of bubbly instead of a pouch of Capri Sun. Cheers!! 🥂
Go bridesmaid dress shopping with your team and bring the fun wherever you go. While it’s never necessary to go all out - sometimes it helps to set a mood. Our thought. Go to the bridal boutique half an hour earlier than you told everyone to meet you. And leave adorable robes in each of the dressing rooms, so that your ladies feel like they’re getting styled for their own red carpet event.
For any of the girls who can’t make the group shopping trip, make it a priority to take them out separately and schedule things on their terms. Make sure you save her robe for the occasion, and then buy her a cup of coffee or brunch and fill her in on everything you’ve been doing so far. Yes, you’ll be winning as a bride - just for not putting pressure on a mandatory group-only shopping session - but making any of the ‘stragglers’ have to go by themselves is never cool. She’ll appreciate you coming along with!!
Bring the girls to a mixology class to help you strategize your signature cocktail game for your entire engagement - from the engagement party pour to the wedding day morning mimosas, sure you can go with rosé for everything, but where’s the fun in that?!?!! Your ladies will loveeee putting their new bartending skills to task coming up with a special bridal shower sip or batch-style punch for your bachelorette bash.
Give them and their baes a night off somewhere in the middle of your engagement. Or plan a night out for all of you and your S.O.’s - their girl or boyfriends do have to suffer when they’re helping you plan out your big day, so it means so much if you can acknowledge that and take the time to make up for it. Drinks after work, a weekend vineyard tour or a nice night of adulting at a bowling alley, arcade, or couples art class - with wine in tow - is just what every wedding planner would order. Oh! And a night out means getting ready together 😉
Offer to help out with their makeup or hair styling for the day. Every bridesmaid wants to get all glammed up for the occasion, but sometimes it’s just not in the budget. So, being able to help with one thing, especially if you’re requiring the other (professional makeup or an updo) is just so nice.
Have your besties’ rooms brightened with some blooms on your wedding day. Or have your florist bring some extra stems to deck out your vanities as you’re getting ready. This is super lowkey and a detail that your ladies are sure to love.
Make sure your MOH feels some extra love… by getting her a special set of comfy cozies to wear on the morning of your wedding. And maybe exchange grown-up statement friendship bracelets at this time too… We know a few brands that make THE BEST bridal party jewelry. You can have the girls take a few extra pics that you can have blown up to gift yourself, your sister(s) and mother.
Jump on any one of the many online photo publishing platforms and curate personalized albums for each of your bridesmaids. That means you’ll need to start your engagement with a mission to take photos at ALL of the events your bridal party will be present at - and remember to take shots with your group and each girl. Your crew will love getting a cute little album chock full of #squadgoal photos at the end of your wedding weekend.
