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My Bridal Party
Words Jade Johnson
By definition, a bridal party is a group of people chosen by the couple to guide and assist them on their journey to marriage. Roles traditionally include a best man, maid of honour, bridesmaids, groomsman, flower girls and a ring bearer. When planning your wedding, aside from your partner, you’ll soon find that your closest confidants will be your bridesmaids. Picking your bridesmaids should be a carefully thought-out process and you should not feel obligated to select bridesmaids based on them having previously chosen you to be one at their wedding nor should the decision be based solely on the length of your friendship. Here are some things to consider when choosing your bridesmaids:
Reliability & Trustworthy
It is imperative that your bridesmaids are reliable, share their availability with you, keep up a good stream of communication and meet deadlines. Planning a wedding can be extremely stressful on all parties involved, there must be a harmonic balance between the time you require of your bridesmaids to fulfil roles and duties whilst also understanding they too have lives and may not be able to put everything on pause at a moment’s notice (leave that to the maid of honour!)
Supportive
We all appreciate a supportive team to cheer us on in all aspects of our lives and your wedding should be no different. Having a community of friends and family who are 100% in favour of your journey is essential. Weed out any negative energy early in the planning process so you will not have anyone objecting to this union during the run up or on the day itself!
Keeps you balanced
It would not be unexpected for you to have a moment (or two) of madness and self-doubt and it is in these times that you may need to lean on your bridal tribe to be the voice of reason. Whether it is to stop you from looking at more gowns after already putting a deposit down or you and your mother-in-law not seeing eye to eye, your bridesmaids should be the calming voice in your time of need.
Down to have fun!
It is not all work and no play. Jobs such as planning your bachelorette party, helping you shop for both your wedding dress and also their own gowns, can give your bridesmaids something to look forward to. Never forget to show your appreciation for all they do by mentioning them in speeches and pamper them before the big day, some may feel special simply to just be included.
Overall, your entire bridal party are those who should be there for you and your partner as you take your steps into marriage, remember, it takes a village.