Opinions needed- Length of BM dresses for formal wedding!

[Kashmir104]

I am in need of some opinions here...

I'm having trouble trying to find a nice bridesmaid dress in the color/material that I want that will also work with my bridesmaids.

So the maid of honor is my 11 year old sister (who will be 12 and 1/2 at the time of our wedding.) Our problem here is that my sister is 5'4" right now (growing like a weed every second!), 106lbs, and fits into a ladies size 4 jeans (she's a figure skater and is built like one too.) Junior BM dresses probably won't work out well for her, but women's might be too curvy, especially in the hips and chest. I'm assuming that a good tailor will be able to take a ladies size dress and tailor it to her?

On the other side of the spectrum is my DFSIL. She recently lost a ton of weight and is now a size 10/12 with like a 36DD chest. Her issue is that she claims she cannot wear strapless bras (although her husband has affirmed to my DF that she often wears spaghetti strap tops or halters or even tube-tops with a strapless bra for formal events in their religious organization) and therefore no strapless dresses.

Well I came across one dress that I think will work for my sister and also DFSIL. I love it! It's modern, A-line, and flattering for everyone, but the problem is the length. We are having a very formal wedding- Simply Chic from David Tutera's Couture Collection at around 6pm, so a floor-length gown would probably be the most proper, however the gown I like that works for DFSIL is tea-length (with the option of adding 5 more inches to it, which would probably just make it ankle length, so not really a big help.) The color I want is Bill Levkoff's burnt orange in the fabric of tissue taffeta, but most of the dresses are strapless or have spaghetti straps. The is the best option I could find so far, but I'm worried about the length.

This is the dress:

Bill Levkoff
style 806
Color: Burnt Orange
Description: Tissue Taffeta tea-length dress. Self gathers accent the sholder straps and front and back bodice.

Do you all think this dress as the tea-length will be appropriate for our formal wedding? I'm also all about the fact that hopefully it will be a dress that can be worn again because of the shorter length, but if it won't fit with our wedding then I'm not sure... Can tea-length be formal?

If it will help, groomsmen will be wearing black suits with burnt orange ties (most likely no vests.)

Thank you so much for your help!!!

 

[princessdisneybelle]

I think it is really what you want. This dress is very elegant to me. I think it could be very formal looking. I agree it's nice when a dress can be worn again.

 

[Swmhc]

Personally, from what I have seen in your planning thread, it looks like you are going pretty formal...that being said, I would recommend floor-length. Keep in mind that you can add straps or halters to most strapless dresses if you have another one you like and that is all that is stopping you. Just my opinion...

 

[AbbyPan]

The length is wonderful! I love that dress. Just wondering: would the crunched up top make ****s look bigger? hmm I wonder

But the dress is VERY pretty and the color!

 

[o0IrishEyes0o]

I think that the dress is lovely. This is what I found when I did a quick google search:

The style and formality of your bridesmaids' dresses should coordinate well with your gown. Bridesmaid dresses are typically the same length as the bride's dress; for evening weddings, it's usually floor length. An exception is an informal wedding held in an informal setting, such as outside. But perhaps you've already found your desired bridesmaid dress that falls just below the knee -- that length can work well if its overall style is in keeping with the formality of the wedding. You'll have to make a personal judgment call. You could also ask a bridal-shop employee for his or her impartial advice.

I would step back and think about what most of your guests will be wearing. Are you specifying "Black Tie" (very formal) on the invitations / to guests? If so, then most women will likely be wearing evening gowns, so you might find that your bridesmaids would look out of place in a tea length dress.

However, if you are saying just 'formal' attire, then I would expect most of the women to show up cocktail dresses, and the bridesmaid dresses seem to work a little better for that.

I dunno if it helps... that's just my opinion

 

[Kashmir104]

Thank you everyone for your comments and help!!! What a tough decision!!! I love the look of the dress, but I tend to agree with the formality- that it should be floor length, but at the same time I'm going to ask my guests just to wear formal attire (although it's generally understood that weddings after 5pm are considered "black tie" from what I've heard.) I thought it might help if I posted what I was thinking about for my own wedding gown...

Paloma Blanca style #3701 (but with a burnt orange sash going around the waist.)

The other style I really like is new on Paloma Blanca's website (so there are no pictures to copy and post from the web):

http://www.palomablanca.com
then click on "collections"

style # 3801

same deal with the burnt orange sash in the middle.

I think both bridal dresses fit the theme of our "simply chic" style wedding really well.

Thanks everyone for your comments! This board is the BEST for advice! Keep 'em comin'!

 

[princessdisneybelle]

Thank you everyone for your comments and help!!! What a tough decision!!! I love the look of the dress, but I tend to agree with the formality- that it should be floor length, but at the same time I'm going to ask my guests just to wear formal attire (although it's generally understood that weddings after 5pm are considered "black tie" from what I've heard.) I thought it might help if I posted what I was thinking about for my own wedding gown...

Paloma Blanca style #3701 (but with a burnt orange sash going around the waist.)

The other style I really like is new on Paloma Blanca's website (so there are no pictures to copy and post from the web):

http://www.palomablanca.com
then click on "collections"

style # 3801

same deal with the burnt orange sash in the middle.

I think both bridal dresses fit the theme of our "simply chic" style wedding really well.

Thanks everyone for your comments! This board is the BEST for advice! Keep 'em comin'!

That dress is beautiful. I thought about the dress idea and looked up some info on what should be worn with what. Everything said your bridesmaid dresses should match the formality of your dress and the event. I really think if you had something long and elegant it would look so pretty. GL dresses are a hard thing to decided.

 

[sunsh1ne]

i love love the 3801 dress so beautiful. and so chic. also i think that tea legnth can be formal. with the right shoes and flowers wow i think it would be very modern and chic just what you were goign for.

good luck i think everything will be wounderful

 

[Lynn5700]

I love that dress for the bms,it is very elegant and will work fine for a formal wedding. I want to go buy one for myself

 

[hmgolden]

I love the BM dress! Its one of the few that has real wear again potential. But, I would say, for a formal wedding, I would vote that the BM dress should be floor length. The attire of the bridal party is one of the things that sets the tone of the event. But, that's just personal opinion. How are you expecting your guests to dress? If you are going to have a black tie crowd, I think that dress would be too informal. If they are going to be just a suit and tie crowd, that BM dress could work fine.

 

[audisight]

The BM dress is beautiful, but I think that for a formal wedding floor length dresses are more appropriate. Also bridesmaids in tea length dresses look very casual next to groomsmen in tuxedos. Good luck

 

[PrincessLinds]

Traditionally for a formal wedding the BMs would wear floor-length, but these days there really are no rules and you should do whatever makes you happy. Personally, I would probably go floor-length for a formal wedding, but again that's just my personal taste, and would probably go floor-length anyway. But here's another thought: Suppose you gave your girls three criteria: It has to be from X designer, it has to be Y fabric and it has to be burnt orange. Other than that, they can each choose the style that they like best for themselves. It takes the pressure off of you to decide, and allows them to wear something that they will more comfortable in (and maybe even wear again...always a plus!). One of my favorite BM designers who has a lot of options for girls who wear different styles is Alvina Valenta. Bill Levkoff and Lazaro are also excellent.

Also, I love your dresses! We have both of them at my store, and my personal favorite is the newer one. I think the skirt is just a little more romantic.

Oh, and real quick (or not so quick apparently now that I've just finished typing it lol): I would agree with you that an after 5 wedding, it would usually occur to the guests that it's pretty formal (I mean, at least the men would know to put on a tie, right?) But last year at my cousin's wedding, both myself and the bride were absolutely stunned (and horrified) when THREE of my other cousins showed up in JEANS and HOODED SWEATSHIRTS! Sure, they're teenagers, but I would've thought my aunts would have said something to them! I have the feeling that I'm going to have to spell it all out for my family for my own wedding that that is NOT acceptable. Anyway, the moral of the story is, it seems that the after 5 rule is not understood by everyone. Although, I'm not sure who in their right mind would show up for a daytime wedding dressed like that either!