The Bridesmaid's Dress Everyone Wore the Year You Were Born
The Bridesmaid's Dress Everyone Wore the Year You Were Born
From poufy pink gowns to elegant halter-necks, here are the most memorable bridesmaid dress styles from each of the last 30 years — as seen on TV, the silver screen, and your favorite celebrities.
1988: Pink Long-Sleeve Satin
Long before Sex and the City, the beloved late '80s-early '90s sitcom Golden Girls offered up serious squad goals. In Season 4, episode 6, the crew’s oldest, possibly sassiest member, Sophia (Estelle Getty) ties the knot — and Rose (Betty White) wears a pale-pink satin dress with long sleeves, a subtle tonal pattern, and shoulder pads that were surprisingly modest for the era.
1989: Black V-Neck With Shoulder Pads
Sally (Meg Ryan) does bridesmaid duty in When Harry Met Sally, but her dress is a far cry from the pastel monstrosities of many '80s weddings. There are shoulder pads, yes, but the V-necked dress is black, a.k.a. actually quite wearable for other situations.
1990: Sparkles, Gold, and Poufy Sleeves
At Rod Stewart and Rachel Hunter’s nuptials in Beverly Hills, there were bagpipes, tons of paparazzi, and seriously flashy bridesmaid attire. Although Hunter steals the show in her simple, long-sleeve lace gown featuring an avalanche of tulle, take a peek at her ‘maid in the background, who’s wearing a sparkly, gold-trimmed look with poufy sleeves and a plunging neckline.
1991: Bubblegum Pink With Bows
In Father of the Bride, George Banks (Steve Martin), has a tough time grappling with his beloved daughter, Annie (Kimberly Williams-Paisley) growing up and getting hitched. She ties the knot with her beau, Bryan (George Newbern). There’s a quartet of bridesmaids swathed in bubblegum pink, and each is trimmed with not one but two massive bows: in their hair and on the backs of their dresses.
1992: Tulle Halter-Neck With a Bow
Here’s another ultra-pink bridesmaid dress situation, this time involving varying rosy shades, for Jackie and Mel’s wedding on Beverly Hills, 90210 in Season 2, episode 28. Check out Brenda (Shannen Doherty) and Kelly (Jennie Garth) in these Malibu Barbie-worthy looks, complete with wide tulle halter-neck detailing tied in a big bow in the back, fitted bodices, and voluminous skirts.
1993: Pastel Pink With a Bow at the Waist
In the Mother of the Bride TV movie (no relation to Father of the Bride), the bridesmaids’ hue is — you guessed it! — pink. This time, it’s a soft pastel shade and worn by two cute kids. The dress features faint striping, slightly puffy short sleeves, and a bow adorning the waist.
1994: Pink With Puffy White Sleeves
More pink — but with the fussiest, poufiest detailing imaginable — was the M.O. for one of the weddings in the British rom-com Four Weddings and a Funeral. There’s a huge bow on the back which almost resembles fairy wings, plus marshmallow-esque puffy white sleeves. Charles’ (Hugh Grant’s) quirky sister, Scarlett (the late Charlotte Coleman), has some serious wardrobe malfunctions: She scrambles to secure her hairpiece during the ceremony, and her dress splits down the back, revealing blue skivvies.
1995: Burgundy Brocade With White Trim
Last year, a bride, Tammi Sauer, unearthed some photos of these off-the-shoulder looks, posted them on Facebook, and one of her bridesmaids, Heidi Mann, dug up her own gown, put it on, and snapped pictures of herself doing everyday tasks in it to poke fun at the prospect of actually re-wearing a bridesmaid dress (much less this dress) again. The post went viral: Just check out that burgundy brocade fabric and white crochet trim combo, which came from a Jessica McClintock pattern. (Is there anything more '90s than Jessica McClintock?)
1996: Poufy Pink and a Ruffle-Trimmed Hat
Pink and poufy: commonly-tread territory when it comes to OTT bridesmaid dresses. For further proof, look no further than Rachel (Jennifer Aniston) in Season 2, episode 24 of Friends, done up for her friend Mindy’s wedding in a Pepto Bismol-hued look with the puffiest of sleeves, a sparkly design on the chest, and a pink ruffle-trimmed hat.
1997: Lavender With a Soft Draped Neckline
Julianne (Julia Roberts) gets roped into being the maid of honor for the fiancée (Cameron Diaz) of her best friend in My Best Friend's Wedding, with whom she’s secretly in love. She ultimately lets him go, walking down the aisle wearing this lavender gown featuring a soft draped neckline. But hey, at least she isn’t suckered into wearing the pink and yellow strapless frocks that the bride’s annoying cousins had to wear.
1998: Red Slipdress With a Draped Neckline
Another great Friends bridesmaid moment: At Ross (David Schwimmer) and Emily’s (Helen Victoria Baxendale) wedding, spread out over two episodes in Season 4, the bridesmaids, who included Monica (Courteney Cox), wear red gowns with spaghetti straps and slightly draped necklines. The slinky, very '90s slipdress silhouette was a welcome departure from the princess-y tulle-overloaded explosions that dominated '80s and '90s bridesmaid styles.
1999: Maroon and Strappy
When Topanga (Danielle Fishel) and Cory (Ben Savage) finally get married in episode 7 of Season 7 of Boy Meets World, you were probably too busy tearing up and scrambling to find tissues to spot the 'maids and their getups: long maroon tank gowns. It’s basically a wedding-apropos version of the strappy tank tops you probably wore with everything as a tween.
2000: Strappy Purple Satin
In the series finale of the O.G. Beverly Hills, 90210, Donna (Tori Spelling) and David (Brian Austin Green) get hitched, and the bridal party is festooned in strappy, grape-hued satin gowns. On the plus side, there’s no pouf factor whatsoever.
2001: Green-and-Yellow Floral Print
For Monica (Courteney Cox) and Chandler’s (Matthew Perry) wedding in Season 7, episode 24 of Friends, Rachel and Phoebe wear possibly the least stereotypical bridesmaid dresses imaginable: a breezy, vacation-y pale green-and-yellow floral print with a flowy silhouette and double-layered skirt. “Those bridesmaid dresses got the most calls and inquiries of anything on the whole show," the show’s costume designer, Debra McGuire, said in a 2017 interview.
2002: Powder-Blue Halter-Neck With Flowers
My Big Fat Greek Wedding, about an endearingly tight-knit, sometimes-overbearing, sprawling Greek brood features the kind of bridal-party getups that bridesmaid-dress nightmares are made of. Think powder blue and halter-necked, with big flowers nestled at the base of a plunging neckline. The dresses are ruched from ribcage to the top of the thigh before exploding into a mess of tulle on the bottom.
2003: Simple LBDs
When Charlotte (Kristin Davis) gets hitched for the second time on Sex and the City, her crew turns it out in all black, each dress featuring distinctive silhouettes and necklines. Carrie (Sarah Jessica Parker) wears a scoop-neck style with a tight bodice, while Miranda (Cynthia Nixon) opts for a sleeveless V-neck LBD, and Samantha (Kim Cattrall) rocks a sheer, long-sleeved number.
2004: Bright Crimson Halter-Neck
There were a couple of weddings over the course of the early-aughts soapy teen show The O.C. For Julie (Melinda Clarke) and Caleb’s (Alan Dale) wedding in Season 1, episode 27, the bridal party, which includes Marissa (Mischa Barton), isn’t too thrilled about the nuptials, but the gang still shows up for the occasion in bright crimson.
2005: Pastel With a Draped Neckline
Claire (Rachel McAdams) gets to wear plenty of bridesmaid looks throughout the course of Wedding Crashers, and many of them are actually quite on-trend for the mid-aughts. This fluid, romantic pastel look features a softly draped neckline and could get extra mileage for, say, a black-tie affair.
2006: Strappy With a Square Neckline
In Season 3, episode 2 of Desperate Housewives, Bree (Marcia Cross) ties the knot, and Susan (Teri Hatcher), Lynette (Felicity Huffman), and Gaby (Eva Longoria) wear eggplant-hued dresses with skinny straps and square necklines for the occasion. Longoria’s character goes all-out on the accessories, pairing a thick strand of pearls with dangly earrings, and all three clutch all-white bouquets.
2007: Sleeveless Lilac With a Square Neckline
When Lily (Alyson Hannigan) and Marshall (Jason Segel), get hitched in Season 2, episode 21 of HIMYM, Robin (Cobie Smulders) wears a lilac dress. It has a simple, sleeveless silhouette with a square-cut neckline and minimal detailing: just some subtle ruching on the bust and at the waist.
2008: Satin Halter-Neck With a Sash at the Waist
It’s nearly impossible to pick a favorite among the many, many bridesmaid looks that Jane (Katherine Heigl) has stuffed, quite literally, into every nook of her closet in 27 Dresses. But here’s one of the more unique numbers: It’s satin and features two shades of purple and a big sash at the waist. But, best of all, check out the halter-flared collar combo situation that somehow turns into a rectangular neckline.
2009: Hot Pink and Off-the-Shoulder
In Confessions of a Shopaholic, Rebecca (Isla Fisher) wears a shiny, hot-pink, off-the-shoulder gown with rainbow-hued layers of tulle skirts. Oh, and there’s a tiny, poufy hot pink veil in the mix, too.
2010: Bright Coral and Knee-Length
When Lucia (America Ferrera) ties the knot in Our Family Wedding, her bridesmaids wear knee-length frocks in bright coral. Her squad pulls off the vibrant hue, each 'maid opting for slightly different necklines.
2011: Teal Halter-Neck
Selena Gomez wore a teal halter-neck gown for the vows of her close pal and costume designer Shannon Larossi; the two met while working on The Wizards of Waverly Place. The wedding took place in Los Cabos, Mexico, and although the bridesmaids’ dresses featured varying hemlines and necklines, they all looked comfortable enough to wear while traipsing on the beach.
2012: Peach and One-Shoulder
When Blair (Leighton Meester) weds Louis (Hugo Becker) in Season 5, episode 13 of Gossip Girl, her acolytes anxiously vie to be in the wedding party. Those who make the cut for the lavish affair are rewarded with peachy, one-shoulder frocks with exaggeratedly rounded rosette-trimmed skirts and black belts. Serena (Blake Lively) wears a romantic, diaphanous gown in the same delicate hue.
2013: Pale Pink With a Halter Neckline and Big Skirt
Lady Gaga certainly knows how to deliver a jaw-dropping getup, but she also can tone it down when the occasion calls for it — like, say, when’s she’s in her best friend Bo O’Connor’s bridal party. Gaga donned a pale pink gown with a plunging halter neckline and a flowing skirt, plus a large, matching flower in her hair.
2014: White and Bodycon
Beyoncé looked predictably gorgeous in a white textured bodycon tank dress for her sister Solange’s wedding. The curve-hugging piece wasn’t some bespoke, wildly exorbitant creation, either: it was an off-the-rack Torn by Ronny Kobo dress that cost $349.
2015: Lavender With Floral Details
Jennifer Rosales' large squad of 'maids wore a whole spectrum of purple hues. RiRi opted for a pale lavender Badgley Mischka gown with delicate silver floral detailing on the skirt.
2016: Peach and Sleeveless
Meghan Markle was resplendent in a flowy peach gown as the maid of honor at her best friend Lindsay Roth’s wedding; the two met as freshman at Northwestern University. Now, the burning question is: What sort of bridesmaid dress aesthetic will Markle opt for when it comes to her own breathlessly-awaited royal nuptials in May?
2017: Burgundy Halter-Neck With a Full Skirt
For her BFF Abigail Anderson’s wedding, Taylor Swift donned a wine-hued halter-neck dress with pretty tucked detailing on the bust and an elegant full skirt. It’s a pretty familiar-feeling bridesmaid style: You may have worn it at some point yourself or have seen pics in your Facebook feed of other pals in color-coordinated versions of this dress.
Hint: There's a LOT of pink.