When should i purchase bridesmaids dresses?

I definitely would not order bridesmaids dresses until at least six months out. BM dresses do not take long to arrive after being ordered, and they typically need few, if any, alterations. Ordering any earlier than that, you risk the possibility of the dress or color being discontinued before all BMs order their dresses, changing your mind about the style or color, or a BM gaining or losing lots of weight, or becoming pregnant

I had my girls order 6 months out! Plenty of time for production, shipping, and alterations, but not too much time that they don’t know their size.

I've just chosen the dresses, and my 'maids are going to be ordering them soon. It is 6 months to my wedding. I think you should aim for 6 months or thereabouts. You have time for any alterations, and even if something goes wrong with shipping, you'll still have time to fix it.

I wouldn't do it any earlier than 7 months out, and any later than 4 months out.

I wouldn't order any sooner than 6 months out, but I would have the girls try dresses on in advance to make sure the style you like actually looks good on them and they are comfortable in them. I will say I wanted all of the girls in the same dress and it was a nightmare picking out a dress they liked and looked good in. A week before my wedding my MOH messaged me that the dress looked horrible on her after alternations and she wasn't comfortable wearing it so she ended up with a different dress. It was super stressful so unless you have girls that are of similar weight and height I wouldn't recommend the same style.

I am getting married in April next year and my plan was to order them by the end of August (taking into consideration shipping issues that are commonplace now, time needed for alterations & my understanding of how busy my BM’s schedules are). 6 months would be cutting it a bit too close for my crew.


My bridesmaids wanted to do it sooner so that they would have plenty of time to arrange and save for whatever alterations they needed, and I completely supported that. I also have a BM who will be living overseas, and it was simpler for her to order & arrange everything while she’s in the states. So, my adult BM’s dresses have just been ordered. I have 2 jr BMs and I will wait as long as possible to order theirs. Given that they don’t have curves, I don’t anticipate many of any alterations.
Ultimately, I say it depends on your & your BMs circumstances. As pp mentioned, if you are ordering all the same dresses in the same color, there could be an issue with those being discontinued. This is not my situation. And the weight gain/pregnancy issue will be a risk no matter what. I gained 14 lbs in my 1st trimester 😂

Thank you all for your advice! I'll look to purchase them around 6 months out.

No sooner than 6 months. Azazie and Cocomelody have quick turnarounds

6-8 months ahead