Bridesmaids dresses!!! Blah! I absolutely cringe just thinking of the bloody things. Dowdy, ill-fitting, complexion fighting, unwearable, itchy dresses. WHY??? At one point I thought that being asked to be a bridesmaid, just meant that the bride thought you a less attractive friend who would not pose any threats of upstaging. What they didn't realise was that I only ever noticed what hideous garments draped the poor souls who were too polite to decline the role of ugly stepsister bridesmaid.
Emma H. (who was my honourary maid-of-honour, stylist, and coordinator of the wedding coordinator), is going through her duties as maid-of-honour as we speak in Trinidad, and luckily for her she gets to choose her own dress. And yes, there are lovely cookie-cutter type dresses, but sometimes that is just not enough.

Oscar de la Renta FW12/13 Dress that inspired my dress

For my bridesmaids, I knew I wanted them to look fabulous, but I also knew I wanted to bring in a sustainable aspect to this. Then, I saw my inspiration. Cotton Candy perfection in blue; textured and jeweled to perfection. It was an Oscar de la Renta FW12/13 dress that I was inspired by. But, where could I find an ethically made version of this dress that I could afford for my bridesmaids? Although I found an Allison Parris dress not too far off, I was still obsessed with the OdlR fabric. I showed my artist Aunt who immediately identified the fabric as Matelassé. "Aunty, can you make this dress?" She told me of course, and that the dress was a very simple one to make, it was just the fabric we needed to find. So we went on a hunt. Whilst in the US we scoured thrift shops and fabric stores looking for the right matelasse, but to our avail we could not find what we were looking for. 

Then...dum dummm duuuuuuummm...light bulb moment came: could the fabric we need be in the curtain/home section? We scurried over, and there they were: matelasse as far as the eye could see...well, as far as the aisle went. We decided on a sea foam, and that was that. I sent my aunt their measurements, and she got right to work. She even surprised us with crinolines to make the skirt of the dress much like the OdlR dress, which my bridesmaids ended up not wearing [shaking fist in air]. However, after quick alterations, they seemed genuinely ecstatic with the dresses, especially as they were handmade, and I thought they looked absolutely gorgeous. 

However, you don't have to have someone make dresses for your bridesmaids if you don't want to. You can easily go out and buy the dresses from retailers with a sustainable and ethical code of conduct, just as easily as you could walk into a bridal shop and pull a carbon-copy dress. Just take a look at some I found for all different styles of weddings--from woodland chic to posh city slicker--that could be your next bridesmaids dress.

From L-R, T-B:

Cheri Sweetheart Chambray Dress by People Tree | £41

Crochet lace dress by SUNO | $260

Organic Cotton Dress by Bioneuma Natural Fashion | £78

Josie Square Print Dress by People Tree | £56

Nathalie Autumn Floral Dress by People Tree | £78
 

Side Peplum Pleat Dress by SUNO | £234

Kate Open Back Straight Hem Lace Dress by Ruby Rocks | £58

Strapless Peplum Dress by Allison Parris | $135

Mini Dress by Giulia rien a mettre | £340