Day of Etiquette for Bridesmaids

Hello Real Brides (and bridesmaids),

I was debating whether or not to write about this, but here it goes!

The purpose of a bridesmaid isn’t just to be there for your friend.  As a bridesmaid, you want to be as helpful as you can before and on the day of the wedding.  The last thing that you want to do is cause any further stress to the bride. Here are some things that you should and shouldn’t do on the day of the wedding.

Do not hog the bridal suite and the utilities in there while doing your hair and make up.  It might seem like everybody takes their sweet time in all of those pictures that you see of the bridal party getting ready in the bridal suite, but the reality is that it’s actually pretty rushed especially if the wedding is in the day time.  If the hair and make-up artists aren’t in charge of doing the bridesmaids, make sure you get up early and have most of that done before you get to the venue.

Try to get to the venue a little bit early to possibly help the bride or the bride’s mother set up whatever they possibly need to especially if they don’t have a wedding planner and especially if they are a DIY bride.

Offer as much help as you can to the bride.  While shes getting her hair and make-up done ask her if she needs anything.  Perhaps you can help her get into her dress or any little extra touches she might need help with.

If your a tall chick (much taller than the bride) don’t wear heels…sorry!  You don’t want to stick out like a soar thumb and you don’t want to make the bride look shorter than she already is (especially if the bride IS short).  If the bride is tall herself, you can get away with doing this and it might even work in her favor.

Stay away from crazy hairstyles and gaudy jewelry.  Again, you don’t want to stick out like a soar thumb.

Have a problem drinking?  Stick to only a couple (2-3) drinks for the reception (1 drink in the suite).  If you have a problem limiting yourself, don’t drink at all except for when the toast is happening.  The last thing the wedding party wants to deal with is somebody who can’t handle their alcohol.  Brides, if you know this person is going to have a problem anyway, do yourself a favor and have a little talk with the bartender beforehand and tell him/her to water down their drinks.

Making a speech? Make it short and sweet and from the bottom of the heart.  Do not make the speech longer than 2 or 3 minutes and do not say anything embarrassing!