As a bride, the very worst thing you can do to your bridesmaids is invite them on a "Super-Fun Bridesmaid Dress Shopping Trip!" and then drag them around from boutique to boutique for hours on end. The "Super-Fun Bridesmaid Dress Shopping Trip!" is fun for approximately no one—including you. So here's how you can save everyone loads of aggravation AND still get cute bridesmaid dresses for your friends.
Click your way over Weddington Way then take the 2.5 seconds to create an account. You give them basic info, like your name and your wedding date, then you have access to browse almost 1,000 bridesmaid dresses. If you'd rather not look at hundreds upon hundreds of bridesmaid dresses (because that WOULD be pretty boring) you can sort them by, say, color and price, which is what I did here. ($460 for a bridesmaid dress? No thanks!)
To narrow down the selection further, you can select a designer, wedding theme, length, fabric family, neckline, body shape, season, and/or average customer ratings. (Whew!) Then as you start getting down to a reasonable number of dresses, you add them to your showroom, where you virtually store all your faves.
Once your showroom is stocked, you share it with your bridesmaids (and your mom and future MIL, or whoever, if you're so inclined) and they can vote and comment on the different designs. Eventually, through the process of elimination, you should be able to narrow it down to a few group-favorite styles, which you can order through Weddington Way, or go try on at a brick-and-mortar boutique. (I'd be SO fine doing everything online, since bridesmaid dresses are made to be altered, and you can virtually chat with a Weddington Way stylist about sizing and fit ahead of time. You can also call them on the phone, so it all seems super-accessible.)
I've never crowd-sourced bridesmaid dress shopping before, but I'm really into this option. Especially after being dragged on a "Super-Fun Bridesmaid Dress Shopping Trip!" or 15 in my day.
Would you do all of your bridesmaid dress shopping online? Or do you think you can actually make a "Super-Fun Bridesmaid Dress Shopping Trip!" fun? (Or at least not miserable.) As a bridesmaid, would you be OK with a virtual shopping trip?
I'd be SO fine with it.