jim hjelm

After your bride decides on the style of dress, next comes getting measured and choosing a size to order.  This is probably by far the least fun of the entire process for all of our girls.  What makes it even more confusing is that every designer has a different sizing chart.  Some bridal and bridesmaid dress designers run “true to size” (if that even really exists anymore) and others are way off.   Here are some tips and advice on what to expect and how to choose the best size possible.

When you get measured in most cases the bridesmaid consultant will be measuring your bust, waist, and hips.  She will pull the measuring tape around your body , snug, but not too tight.  After writing down your information, she will go over the designer’s measurement chart to see where each of those measurements are falling.  It is rare that women fall perfectly into one size.  More likely you will see your bust in one size, waist in another, and so on.   This is so normal , so please don’t be alarmed.  For example, even Marilyn Monroe would have ended up in different sizes.  Her measurements were 37-23-36.  On designer Amale’s chart that would put her bust in a size 10, waist a size 00, and hips a size 2! 

What you need to remember ladies is where bridesmaid dresses are concerned, alterations are our best friend.  If you ever fall between sizes the rule of thumb is to order the larger size and alter it in.  Too much fabric is better than too little.  Our Marilyn Monroe would have had to do that exact thing, order a size 10 to fit her bust and alter around her waist and hips. 

So many times we hear girls who just don’t want to believe that they have to order a size bigger than what they typically wear.  My advice here is disregard the tag!!  Seriously – we are in a bridesmaid dress world, and what you are used to does not apply.  No one is going to know what size tag you have under the dress, however, they will notice when the dress didn’t zip and you had to add a panel of fabric.  Listed below are two designers’ measurement charts so you can see how different they can be.

Designer Jenny Yoo:  Size 10: bust: 37.5, waist: 30.5, hips: 40.5
Designer Jim Hjelm:  Size 10: bust: 36,  waist: 28, hips: 38

As you can see the two designers above are quite different since every inch matters.  In actuality Jim Hjelm’s size 10 is most similar to Jenny Yoo’s size 6 or 8.  If I were ordering from Jenny Yoo I would get a dress two sizes smaller than if I were ordering from Jim Hjelm. 

One last common mistake is to use your jean size.  This simply just does not factor in when ordering a dress.

I know this is a touchy topic.  Who wants to break out the measuring tape just for fun?  Forget all the media and pressure to be a certain size when ordering a bridesmaid dress.  Looking confident and fabulous in a size that fits you beautifully is what matters most.

-Jenni