DIY | You're Cordially Invited

As soon as I got engaged, I hunted high & low for various invitation styles requesting samples all over the place. It was a lot of fun but I just kept getting disheartened by the price. After a few weeks of being shocked & disappointed with how much people could charge for some paper, we decided that we'd be better off making our own.

Now believe you me, making your own invitations is a lot harder than you think! Especially when you're as creative as me. Which isn't an awful lot! I took to Upcycled Treasures to find some ideas & guidance for a wedding invitation as a "do it yourself'er" & came across an amazing free template. It also perfectly matched our colour theme so clearly, it was meant to be. 

Flower Girls & Page Boys

Not only do you have to think about your older bridesmaids but you also need to think about those cute flower girls & pageboys! 

I really enjoy looking at these outfits because they're just so cute & a lot easier to make a decision for!

The 3 main shops where i've found cute outfits are John Lewis, Monsoon & Next. They all have a good variety of different styles & colours which makes easy choosing :)

Here are a few ideas for you...

Flower girls

1. John Lewis Fairy Bridesmaid Dress

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This dress is just so cute! I absolutely love the big bow at the back & the length of the dress would be perfect for a really young flower girl or a bridesmaid a bit older.

2. John Lewis Empire Line Lace Bridesmaid Dress

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I really love the lace detailing on this dress. It could be a perfect way to match the bridesmaids to your own wedding dress & it's also beautifully delicate!

3. John Lewis Lace Mesh Bridesmaid Dress

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This is a perfect mix of the previous two dresses! It has a gorgeous lace top & then a really princess like skirt at the bottom. You'd definitely make your flower girls feel special in this outfit!

4. Monsoon Veroniquea Bridesmaid Dress

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This dress is for an 'older' flower girl but they also offer a baby version which is slightly shorter :) my favourite part of this dress is the daisy lace effect at the top :)

5. Monsoon Estella Crochet Bodice Bridesmaid Dress

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This dress is an ideal one for those of you who are getting married abroad. It has a lovely floaty skirt & capped sleeves too which gives it a summery effect :)

6. Next Ecru Sash Bridesmaid Dress

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This dress is perfect if you have flower girls of various ages as it comes in sizes 3 months - 16 years so if you'd like everyone to match then this could be the one for you. It's also really versatile as it has a sash which would be easy to remove & replace with your colour scheme.

I also think it's really cute to give the younger flower girls cute converse to go with their pretty dresses to give the outfit something different.

Pageboys

1. John Lewis Heirloom Collection Mini Diamond Print

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I love this little suit so much! I think it's perfect for a summer wedding with the shorts & I love the colour. You can also buy full length trousers if you prefer a more formal look or if you're having a winter wedding. I think that the bow tie really works as well as the converse :)

2. John Lewis Heirloom Collection Linen Blend 'Stone'

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I love the colour of this suit. It would be a really good neutral colour if you don't want them to necessarily match the bridal party. It's really casual but at the same time it looks formal too. Love love love this outfit!

3. Monsoon Brad 4 Piece Suit 'Navy'

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I really love this little waistcoat number. It's just adorable & is a really lovely navy colour. Perfect for a pageboys of various ages!

4. Next Grey Linen Blend Suit

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I don't know if the suit or the little boy in the picture is cuter to be honest?! So adorable!! Either way, I LOVE this outfit. I love the material, the colour & style. It's so stylish & really classic too.

So there you have a few different flower girl & pageboy ideas.

I've definitely found it harder to find boys outfits but I suppose it always like that even when your just shopping for boys everyday clothes. John Lewis, Monsoon & Next offer a variety of outfits but most of them are only slightly different with colours, patterns & materials.  

Thank you for reading

Love,

Dainty Bride xx

(All the pictures on this blog post are not property of DaintyBride. All pictures are sourced from the internet & are believed to be public domain & have no rights affiliated with DaintyBride)

Bridesmaids Dresses

I've always been a bit nervous about starting to look for bridesmaids dresses. Everyone always dreads the bridesmaids dress as there's a myth that they're always really ugly & hideous! It's also really hard to find a style that suits everyone as well because your not going to have 2 or 3 bridesmaids that have the exact same body shape!

 I really didn't want one of the usual styles as I always think they look a tad cheap, so I set myself a mission to find a list of bridesmaids dresses that weren't hideous :) 
(In my opinion)

Here's what I found…

First stop on the online searching was Coast

I was pleasantly surprised with the range they had to offer, especially as there are a lot of spring colours at the moment which are a favourite of mine right now!

Andrica Short Dress

This dress is perfect for a summer wedding. It's a gorgeous mint green colour & I think it's very different to others I've seen because of the halter neck style.

Mirabella Short Dress

If you've read my 'April Favourites' blog post you will probably already know that I love yellow and this dress is no exception! It's a perfect shade of yellow for a bridesmaids dress as it won't be too bright in photo's but isn't too pale that it'll be washed out!

Lori Lee Lace Short Dress

 

I love this 'tea dress' style with the lace over the bodice. Lace is so stunning & if your having lace on your wedding dress, it might be a nice idea to have the lace matching with your bridesmaids. I also absolutely love this colour!

Lilly Anna Dress

This dress is so stunningly classic. I can imagine this dress is one that would suit most body shapes & seems perfect for a winter wedding because of the dark colour. 

I then went onto House of Fraser so that I could see a variety of brands at the same time. 

Hobbs Rachel Fit And Flare Sleeveless Dress

 

This isn't a usual colour that I would like but I actually really like it! It would be a nice colour to match with your colour scheme of the wedding & is quite a similar style to the 'Lilly Anna Dress' from Coast. 

Mango Silk Dress

My favourite part of this dress is the back with the criss cross design. I really love the bright pink colour & I can imagine this dress being worn for a beach wedding :)

John Lewis was my next click. Another website where you can easily search for multiple brands!

Hobbs Invitation Abigale Dress

These pictures definitely don't do this dress or the colour justice! It's called 'peony pink' and I just think it's a gorgeous colour! I love the floaty skirt on this dress with the fitted top as well as the mesh insert near the neckline! 

Finally, I went onto a website called 'Kelsey Rose' which is a website I came across & I'm glad I did. It's slightly harder to find these dresses if you want to buy one as they don't sell them online, they just put a select few into different retail stores but with a quick email to the stores you'll soon find the dress you desire! 

One thing that I love about this website is that each dress is available in a variety of colours so you can hopefully match a style to your theme :)

Style 14872

 

Again, I love the back of this dress & the colour. I always really love the gathered material around the bodice. 

Style 15129

This is such an unusual colour for a bridesmaids dress but I actually really like it! The colour is called 'Honeydew' & I think it works really well with the lace on the dress. Once more, I love the back & the dress itself is perfect! It's a very fitted dress so may not suit all but I don't see you can't try them on! You never know :) 

Hopefully this has given you some ideas of some bridesmaids dresses that aren't all a typical style that you'd expect to see!

I hope you've enjoyed this post - let me know of any other websites where I can find dresses

Thank you for reading

Love,

Dainty Bride xx

(All the pictures on this blog post are not property of DaintyBride. All pictures are sourced from the internet & are believed to be public domain & have no rights affiliated with DaintyBride)