Years ago there was no such thing as a Bridal or Wedding Stylist, the person who helped the bride get her wedding parties outfits into order.

It usually took a trip to the store and a little bit of faith that the dresses and suits you picked for the bridesmaids and groomsmen would look good on every figure, often to find that when you finally got the garment onto your special friend that it didn't quite look the way you imagined it.

Shopping for yourself, let alone your bridal party is tough work. Sometimes there are conflicting ideas as to what colour, shape or style the bridesmaids or groomsmen should wear and it can all be just a little bit too much with everything else going on that you have to plan. So this is where I come in and wave my magic cocktail ring. I've got so much I want to tell you so I've decided to make this post a series post, meaning that there will be five parts to this, just because I'm not one for overloading information, even if it's informative. Remember, even though I'm all the way over in Sydney, which may be far away for some readers, these tips still apply.

Five Tips From Your Wedding Stylist

CREATE A CONCEPT PLAN

Tip number one is to create a plan of your concept, this is what I do with a lot of my Sydney wedding styling clients because for months and months they've been flicking through wedding magazines, going to bridal expos, checking out boutiques and pinning on Pinterest like crazy, but theres still that 'where do I start' feeling just lingering inside you.

STEP ONE:

Open up a word document or grab a pen and paper and answer these questions first:

What will the weather be like? Will the girls need to wear something warm or light weight? Will the guys need undershirts to prevent sweating through their shirts?
Is the wedding indoors or outdoors? What's the surface like to walk on? Will the bridesmaids be comfortable walking in stilettos or thicker heels, or will they need flat shoes?
Does anyone in my bridal party have allergies that will prevent them from wearing certain fabrics or metals?
Do I know what colour scheme I'm working with for the wedding party and are the guests aware of it?

The reason why you should answer all these questions, especially the last one, is because you don't want your wedding party to look too hot, cold or uncomfortable on the day, and you also don't want any injuries, or guests showing up wearing dresses or suits similar to the bridesmaids or groomsmen. A traditional way to let the guests know what the colour scheme is, is to use those colours on the invitations.

USE YOUR FAVOURITE TIME MACHINE - PINTEREST

I've had many 'Holy shit, it's after midnight' moments with Pinterest, it's just that good. There's so much inspiration in one place that sometimes pinning just once doesn't feel quite right and usually right before I go to bed I like to pin a bunch of fitspirational images to my 'Fitspo' board so I can feel like my diet really will start tomorrow, it's a never ending cycle, but in order to get a great concept down, Pinterest is paramount.

If you don't already have a Pinterest board going, create three separate boards. One is a 'pin everything you like' board and the other two are for two different concepts involving both your bridesmaids and groomsmen.

On the first board, search a range of things; wedding style, bridesmaids, cocktail dresses, men's summer suits, anything that you can think of that relates to the look and feel of your wedding day. Just start pinning, but don't get side tracked and start pining decor or cute wedding favours, stick to the clothing and after you've pinned at least ten to fifteen images of both mens and womens clothing, it's time to really look at the pictures and work out what the common trend is in all of them. You might notice the following:

You've picked the same colour in lots of the photos
All the girls are wearing a particular style of dress
All the guys have bowties on
Everyone is wearing summery outfits
All the flower bouquets and lapel pins are Australian natives

The list goes on. Once you've worked out what the common thing is in these photos, you're on your way to having a concept, so pick five images for the groomsmen and five images for the bridesmaids out of that board that includes those common factors and pin them to your second board. Head back to the search bar and keep searching with those common trends in mind, this time maybe adding a colour scheme, then a type of shoe, then a type of bag, cufflink or belt until you're happy with that concept. But don't stop there, this is bridal bootcamp and you've got to keep going!

4 Hacks For Your Bridesmaids

This is often one of the longest, toughest exercises of wedding preparation, finding the right dress to suit multiple bridesmaids is harder than you think, but hopefully my help will make things a little easier.

Print out that Pinterest board and sit it next to you while you create your third Pinterest board. It's time to change up the style a bit, try to make this board a completely different look to your second board. By having that printed out copy next to you, you'll know what you should and shouldn't pin this time around. This will help you to try things you wouldn't normally have tried and it will also help you to open yourself up to new options and create something individual.

Once you've completed all three boards, you need to print them out and have a good look at them, what are the things about them that draws you to each of them? Keeping in mind the people wearing the garments, what do you think will look best on them? Do you think what you've chosen represents yours and your partners style? If you can answer all these questions and you're happy with the answers, you've just padded out your own wedding styling concept.

TIP: If you're still stuck, have your partner or a friend or family member,who you think has great taste, and get them to help you create a board. Repeat the above process until you've found a concept you love.

THE WEDDING STYLIST - 5 PART SERIES

Leave a comment in the box below and let me know if you found this post helpful! Are you a blushing bride about to strut (or glide) her way down the aisle? Let me know what you'd like to see in our wedding posts!

BRIDE & GROOM: OLIVIA & MATT SLEE | PHOTOGRAPHER: JAN-ERICK LUZURIAGA | STYLIST: ALARNA HOPE | WEDDING VENUE: SYLVAN GLEN COUNTRY HOUSE