Originally Posted By TXDISNEYNERD I feel very lucky that the weddings I have been in have been very laid back and a lot of fun. Of course, I was the MOH in three of them and the bride in the other, so maybe I just thought it was easy because I was the MOHzilla. Labuda - I can't believe someone in TX doesn't have a/c. Wow.
Originally Posted By Labuda Tex - you're nowhere near as amazed as I was - the really weird part is, that PARTS of the house had central AC, just not the part where the bride & bridesmaids get ready. INSANE!!! Oh, and the rental for the place on a Saturday in June cost my friends somewhere in the neighborhood of 10k$ - less than that, but close.
Originally Posted By LuLu Dear Prudence: A close family friend of mine is getting married in about a month, and I am a bridesmaid. I wasn't so much asked as assumed into the role due to our close relationship. As seems to be the trend, it will be a fairly extravagant event, a multiday event with several hundred guests. I feel that I have been very helpful in the planning but am burdened by the immense costs. Not only are there multiple destination events (showers and such), I am expected to host another shower, plan the rehearsal dinner, house out-of-town guests, and pay for multiple bridesmaids dresses (for each day). I was laid off several months ago and have yet to find a steady paycheck. The bride's sister kindly loaned me the money for a dress, but I am at a loss for how to handle everything else. Is it too late to back out? If not, how do I do it? If yes, what should I do? Many are feeling the strain of this event, but all refuse to back me when confronting the couple. Prudence: Your letter makes me think maybe it's time for bridesmaids to form a Bridal Tea Party, and in protest of the escalating costs of weddings, you could dump crinoline into a harbor. (Maybe crinoline would be good at sopping up oil in the Gulf!) Since the wedding is a month away, hasn't all the planning and purchasing been done? You say you're expected to host "another" shower. This means the bride has already had a shower, so you can tell her it's not raining gifts and one shower will have to do. As for the rehearsal dinner, that is the responsibility of the couple getting married, so explain to them that you're unable to underwrite that or even plan it. If you've agreed to have guests at your home, that shouldn't cost you anything but some coffee and bagels, so keep that obligation. But what's with the "multiple" bridesmaid dresses? Is this bride getting married on successive days? You've already got one dress—that's got you in hock—so that little number will just have to cover all the extravaganzas. LB, I hope this makes you feel better
Originally Posted By Liberty Belle LOL! That's terrible, LuLu! A multi-day event, huh? I'm glad to hear your bridesmaid experiences were easier, Smedley and Labuda!! It's not like it's a nightmare or anything, it just seems to be consuming ALL of my friend's thoughts and she's stressing me out about it, lol. She keeps bursting into tears at random intervals and she's developing skin problems from the stress. She posted on Facebook that it's 4 months today, so I guess it's getting reasonably close now! She said she's happy for us to wear our own silver heels, so that's good, except I don't own silver heels! Still, much easier than the 4 of us going shopping together and trying to find the perfect pair for us all - you can't see them under the dress, anyway. So my next bridesmaidly duty is hunting down the perfect silver heels...
Originally Posted By smedley ^ Internet, or a dancing shop, silver dancing shoes will be both comfortable, practical, and most likely not as expensive!
Originally Posted By Labuda I got the Mary Janes that I wore for my friend's wedding at Payless. The INSTANT she told us we could pick out any black heel, that's the website I went to, luckily found a decent-looking shoe that I could wear one time for $20! WOO HOO! Oh, but I did wear them a second time - Halloween.
Originally Posted By Liberty Belle The Bride said I could try on her silver heels - she has two pairs and is happy to lend them out, but her foot's a bit bigger than mine. I hope they fit, shoe shopping is the one kind of shopping I truly hate at any time!!
Originally Posted By Liberty Belle Otherwise, I might try Payless. Dammit, my niece used to work at Payless, she could've got me staff discount!
Originally Posted By Labuda Just make sure to check online for discounts - I found an online coupon that they left me use in the store when I bought the heels I used for that wedding last June.
