RMW Real Bride {Vicky & Oli: Bridesmaids}

Afternoon beautiful RMW readers! Today's post is all about my entourage, the decisions we had to make on their amazing attire and a few little cute details too! As mentioned in my previous blog on The Dress, I'm definitely guilty of being a crowd pleaser, which when it came to choosing bridesmaids made things pretty difficult. The thought of leaving someone out or offending one of my closest friends was constantly on my mind.

THE TRIBE

I'm sure most brides-to-be are in the same situation, but really how do you choose which ladies from your friends and family to be by your side?! Annelise, one of my bride tribe, chose her maids pretty easily, on the other hand a recently engaged friend of mine has asked me for advice as she too couldn't decide - so some of you ladies out there, don't worry the struggle is real! I had over 10 girls that I would of loved to have by me, but just because they aren't within my 6 bridesmaids doesn't mean that they aren't close to my heart, and I can't wait to see their faces when they see me in my dress! (as well as hit the d-floor with them of course!).

THE STYLE

The first style decision of length was an easy one, as I knew I definitely wanted floor length dresses. I knew that some of my bridesmaids weren't comfortable in the multiway dresses so I quickly ruled those out. Luckily for me all 6 of my maids are easy going and were all happy with a high neckline, with a fitted waist, and a gorgeous light flowing skirt. I felt as though this dress would suit all body types, so for me it was the perfect 'all rounder'. For the colours of the dresses I was after a dusky pink/purple shade to compliment the beautiful rustic glam theme of our big day. So I definitely had very clear picture in my mind!

THE DRESSES

Now onto the dress hunt. My beautiful bridesmaid Annelise, who I'm also bridesmaid for in June, got really lucky and managed to order her 5 dresses from an online site, and they really are beautiful! I have heard a mixed bag of stories from online retailers, some disasters and some success stories. With my dresses I did want to be budget savvy but ideally wanted to see them in the flesh before I bought them. I did browse ASOS frequently but again couldn't really find the exact colour that I was after, and as the next season ranges filed in my chances were getting thinner. Admittedly I had become picky with the colour and wasn't willing to settle for a shade that wasn't quite right - the perfectionist side of me definitely crept in. As the weeks passed I really needed to find some dresses so I could tick it off the list, so with best friend Scottie in tow, we hit the shops. I don't remember it taking long but we came across a beautiful dress in Debenhams from the Debut range. The colour was spot on for the colour scheme, a beautiful dusky purple with a shimmer layer overtop, a high neckline and fitted waist - amazing, job done! Until a mini disaster struck - it was on the sale rack. Quickly my hopes faded as there were no others in the store, and it had been discontinued online. How was I going to find 6?! I quickly called my mum who was funnily enough in Norwich town centre at the time so popped into Debenhams. I was in luck as the store actually had 3 of the dusky pink versions of the dress! This would be perfect as I could go for 3 in each colour! Now, getting quite excited, as I only needed 2 more purple dresses, it wasn't long before we found a store in Leeds that had them - I was over the moon, and the bonus was they were at less than half price!

THE DETAILS

Whilst browsing Pinterest I quickly found an obsession with personalised hangers. Again, me being really picky I thoroughly did my research and was struggling to find the style I was after at a reasonable price and that would ship to the UK. That was until I finally stumbled across Two Stories Gifts on Etsy. They do the most beautiful wooden hangers with a lovely simple font and a colour ribbon of your choice - definitely worth a look! For the big day I knew I wanted robes for my girls, so again found myself browsing the Internet. Boohoo had a sale on only this week so I thought I would go for it and see what their 'bride squad' gowns were like. They arrived on Friday and I must say I am very happy with them! They look great and also didn't break the bank at £80 for 6. I've also got some great high street jewellery pieces for the maids too but I can't give away too much as they are part of their lovely wedding day gifts ;) So that's a wrap and I simply can't wait to see all my girls lined up on the big day! Has anyone else gone for high street dresses? Or have you been successful with a online retailer? Would love to know all about how you decided on a style of dress, colours and any other lovely details, simply pop a comment below! Enjoy the rest of the weekend lovelies, Lots of love, Vicky x