A bridesmaid has revealed how she's decided to ‘walk away’ from her friend’s wedding after being sent a shocking 14-page contract for the big day.
Many couples like to be fairly specific about what they want as they tie the knot - after all, they’ve often forked out A LOT of money on what is supposed to be the happiest day of their lives.
However, it’s fair to say there has to be a limit, right? Especially when it comes to what’s expected from other people.
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Well, one bride took is so far that one of the bridal party has decided to step down altogether, having found they started ‘back pedalling’ after a few red flags started to crop up.
Taking to Reddit, the 35-year-old bridesmaid explained how her college friend ‘Laura’, 34, is due to get married to her partner ‘James’ in April this year.
Laura, who is 'very organized’, made all five bridesmaids and the maid-of-honour a binder detailing all of their ‘duties’.
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“We keep track of appointments, vendors, etc (pretty standard stuff),” she said.
“But that's not all that's in there. There is a section of events where we are required to give a gift and the list of acceptable gifts for that event such as a bachelorette party requires a gift of at least $100 and includes bags, shoes, clothes, etc.
“Wedding shower is a required gift minimum of $50 and some type of ‘expensive alcohol’.”
It gets worse... Much worse.
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“One of the biggest issues - our required look,” the bridesmaid continued, proceeding to share a list of the bride’s ‘musts’.
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1. No visible tattoos. Must be removed or covered with makeup. No jackets or long sleeves to cover them.
2. Full head of hair. No shaved sides or back. Must have a wig professionally put on if hair cut is not acceptable.
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3. Hair must be blonde or black. I will tell you what color is best for you.
4. Hair and makeup is to be done by my MUA and hairstylist. MUA $100, hairstylist depends on hair length and if it needs cut. 5 Hair can NOT too short. It must be able to be braided. Also if your hair is too long like to your waist, it will need to be cut.
6. Nails including toes will need to be done professionally by my nail salon ladies in my approved color and length (She gave the name but I don't want to put it in).
7. You must fit into a size 8 dress. I don't want to see tents (too big) or rolls (too tight) Dresses have been ordered at size 8 only!
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8. No jewelry including wedding bands or engagement rings.
9. No brown eyes. That's ‘James's’ and my eye color so you will need to get contacts. Blue is required.
10. No harsh tans.
11. No visible scars. Same rule applies.
12. No eyeglasses, get contacts or go without for the day.
“Here is where I started to backpedal and want to walk away,” the Redditor said.
“I have very thick but fine hair. I keep the sides shaved down and the top and back long like halfway down my back which helps my migraines.
“I also have an Eeyore tattoo and a bear paw print tattoo that show. I also just had bariatric surgery so I'm working on losing weight. I also have glasses.”
Oh, and we're not done yet.
The bridesmaid said in their last ‘meeting’ the bride passed out a bill for each of them to pay, including: the dress/shoes they would wear ($850); nail fee $150, (‘she is pooling the money to pay for them to do our nails’); a binder fee ($75 - the ones she made them); catering fee ($200 per plate), an entourage fee ($100 - ‘we go everywhere with her’); hotel fee for the weekend ($326); and the ‘final fee’ ($400 to be a bridesmaid or $500 MOH).
The final ‘kick in the pants’ was a 14-page double-sided contract outlining everything the bridal party had to do, such as ‘constantly communicate’, ‘attend meetings and events’ and, um, ‘not getting pregnant’.
"Failure to follow the contract could lead to a fine or dismissal from going to the wedding,” the Reddit user said, adding that she told Laura she couldn’t afford it, but was told to ‘figure it out’.
In an update, she then told us: “I am not doing the wedding. She is mad but I don't care.”
While you’d be forgiven for assuming it had all been made up for online clout - with some saying it was 'too extreme' to believe - many people pointed out that they’d seen similar situations play out in real life.
One commented: “I've actually seen quite a few bridezillas want their bridesmaids to wear colored contacts... so the all look alike, like Barbie. Went along with they all had to have shoulder length blond hair.”
Others described the 'monster' bride as a 'bully', while another said jokingly: “Aw sorry, I ‘accidentally’ got pregnant. Guess I have to drop out. So bummed, I was SO looking forward to spending $2,101 and changing absolutely EVERYTHING about myself. Maybe at your next wedding.”
Jess Hardiman