Perfect bridesmaid dresses

Absolutely Weddings’ fashion team present perfect bridesmaid dresses for everything from tiny flower girls up to sophisticated adult attendants

Dressing attendants – your A-team – can be a tough call, since they need to shine, complement your look and also feel comfortable. And if you have a group of bridesmaids of different ages, shapes and sizes, delicate negotiation may be involved to ensure they all find a look they like. It’s also crucial that adult bridesmaids don’t steal the show from you, the bride, although tiny flower girls are exempt from this ruling since they are supposed to look heaven sent.

If you have a large party of supporters, the golden rule is to avoid being too rigid. While choosing one style of dress may seem the way to create your dream ‘team bride’, this doesn’t always work. Indeed, the same dress may emphasise the differences between bridesmaids and make at least one of them thoroughly miserable, so matching their outfits by base or accent colour is likely to be much simpler. A side benefit of this approach is that they can express their individual style and still look the part, while you have attendants who feel confident on the day.

Perfect for tiny flower girls, Rosie is a silk ballerina-length dress with appliqué rosebuds at the waist. It’s available in white or ivory, with rosebuds in shades, ranging from pale pink to navy blue. bellezara.co.uk

Using white as the base colour for bridesmaid and page boy outfits enables you to introduce wedding theme colours simply through trimmings such as sashes. Your attendants will look angelic for the ceremony and photographs, even if keeping their outfits in pristine condition throughout the whole celebration is more of a challenge. Gallia and William outfits with navy sashes by Little Eglantine.  littleeglantine.com

Amy Jewel is a dreamy sleeveless flower girl dress with full skirt, covered buttons and silk piping. It’s shown here in peppermint but comes in a huge range of colours. The sash is sold separately so you could introduce a toning or contrasting colour. Designed by Little Bevan for ages 2-12. littlebevan.co.uk

Juliette has a sweet heart cutout detail at the back and a lavish sash. Designed by Nicki Macfarlane – who created the dresses worn by the Duchess of Cambridge’s bridesmaids – it’s available in a range of colours. nickimacfarlane.com

Elise is a pale lilac three-quarter-length sleeve gown with deep red ribbon from Little Eglantine. A matching cape is available and page-boy trousers can be created in the same dupion silk. littleeglantine.com

While bridesmaid dresses are often in plain fabrics, introducing pattern can be a good way to tie attendants’ designs into your colour theme or create a splash at a summer wedding. Eleanor Gold is a delightful dress with plain gold bodice and organza skirt patterned with matching yellow-gold flowers. It’s also available in a gorgeous soft almond pink and comes in sizes from nine months up to 12 years. nickimacfarlane.com

In-between ages and older teens can be particularly hard to dress  for the occasion, since they usually have well formed fashion taste and don’t want to look babyish. Bonnie is an ultra simple blue design with large sash and ballerina-style skirt available in colours ranging from white, pale yellow and blush pink through to prune and black.  littlebevan.co.uk

Adrianna Papell has a range of RTW cocktail and evening gowns that are ideal if your older bridesmaids want a matching colour but different styles. The UK stockist is John Lewis. adriannapapell.com

Classic British brand Ghost has oh-so-simple silk gowns perfect as bridesmaid dresses. You’ll find everything from tea dresses to full-length bias-cut slips, and its dye-to-order service gives you a choice of 13 colours. Shawls can be dyed to match. ghost.co.uk

One solution for dressing discerning adult bridesmaids is to pick a shorter length – especially useful if your coterie are different heights or shapes as the contrast between them may be less apparent. This sophisticated cream dress with long tie belt – suitable for  elegant bridesmaids or less formal brides – is by London bridal and occasion designer Jenny Packham. jennypackham.com