Posted on 02/24/2008 5:23:22 AM PST by Huntress
Bridesmaids may soon be forced to sign contracts agreeing not to put on weight or get pregnant before a friend's wedding.
One in five brides-to-be is so concerned that her bridesmaids might let her down that she would ask her maid-of-honour to sign a written "pre-nuptial agreement", according to a new poll.
A bridesmaid contract is the latest American-style trend for brides
Despite the fact that 61 per cent of brides picked a best friend as their choice of bridesmaid and 49 per cent chose their sister, 48 per cent would sack a bridesmaid who failed to stick to the rules.
The survey of 1,000 women, commissioned by You & Your Wedding magazine, asked women which clauses they would put in their contract.
It found that respondents' biggest gripes were with bridesmaids who put on weight, became pregnant or changed their hairstyles before the big day.
A series of suggested clauses included that bridesmaids should not consume more than 10 units of alcohol or make any advances towards "inappropriate male guests" - or the groom.
Many women who had already married reported stories of their bridesmaids letting them down on their big day.
One woman said her maid-of-honour left her dress at a service station on the way to the wedding after deciding she didn't like it, while another revealed a bridesmaid had left 30 invitations unsent in her desk drawer.
Colette Harris, editor of You & Your Wedding magazine, said: "Planning weddings can be a stressful time for brides and while our contract is meant to be tongue-in-cheek, the survey demonstrates that issues with bridesmaids are of concern to many readers.
"Perhaps official contracts are the way forward for brides struggling to keep the peace."
Siobhàn Craven-Robins works with hundreds of brides a year in her role as wedding planner and has organised the weddings of celebrity clients including Joan Collins and Barbara Windsor.
"There has been a spoof contract like this on the internet in recent years but I'm not sure if the brides I know would actually use the real thing," she said.
The bridesmaid's contract is the latest American-style trend for brides. It follows the opening in Berkshire of the country's first bridal boot camp for women determined to shape up to fit into their dresses.
Trudy Dixon, the director of Bridal Boot Camp, said while many of the bridesmaids that work out at the boot camp had complained about the colour or style of the dresses chosen for them, few brides she knew would resort to such draconian measures to keep their ladies in line.
"I've been a bridesmaid several times and if I was presented with a contract, I would suggest they found another friend to do the job" she said.
You know as well as I do that he's not talking about 10 pounds.
I’d certainly abolish ‘no-fault’ divorce if there were children.
And I’d start enforcing criminal laws for adultery.
Someone would be free, someone would go to jail, and there wouldn’t be a cash cow for anyone in most cases.
I went to a wedding many years ago and the bride didn’t exactly act nice, I would bet that if you’d taken a poll 90% would have said the marriage wouldn’t last, and of course, it didn’t.
Ever seen Bridzilla?
Unfortunately, people concentrate more on the wedding than the marriage. I was lucky enough to find a wonderful woman who wanted to elope.
My dil’s sister got married, huge blow-out wedding, the whole family was in the wedding and it cost my son’s family alone, about a thousand bucks. The largest cost was the rental on the 11 yr old’s tux, $250 ridiculous.
Easiest solution is simply choose your bridesmaid carefully!
I hear ya! damn gravity...
This is one of the reasons we bought our daughter a ladder.
LOL ;-)
They have to tell you what to wear? People used to know what to wear and when to wear it, whatever happened to Emily Post? ;)
I thought brides choose dresses for their brides maids that made the bride look better and they would want their bridesmaids fatter than them. The fatter they are the skinnier they look.
I wonder how many husbands wish they had their new bride sign a contract not to put on weight.
“I’ve been a bridesmaid several times and if I was presented with a contract, I would suggest they found another friend to do the job” she said.
I agree. Any bride who would make such a demand is sure to be a royal pain in the a$$.”
Not only would I decline the “job”, I would take a VERY long look at the person who I had for a “friend”. I don’t think I would miss her in my circle of friends.
This is another version of Bridezilla.....
“Is it for all the guests or family members? Is it your sister or your wife’s sister? Is she in the wedding?”
....they want ALL guests in tux/evening clothes....it’s my wife’s sister....my wife and I are not in the wedding....these folks are big phoney baloney types....it’s a big night wedding at St Peters (high church) down town....and of course, they’ve never darkened that church or any other church’s door....they worship at the altar of credit card shopping down at Nordstrom’s...they’re so bad in debt that they couldn’t get a wedding loan, so they hit up my mother-in-law to pay for everything....and naturally they’re pulling out all the stops for Laura’s “big day” since it’s on somebody else’s nickel...they tried to get my wife to pay for a “brides maid’s luncheon” at the country club, but I put my foot down on that one....and of course that makes me the bad guy...my wife is going to be executrix of my mother-in-laws will one of these days.....I told her she ought to subtract the wedding expense out of her sister’s cut.
The question is, "What kind of an idiot would agree to marry such a shallow person?"
Preppy ushers are behind this one.
....when I’m not in the wedding party I wear either my dress uniform or suit and tie.
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