Welcome To The Bride Tribe — The Millennial Miss

You’ve got the ring and now you need your best girls by your side. Asking your best friends, the coveted question, “will you be my bridesmaid” deserves special thought. After all, they will be the ones holding your dress up while you pee so, a “thank you” in advanced would be a nice touch ;)

In my opinion, bridesmaid’s proposals have escalated to another level. I’m not sure if we have social media to blame for this epidemic or not but regardless, it’s real and here to stay. Up until this point in the planning process this is the checklist item that has brought the most anxiety to my chest. These girls are going to be making both a time and financial commitment in the name of my special day and I wasn’t sure how I was ever going to find a present to reflect my appreciation. I spent hours on Pinterest scrolling through endless pins of “bridesmaid proposal ideas.” After an overly dramatic internal breakdown I put my big girl pants on and headed to the mall and didn’t leave until I found the perfect contents to add to each of the girls’ box. I tied in a personalized card and a piece of jewelry that represented different elements of a wedding; something blue, tying the knot, wedding white … etc. The text and phone calls that I got from each of my bridesmaids truly brought a feeling to my heart that I will never forget.

My biggest piece of advice to any bride to be that is currently banging their head against a wall over how to ask your friends is; the self-induced stress simply isn’t worth it! At the end of the day, your ride or dies will have a smile ear to ear knowing that you value your friendship enough to have them play such an important role in your wedding.

Things To Consider Before Popping The Question:

1. Take Your Time
The excitement of being a fiancée is rushing through your veins and your anxious to get things going, I get it. My biggest piece of advice would be to take your time. There is no rule that says you need to have your wedding party set in stone 24 hours into your engagement. Once you’ve asked someone to be a part of your special day you can’t exactly take that question back so take a moment to step back and ask yourself if you truly see yourself being close to this person years down the road. If you are on the fence about including someone in your wedding party, ask yourself how they would fit into the rest of the party and if they vibe with the crew – go for it. Keep in mind though that more is not necessarily merrier. With each wedding party addition, the more details there are to organize.

2. Don’t Ask Someone Just Because They Asked You
Feel free to jump down my throat but I do not believe that you should ask someone to be a part of your wedding party simply because they asked you to be a part of theirs. This is not a time in life where you should feel the pressure to “return the favor.”

3. Set Expectations
What will you expect from your wedding party? Are you the type of bride that will expect your bridesmaids to be there for you every step of the way or are you cool with them simply showing up the day of? Wherever you fall on that spectrum make sure that the ones you ask can meet your expectations.

4. Make It Personal
Envision your friend opening her gift. What would make her smile the biggest? What fits her personality? If she hates the color pink, don’t send her glittery pink nail polish. If she has an sweet tooth then think how you can incorporate a piece of candy. Make the extra effort to make the card and or gift personal. Since their lives are going to be consumed with all things you for the next few months they will love the special touch!