Who to pay

I very cheekily asked my bridesmaids to buy their own on the condition we stick within all their budgets and it's something they could wear again!

I would have thought the bride to be deals with the girly things and the groom to be, the men/ boys.

Traditionally the couple pays for all outfits but these days lots of people ask for their wedding party to pay or contribute. Ive paid as a bridesmaid and we've asked our bridesmaids and ushers to pay for their own. Theyrr buying outfits and shoes and I'm paying for bridesmaids hair and jewellery. I guess it depends what's socially acceptable among your circle but I dont see anything wrong with asking if youre on a budget as long as you keep costs as low as possible and give plenty of notice (and understand if they arent able to)

I think the bride and groom should pay for bridesmaids/ushers/flower girls/page boys.

Traditional in the UK, its us the Bride and Groom. In the US its the bridesmaids.

I think if you have a set idea of dress you'd like them to wear i think you should front the bill, But if your willing to let them have free reign, maybe ask if they'd like pay? depends on your relationship with the bridesmaids.

We've paid for ours, but our page boys are our two boys, and my bridesmaids are our nieces, so we wouldn't expect any money for them. if we were having adult bridesmaids then we would expect them to pay, we have bought the best man a matching waistcoat, but he will be paying for the suit and shoes.

We're paying, but they are contributing a little bit. They have to be something they can wear again and that are under £50.

Traditionally the groom pays for the bridesmaids' dresses.

More usually now, where couples pay for their wedding together, in the UK, the coupe pays for the bridesmaids' dresses if the bride is choosing them, or for adult bridesmaids one may ask for a contribution if they are choosing for themselves and will be able to wear them again. Young bridesmaids and pageboys are always paid for by the couple/groom.

We have paid for the bridesmaids dresses and mens suits. I chose to do it because we could afford it - if we had a tight budget I think I would have still aimed to pay for them. I think it's a bit unfair to ask someone to wear something specific and then ask them to pay for it, but that is my personal opinion and I know a lot of people who have got the bridesmaids etc to pay for it themselves.

We are paying for all the bridal party outfits. If they weren't in the budget then we just wouldn't have asked them. In my opinion the only time it is acceptable not to pay for them is if you are happy for them to turn up in absolutely anything they like.

I don't think there are any 'rules'. My friend asked her bridesmaids to pay half - she picked dresses that could be worn again. I am not asking my ladies because I have expensive taste and I asked them to be my BM so I am happy to pay for them. No right or wrong answer...depends on what financial situation your BM are in? xxx

My bridesmaids are paying for their own outfits. I have a very close group of 5 friends and my sister. The deal was that I could chose 2 of them and pay for their dresses, or I could have all 6 (which is what I wanted) and they could pay for their own clothes.

As I am not paying I have very little control over what they wear, and I am happy with that. The have all agreed (without my prompting) that they want to wear the same colour so I chose navy to make it easy for them to match. Saying that, I wouldn't be fussed if they rocked up in jeans and a t-shirt!

I would never dream of demanding a specific dress and then making them pay.

I set out a budget and requested my ladies top it up should they chose something more expensive!

I also have 'expensive' taste hence why I can't afford to dress them all, I've given them all free reign to chose what they like. The only thing I've requested is colour and fabric other than that I don't care what they wear so longs they look nice and I'm sure they will.

i can't believe how expensive bridesmaid dresses are and can't justify spend ping £200 on a glorified maxi dress... I don't expect my bridesmaid to either! Hopefully we'll find something on the high street... Someone suggested it might work out cheaper to get dresses made so this is also an option.

BM dress/BM suit etc will come out of our budget. I wouldn't feel comfortable asking them to contribute/pay even if it is something that they will be able to wear again after the day because if it wasn't for my day they wouldn't be buying it at all.

I think the couple pay. It's kind of a harsh scenario if asked to be a bridesmaid and then told to start coughing out money.

We did abit of both, I gave some money and the bridemaids paid some. My flower girls parents paid for hers without me asking and so did my paige boy.

Just to spark a bit of discussion here - what are people's thoughts on if the couple pays, getting the dresses back after the wedding to sell and make some money back?

I'm paying for bridesmaids and flower girls, OH is paying for groomsmen and pageboys.

I agree!

I agree!

I agree!

I agree!

This is what I intend to do! I've even bought second outfits for the flower girls so they can get changed before the dresses get ruined. It was my BM and the mother of 2 of my flower girls that suggested this when I said I was paying in the first place. In reality though, the second outfits probably cost more than I will make back on the dresses.