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Shopping for the best bridesmaids dresses for your bridal party and not sure where to go or what to do? We've got you and your wedding party covered today with everything you ned to know about shopping for bridesmaid dresses and outfits online.
We've heard it straight from the sources, bridal dress salons and wedding dress shops are straying away from bridesmaid dresses. Many bridal dress boutiques are no longer offering or carrying bridesmaid dresses in their stores.
For this wedding planning advice post, we're giving you the best tips for shopping online for bridesmaid dresses and outfits for the bridal party to wear. We are also sharing our best bridesmaid dress websites and online bridesmaid boutiques for you to check out.
Photo credit: Birdy Grey
As bridal shops are moving away from carrying bridesmaid dresses in store in person, brides and their bridal parties are looking online for ordering the perfect dress. Online shopping has made bridesmaid dress shopping easier than ever.
Back in the day, brides and their ladies would have to go into a bridal dress shop in person to find a bridesmaid dress or outfit for the bridal party. This was all fine, until someone doesn't live in the area and has to order over the phone or the sample bridesmaid dress style doesn't come in all sizes and not everyone can try it on. Needless to say, shopping for a bridesmaid dress and an outfit for the entire wedding party to wear has been made a whole lot easier with the availability of bridesmaid dresses online.
Being able to browse the various bridesmaid outfit styles online, see images of the bridesmaid dresses being worn and read reviews from other customers can help you to find the perfect dress style for your bridal party all from the comfort of your phone or computer.
This helpful advice for shopping bridesmaid dresses online will set you up for a successful shopping experience. Shopping online for bridesmaid dresses can save you a lot of time, money and headaches. And with all that bridesmaids have to do and all of the money being spent on being in a wedding, who doesn't want to save time and money!?
Speaking of, if you need more help with being a bridesmaid, be sure to check out our post on how to propose to your bridesmaids and tips for being the best bridesmaid that you can be for your friend. Oh and don't forget this one on the best bridesmaid gifts that they will actually use!
Online bridesmaid dress shopping can also offer a much wider array of bridesmaid dress size, color, fabric and style options. So, let's get bridesmaid dress shopping! Here are our best tips for shopping for a bridesmaid dress online. It's the little things that you might not think about, but you have us, so you're all good!
This is a top perk of shopping for bridesmaid dresses online, you can shop 24/7. It's also a great way to incorporate your bridesmaids as much or as little as you'd like. You could even consider joining together on a zoom call to look at dresses together and gather opinions from your bride tribe.
You don't have to worry about all of your bridesmaids living in the same area so that everyone can be together to try on bridesmaid outfits, because you can shop online from anywhere at anytime.
While a wide range of options is certainly one of the positives to shopping bridesmaid dresses online...it can also be an overwhelming point of the shopping process.
To help make the bridesmaid dress and outfit shopping less overwhelming for everyone, as the bride, it will be important for you to decide what your overall wedding fashion vision is and narrow down the options for your bridesmaids.
You might not totally care about what style your bridesmaids choose, or you might care a whole lot. Either way, you're the bride, it's your wedding and you have to give your bridesmaids some direction.
Whether you choose the color and they choose the style, or you choose the specific style options for the bridesmaids to choose, try narrowing down the options before sending your bridesmaids some outfit links to consider.
The only in-person experience that you won't have by shopping online for bridesmaid dresses is measurements taken by a store employee, aka a professional.
Never fear though!
It's simple to take the measurements you will need to order most bridesmaid dress styles online. Most websites will have a measuring guide and even a video to help show you where and how to take your body measurements. If you need help, enlist someone who lives with you to help with the measurements before ordering a bridesmaid dress.
Whatever you do and wherever you order your bridesmaid outfit from, one of the biggest secrets to a perfect bridesmaid dress is alterations. Having a bridesmaid dress or outfit altered to fit you - even if it just a strap shorten or a hem to the right length - can make all the difference in the world.
Many retailers offering bridesmaid dresses online ship dresses much faster than traditional bridesmaid dresses ordered through boutiques in person, but don't forget to factor in enough time for alterations.
You'll order bridesmaid dress sizes based on those measurements you take, but the bridesmaid dresses will likely require some alterations once you receive the dress IRL.
Do your research and find a seamstress or alterations shop ahead of time and check with their turnaround time to ensure you order the bridesmaid dress in the right timeframe.
We want you to look amazing in your bridesmaid dress and alterations might just be the most important part!
You might be thinking: I don't need to take measurements for my bridesmaid dress, I'll just order a bunch of different size dresses, try them all on and return whatever doesn't fit.
Before you order your bridesmaid dress in all the sizes, hoping to return whatever doesn't fit, be sure to check the return policy for online bridesmaid dress shops. Each online bridesmaid dress shop is different and will have different online return policies and procedures. Make sure that you can return the bridesmaid dress if it is unworn, and be sure to note the timeline for returns.
The last thing you need is a bunch of different bridesmaid dresses that you don't need that don't fit!
Did we mention online reviews for bridesmaid dresses? Yes, we did! being able to read the reviews from past bridesmaids and brides of a bridesmaid dress might just be the best part of online shipping. Just like with shopping or trying a new restaurant, reading a review of a bridesmaid dress can be an invaluable source of honest, real information.
When reading bridesmaid dress reviews, be sure to look out for sizing and fit advice, fabric colors, shipping and production timing, as well as the overall quality of the bridesmaid dress.
As with all online reviews, it is important to take the bridesmaid dress online reviews with a "grain of salt." By this we mean, don't be fooled by spammers, trolls and bots who leave bad comments just to leave negative comments, or angry shoppers who are mad about something else and leave an unfair review of something that you might actually like.
Now for the fun part! The bridesmaid dress shopping! We've given you all of the advice for how to shop online for a bridal party outfit, but now let's get to the good stuff.
Here is a round up of our favorite places to shop online for a bridesmaid dress and outfit for a bridal party. It is worth noting that all of these online bridesmaid dress shops are listed in no particular order - we aren't playing favorites - we love them all for different reasons!
Happy bridesmaid outfit shopping!
A wide range of styles at affordable price points is the perfect combination for this bridesmaid dress e-tailer. Birdy Grey offers you the opportunity to easily shop a wide range of options and use their robust filter options to find the perfect styles to offer your bridesmaids to choose from.
Azazie is known for their fashion forward bridesmaid dress and pant suit designs. They also have a beautiful collection by designer Pnina Tornai! Azazie's site offers a wide range of styles and color options along with excellent filters and links to help you shop via style or even a specific need.
Looking for timeless and boho bridesmaid dresses? In that case, Revelry is your go-to. Browsing by fabric type is easy to do on Revelry. Like many of the other websites featured here, Revelry offers a wide range of styles, colors and sizes!
Shop Etsy for unique bridesmaid dress options. If you're looking for the boutique experience online, Etsy is the place for you. On Etsy you'll find a variety of dress styles and options from multiple designers and shops. Order all the same style for your bridal party or choose a variety of colors for the perfect mismatched bridesmaids look. Plus, shopping on Etsy is a great way to support small businesses!
See More Of Our Favorite Dresses Styles From Etsy:
Will you be shopping for bridesmaid dresses online? With less and less in-store options for shopping bridesmaid dresses, the online options are getting even better! We love the variety of sizes, styles and colors available from all of these bridesmaid dress websites, plus they can provide so much more information than you would get browsing the racks.
Here are some quick links to more information and helpful advice for bridesmaids and wedding parties:
Don't forget, we have so much helpful and practical wedding planning advice on our blog. Whether it's with our our tips or our wedding heirlooms, our main goal in life is to share our expertise and help you have a joyful and stress-free wedding planning experience. You can shop our wedding garters and bridal accessories anytime and you can find all of our wedding planning tips on the blog.
