Author Archives: Caitlin Kenney

Ultimate Bridesmaid’s Top 10 Posts: Year 1

When I was first asked to be a bridesmaid, I Googled “bridesmaid duties” (just like you probably did) and found myself led to a string of websites that look like they were thrown together around the time the internet was invented. I was really disappointed to see that there was very little real advice for bridesmaids that delved below the superficial and most of the lists I found seemed dated and out of touch, a sort of “Miss Manners” approach rather than an honest assessment of what to expect. I decided to use my own experience to put together articles and guides that might help other women like me. I’m really honored to find out that these articles dominate this year’s top 10. I could spend hours collaging gorgeous images of bridal showers or compiling bachelorette inspiration boards, but I really put my heart into these articles. Thanks for reading them and I promise I’ll keep more coming in year two. Please let me know what topics you’d like more info on in the coming year!

1. The Ultimate Maid of Honor Speech

This post was far and away the highest viewed in our first year. In my opinion, delivering a speech at a wedding is probably the most difficult thing asked of the maid of honor. Planning parties may be time consuming and logistically complicated, but writing and delivering a speech comes with a lot of pressure. This post breaks down how to structure the beginning, middle and end of your speech, with ideas for topics, jumping-off points and even a gimmick or two.

2. The Maid of Honor Speech: Do’s and Don’ts

Speech writing and giving was such a large topic that I had to split it into two posts. If you’re looking for down and dirty tips for delivering the speech, I actually recommend this post over the first, which is more focused on the writing process.

3. Bachelorette Games: The Fiancé Quiz

After the Maid of Honor Speech, you were most interested in bachelorette games. This is a classic, and is still my number one go-to for every kind of bachelorette party, be it a raucous destination weekend or a more intimate dinner with friends. It can even be adapted to a bridal shower—just make the question PG-13 for the daytime crowd.

4. Bachelorette Games: Bar Scavenger Hunt

Your fourth favorite post—with super-fun free printable checklist!

5. Bachelorette Games: Most Likely To…

A hilarious game to play with a close-knit group of friends (even if its not a bachelorette party!).

6. 5 Simple Bridal Shower Games (that don’t suck)

I typically find bridal shower games to be incredibly boring, so I decided to pull together five not-lame options. Toilet paper wedding dresses are just not my jam. Being made to wear a hideous veil every time you let the word “bride” or “wedding” slip? Highly preferable. Maybe that’s just me.

7. A Step-by-Step Guide to Planning a Bachelorette Weekend

This post was seriously a labor of love. I pulled from all of my experiences to put together all the details for organizing a bachelorette weekend, with a timeline and advice on how to coordinate a huge number of girls, find lodging, book dinners, plan events and keep everyone entertained.

8 and 9. Lingerie Shower and Mission Bachelorette Party!

These two posts make me a little bit nostalgic and bring back great memories because they are two of my very first posts on Ultimate Bridesmaid. Both talk about my own experiences planning parties, one for my friend Amanda’s lingerie shower in Atlanta and another for my friend Marisa’s bachelorette party in Savannah.

10. Six Dirty Details Bridesmaids Need to Know

From your unofficial role as Designated Bride Bodyguard on bachelorette night to corset-lacing, bustling and the ol “help the bride pee” bit on wedding day, this list includes six parts of bridesmaiding you may not be looking forward to, but you’ll need to be prepared all the same!

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Let me know what aspects of bridesmaid duties you want to know more about in the comments! I’ll have many new guides and articles in year 2.

Happy Birthday, Ultimate Bridesmaid! (We’re 1 Year Old!)

I’m so excited to share that today is the one year anniversary of Ultimate Bridesmaid. A year ago when I started sharing my own bridesmaid experiences, I had no idea how this blog would grow and come to mean so much to me. My first day when I received a couple dozen visitors that seemed wonderful. Today, I receive thousands of visitors each day. I took a screenshot the day my pageview ticker reached 100,000, but I’ve since seen it skyrocket to over 400,000. I’ve connected with other amazing bloggers and wedding professionals on my Twitter, Pinterest and Facebook pages. I’m grateful to all the amazing photographers who have shared their work with me; the bridesmaids and brides who have submitted stories, dress reviews and images from their showers and parties; and the artists and vendors who have worked with me and been so generous with their time and advice.

I have big plans for year two and hope you’ll all be with me for the ride. Over the next week I have lots of posts planned to look back on the year, including the top 10 posts of the year, some of my favorite images from bridal showers and bachelorette parties, and much more.

A Carnival Bridal Shower in West Virginia

This carnival bridal shower just screams fun, with the bride’s stunning ring popping out a pile of gumballs and a serious Sex in the City moment on a nearby iron bridge. You know that scene—Carrie with the balloons? Bride Kellie transforms SJP’s New York moment into a sweet bridal story in these stellar shots from Dyanna Joy Photography. Other little touches I love? The shot of all the girls’ stylish shoes abandoned by the door and a snap of Kellie and her bridesmaids snacking on cotton candy in their flowy sundresses. The pops of pink throughout this story tie everything together, from the pastel pink cake and pink lemonade to the just-blooming cherry blossoms. Gorgeous!

Fashion Friday

So it’s been way too long since we’ve had a Fashion Friday! Luckily, I have the perfect candidate: Jenny Yoo’s new Nabi dress, a convertible silk chiffon style that can be worn multiple ways. Now, the convertible dress is not a new idea, but we usually see them in jersey rather than chiffon. Also (and perhaps most importantly) polka dots! Polka dots, guys! Just too, too cute. I also like the look of the fit. Too often convertible means “kind of like a potato sack.” The difference here is that the basic structure of the dress is the strapless A-line silhouette you see below. The skirt has free-flowing pieces of fabric in the front and back that you pull up and tie to create different necklines and strap configurations. Price will vary by retailer, but it looks like the short polka dot version can be found at Nordstrom’s right now for $295.

Bridal Shower Invite Roundup

I’m going to be real with you guys. Bridal shower and bachelorette invitations totally get the shaft, design-wise. Am I right? I mean, take a look at the wedding invitations out there: gorgeous, thoughtful, modern, whatever you want. Now try to find modern, pretty bachelorette invites. That aren’t pink and black. Or covered in bras. What is that about??

The point is, invitations. You need ’em. You’re going to have to weed through a ton of subpar options to find something really cute. Maybe I can help. Here are some of my new favorites, including picnic-perfect prints and a dual bridal shower/bachelorette invite that I’m totally obsessed with.

My kind of floral and my kind of girly. This sweet seasonal invite would be perfect for a garden brunch or tea party. There are actually four different versions, each corresponding to a time of the year. While this one just screams spring with its strawberry pinks and kiwi greens, there’s a version with burnt orange and butternut yellows that would be perfect for fall.

The perfect picnic invite from FourThings by CaBlue. The text is retro chic with a bit of a deco vibe and I especially love the leafy illustrations. Contact her on Etsy for a personalized listing.

The abstract heart motif at the top balances the white space on the bottom, making this invite feel fresh and breezy. Plus, the colors are customizable so you can match them to your theme—coral and cobalt blue for a nautical look, or citrus and lime green for a bright spring feel.

What a great idea: a shower and bachelorette party set! So often the same person is throwing both events and the parties may even be grouped into one weekend. These invitations carry the color and dot theme throughout, tying the two events together visually and conceptually. I want to see more sets like this!

Ah, stock the bar. One of my all-time favorite party themes. Just bring booze—none of those bar gadgets for me. Well, ok, glassware is all right. Pretty glassware. But mostly wines, please. I love the simplicity and bright pops of color in this version.

Which bridesmaid dresses did you choose?

So, let’s talk about something. More and more I’m seeing photo shoots with mismatched bridesmaid dresses and finding out they come from surprising sources or were pulled straight from the bridesmaids’ closets. But the girls I know in real life seem to still be ordering from traditional bridal retailers, like Alfred Sung, J.Crew or David’s Bridal. It got me thinking. Where do most people actually end up ordering their dresses? Are brides still turning to traditional retailers or branching out to smaller online shops? How many people are given free reign to choose a dress they like as long as it’s in a certain color, or even just pull something from the closet at home? And is the trend to splurge on a high-end style or go for the affordable steal? And so, a poll!

You can vote for more than one option, so you can include both the dresses you selected for your own wedding and any dresses you’ve worn as a bridesmaid for your friends’ weddings. Your dress not listed? Please write it in and leave details in the comments below! I’m really interested to see what we discover!

Check all that apply!

Image via Ruffled.

Neon Party Inspiration

It’s easy to forget that neon is a throwback to a totally rad era since it’s popping up everywhere right now. I see it on shoes, fingernails, pants, paint chips and, of course, at parties! But chances are a lot of current brides were born in the 80s, so what’s the harm in taking inspiration from the decade that brought her into the world? Plus, you can make neon feel completely current with a few easy tips. The key to pulling it off: Balance with tons of crisp white and avoid stacking color on color. Let each shade shine on its own.