When we started planning our wedding, choosing a colour palette and theme was something I found really difficult, but the one thing I knew I wanted, without a doubt, was olive green for the bridesmaid dresses. It was not overly popular, would be different, is one of my favourite colours, would work for our fall wedding and all three of my girls look fantastic in it.
I remember telling a colleague back in the spring about my colour choice and she laughed, then wished me good luck. I told her I was going to prove her wrong… but that didn’t exactly happen. As it turns out, olive green just isn’t the easiest to find when it comes to bridesmaid dresses and every dress I did find, wasn’t the right shade (I was going for something like this).
When I had initially started my search, I fell in love with the style of these dresses. I wanted long chiffon dresses, a different style for each girl, and I loved these because they weren’t structure nor ‘bridal’. I kept hoping they would expand their colour selection for fall, but also kept comparing them to every other dress I came across.
Finally, with just a few months to spare, we decided to pull the trigger on the style of dresses I loved so much, in the pretty “silver sage” colour. It was still within the green family, and looked great on the girls. For my Maid of Honour (MOH), we went with this dress, which was more of a grey colour (“silver”), which matched the flower girl’s dress while still complimenting the bridesmaids. I also loved that she stood out as the MOH too, which made it a little more special.
OFF SHOULDER DRESS | HIGH NECK HALTER DRESS | MY WEDDING DRESS (SEE ALL MY LOOKS HERE) | PLEATED V-NECK DRESS
We kept the shoes and accessories super neutral. I asked the girls to wear a nude strappy heel, which two already had in their closet (like this or this). My ultimate goal for shoes was for the girsl not to have to spend anything (or much), something simple they would actually like, and relatively comfortable. I was open to a stiletto or block heel, any heel height, and suede or leather depending on their preference. We also all brought flats for the dance floor.
For jewelry, I asked them to wear simple studs they all had and one of the girls lent them each a rose gold bangle that had come in a three pack she recently picked up. I gifted the girls with necklaces on the morning of, but not to wear for the wedding, just to wear in everyday life after the fact. I wanted everything to be really simple, streamlined and not over the top. I love minimalist jewelry and that was the vibe I was going for.
In the weeks leading up to the big day, we were keeping an eye on the weather report and a week before, it was all of a sudden calling for snow (wah!). I knew the girls would be freezing during our outdoor ceremony as is, but snow would be kind of miserable. And so began the hunt for some cute fur coats they could wear with their dresses. I really wanted something fashion forward, casual but chic and nothing that resembled anything traditional nor bridal. We ended up purchasing these ones and I loved the way they looked on them (you can see them wearing the coats here)! I happened to have a little white faux fur coat in my closet, so I pulled that out for an added layer of warmth—it worked out perfectly!
As far as ordering the dresses online went, it was a pretty smooth transition. Both retailers had pretty fast shipping (within three weeks, I think if memory serves me correct) and the girls went with their normal sizes. All three dresses were really long, and my girls are all 5’7 so they all had them hemmed. That said, if you’re taller (I’m 5’11), the dresses would still be long enough for you with a heel, which I’m really pleased about and will consider in the future if I ever need a long dress myself! Overall, I’m super pleased with how the dresses turned out/looked on the day of and in the photos. Highly recommend!
Hope you girls found this post helpful & more wedding posts to come.
Photography by Lisa Provençal.
