Real Bridesmaid Reviews

Dress: Alfred Angelo style 6493 
What she thought: Claire’s friend Katie picked this Alfred Angelo floor-length strapless dress in black for her wedding. “When Katie first told me this was the dress she picked, I immediately panicked. I’m slightly larger in the chest and strapless dresses are not my friend. I hate strapless bras and feel like I’m always yanking up my dress or spilling over the top.” But Claire’s worries were soon put to rest. “I guess the great seamstresses at Alfred Angelo really made sure the dress fit perfectly, because I don’t think I yanked the dress up at all!” It was also affordable at around $120, a steal for a floor-length gown. “I really enjoyed wearing this. The ruching made us all look superskinny, which is always a plus. After the wedding I had it shortened to right above the knee and I now have an perfect little black dress for any occasion! The bridesmaid dress I was the most worried about ended up being one of my favorites!” Continue reading →

The Ultimate Maid of Honor Speech

In my experience, a maid of honor toast can go two ways: funny or sentimental. We sort of luck out in that way. The best man basically has to be funny. It’s expected of him. But if stand-up comedy is not your thing, you are off the hook. You can be totally sweet and heartfelt and people will love it. If you can make a crowd laugh though, go for it! Stick to what you’re good at and you’ll end up with a speech that feels genuine and that you’ll feel comfortable giving. I try to create a good balance of funny and sweet, so my personal approach is to open funny and then slowly progress to sweet, ending with heartfelt well wishes for the couple and a big hug (tears optional).

Your toast basically has three elements: a beginning, middle and end. Here’s a general outline to get you started.

The Beginning

Start by introducing yourself and share how you know the bride. Say “For those of you who don’t know me, I’m Caitlin and I’m the bride’s sister/best friend/sorority sister/former roommate.” This may sound like a boring opening, but unless you know every single person at this wedding, it’s important to mention who you are and your relationship to the bride. You can mention how long you’ve known each other if the number is impressive (don’t say “I’ve known the bride for one year”) and quickly tell the story of how you met if it’s funny or cute.

I find this is a nice soft opening. It’s personal and you can usually work in a laugh. If the story of how you met isn’t doing it for you, the intro is also a good time to throw in some stories about being her maid of honor or to mention how honored or excited you are to share this day with her.

After your introduction, it’s also nice to work in a thank you to the bride’s parents if they are paying for the wedding. It’s not required, but it’s a nice touch. You can say something as simple as “And I want to extend a big thank you to Mr. and Mrs. Jones for hosting this amazing celebration!”

The Middle

The middle of the speech is understandably the hardest. This is where you need to decide what you want to say today. Be advised: It is ok for these things to be short. Try to keep your speech at 5 minutes maximum. Any more and the crowd is going to get restless and start murmuring amongst themselves and storming the buffet. Take some time to think about the kind of tone you want to set with your speech. Jot down words that describe the couple or remind you of stories you might tell. It can be helpful to choose a framework for your speech. Here are some ideas to help organize your thoughts and get your started.

  1. Tell the story of how the bride and groom met or how he proposed. Not everyone at the wedding may know theses stories and if there’s something especially touching or funny about them, it can be a great way to focus on the couple and enhance their day. At Marisa’s wedding, I told the story of their proposal. Marisa broke her wrist on their skiing trip and almost didn’t make it to the top of the mountain where Justin planned to propose. He had to lure her up with the promise of waffles and nutella. I told the story, then ended by telling Justin that I hope he always shows Marisa the support he gave her that day and that I hope Marisa always goes to the top of the mountain—even if there’s no nutella that day. You can use stories from the couples’  relationship as examples of why they’ll have a great marriage. In my opinion, this is the best recipe for a great speech.
  2. Format your speech as “the three reasons Tiffany is right for Mark, or Mark is right for Tiffany.” Continue reading →

Beach Weekend Invites

August makes me think of extreme heat, sunny days on the beach and that moment of anticipation before you plunge into the ice-cold water for some much-needed relief. It’s the end of summer, but also probably the perfect month for a bachelorette weekend if your bride has an October wedding (one of the top four months for weddings according to The Knot). Here are some of my favorite beach weekend invites.

This sunny invite comes from one of my favorite Etsy vendors: SocialitePaperworks. I think Raquel makes some of the most modern, cute bachelorette and girls weekend invites that I’ve seen. Her pieces are feminine and flirty but also clean, crisp and unique.

This invite is definitely outside of the type I usually go for, but it’s such a cute concept and the illustration won me over. Plus, it’s not something I’ve seen before. The artist is also open to complete customization, so each placket on the sign can say whatever you like and you can even request a different font or colors to correspond with your bride.

Now this one is totally up my alley. Cute graphics and a great color combination that’s muted yet modern, plus lovely unique typography. It’s totally perfect for Miami in particular, what with its Florida Deco vibe.

Beach party a bit out of reach? You can still cool off with a summer pool party. This invite can be customized for a bridal shower. I love the typography and the ikat print, especially the bold red mixed with pale blues and that pop of emerald. It’s fresh and cool, just like your shower.

Planning a couples shower? Check out this adorable lake house-themed option, complete with Chinese lanterns, cattails and a cute little duck.  The seller, Paige Burton Designs, also has a similar beach invite for couples showers. The colors and lines are striking and whimsical without being too cutesy. Love it!

Yoga Bachelorette Party

When I found this New York Times article on incorporating workout classes like yoga and Pilates into a bachelorette party, I have to admit I was at first quite skeptical. After all, the first thing I associate with the word “bachelorette” is alcohol. But the more I think about, the more I actually do like this idea. Then I saw these images on Bridal Musings, and I was sold:

Let’s be honest: Most brides are trying to look their best the day of, and that doesn’t end with the bride. The bridal party wants to look good too…after all, we have to be in all those pictures! Plus, I know lots of girls who love working out (I happen to be one of them). And since I’ve always loved the idea of incorporating activity into showers and parties (see kickball and field day suggestions), I don’t know why I didn’t entertain this idea earlier. Why not run a 5K together complete with sashes, signs and T-shirts? A dance class might be perfect—you still get your groove on, but you also burn calories! And the physical activity part can just be the beginning of the party. Start with yoga, then head to the spa for massages or manicures and toast the bride with some champagne, then finish with a dinner and, yes, drinks.

Some additional advantages I see:

  • We’ve all seen a friend get way too drunk or overdo it at a party. Adding a workout class before the drinking begins will help get everyone’s metabolism up and you’re less likely to get wasted. Chances are you’ll also drink less.
  • If the bride really is super dedicated to looking great for her wedding, this kind of party will make her feel good about herself and allow her to let loose with her friends as well.

Some things to keep in mind:

  • When choosing your class or activity, think about the skill level of all your guests. You want to be sure you choose something that all those invited will not only feel comfortable with but will also enjoy. If your friends are all super-athletic, feel free to pick a higher-level class. But if you have mixed skill levels, go with beginner. The comfort of your guests is the most important thing and, honestly, this isn’t about getting the toughest workout of your life. It’s still a party.
  • Make sure guests bring a change of clothes if there will be other activities after the class, and make sure the facility has showers, hair dryers, shampoo, and everything else the girls will need to get ready.

Brides love this idea? This bride had her yoga party the morning of the wedding and turned it into a brunch for her bridesmaids. Also an amazing idea!

Photography by: Andrea Lee Photography

Real Bridesmaid Reviews


Dress: David’s Bridal Short Cotton Dress with Y-Neck and Skirt Pleating (Style 83690)

What she thought: This first-time bridesmaid loved that the unique neckline set the dress apart, but the silhouette was still classic and flattering on the four other maids in this wedding. And the price didn’t hurt: “The dress wasn’t expensive (only $139), and I’ve been able to wear it to other social events, so it’s definitely a good bang for your buck,” she says. Another cost-saving bonus: None of the bridesmaids required alterations as the dress fit very true to size. The only downfall was the material. “It’s really stiff and doesn’t move with you, so it kinda poofs out sometimes. But other than that it’s a great find!”

Couples Shower: Field Day

I recently saw these images from an amazing pre-wedding field day on Pinterest and they completely inspired me. I think this concept would be perfect for a couples shower!

The photos brought me back to my days as a camp counselor and reminded me of how much fun “adults” (note the quotation marks…) can have revisiting games from our youth. My friend Nicole organized a game of kickball for her rehearsal dinner and we had an amazing time being silly and showing off our skills on the field. Old-school field day events like a three-legged race, egg toss or the fill the bucket game you see pictured above would also be great additions to the event. I love the referee they recruited (and I’m secretly hoping it’s the bride’s dad…wouldn’t that be perfect?). Personalized baseball tees would be the perfect favor for the day.

Fashion Friday

Lately I’ve been seeing ivory and champagne bridesmaid dresses everywhere! Long thought to be taboo, it’s sometimes even considered an insult to wear white to a wedding, which is why as a guest I think you just shouldn’t take the risk. But a lot of brides are choosing cocktail dresses in off-white for their girls and I have to say the result is beautiful. (P.S. I think the short length is a must. If all the girls are wearing floor-length white dresses, it just looks like a gaggle of brides.) Here, a few lovely ones.


I absolutely love the gorgeous layers of crocheted lace on this shift dress from MM Couture, especially that contrasting stripe at the bottom (available at Macy’s for $108).

Talk about chic. I adore this beige belted beauty from BHLDN. (Necklace sold separately, but belt is included).

A faux sweetheart neckline, delicate lace and a pop of metallic at the waist—this dress from Dorothy Perkins is pure adorable and a steal at only $55.

This two-tone delicate strapless dress with tiny pleats on the skirt and a little silk bow is a little bit vintage and perfectly feminine (and it’s on sale right now!).