Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to share the special story of one Tiffany Luoma.
A Villa Rica woman who is the very definition of “always a bridesmaid.”
“I have been in nearly 15 weddings,” said Luoma, 25. And she’s on tap for at least two more. “It’s basically a situation where I’m in a wedding and as soon as it’s over, I’m asked by another girl.”
Not that she’s complaining. Luoma has really liked all of “her” brides. And, as a former captain of the University of Georgia flagline, she’s used to rallying large groups of women to work together to keep others’ spirits high and tension levels manageable.
“If you want me in all of your pictures,” she explained about her frequent bridesmaid duties, “I’m honored to be asked.”
Honored? Don’t sell yourself short, Tiffany.
Bridesmaids have rocketed to superstar status, thanks to royal weddings, hit movies, reality TV shows and emerging specialty stores.
Remember when the old saw, “Always a bridesmaid, never a bride” actually sounded like a bad thing?
Now the situation’s practically reversed: A staple of every wedding, a role once dreaded and the source of more jokes than a hunchbacked maid of honor in a hoop skirt, bridesmaids are suddenly hotter than, well, Pippa Middleton, the only adult bridesmaid at the recent wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton (her sister).
“Everything really is going completely crazy about Pippa — still,” marveled Lindsey Cummings Randolph, 30, of Atlanta, a five-time bridesmaid who had nine bridesmaids at her own recent wedding. “I don’t know that there’s ever been this much attention paid to a bridesmaid.”
Amy Eisenger, associate editor of WeddingChannel.com, said: “I think she’s done bridesmaids around the world a whole lot of good.”
Pippa’s perfect poise and, ahem, posterior — it has its own Facebook fan page — have gotten her the kind of glowing coverage a Kardashian or Real Housewife dreams of.
But Pippa-mania is hardly the only example of what’s become a perfect tulle storm swirling around weddings’ so-called “ladies in waiting.”
Released in May, the movie “Bridesmaids” earned $126.6 million at the box office in its first month and appears to have the staying power of fraternity brothers at a Vegas bachelor party.
Luoma’s already seen the comedy — about bridesmaids attempting to choose a dress, plan the bachelorette party and outdo each other at fete-ing the bride — several times with different friends.
Someone who hasn’t yet found time to see it, Kristen Leeman of Atlanta, is busy planning her own wedding in November. And preparing for her seventh go-round as a bridesmaid, when her roommate, Catherine Chapman, gets married in August.
“A guy in a wedding, all you have to do is go to the bachelor party and show up two hours before the wedding,” pointed out Leeman, 26, a production manager for an entertainment company, unintentionally reinforcing part of the movie’s message.
“Guys don’t have to go to showers, help with stuffing invitations or getting [gift] bags ready for guests in the hotel. They just have to put that tux on and go down the aisle.”
On the other hand, guys don’t get the equivalent of Bella Bridesmaid, a boutique dedicated to outfitting bridesmaids, that recently moved to new digs in Buckhead.
Nor do guys get their very own TV series.
On July 8, TLC will debut “Say Yes to the Dress: Bridesmaids,” a new spinoff of its highly addictive series that shows real life brides-to-be hunting for that elusive perfect gown.
Filmed entirely at Bridals by Lori in Sandy Springs, the six-episode series’ emergence at the same time as the big-screen “Bridesmaids” was entirely coincidental, said Lori Allen, store owner and president.
“We didn’t know about the movie and they didn’t know about the series until the [movie] studio called and asked if they could do a promo in the store,” said Allen, whose 25,000-square-foot, full-service bridal store shot to fame last summer when “Say Yes to the Dress — Atlanta” debuted on TLC.
To her, that “coincidence” is actually confirmation that bridesmaids are finally getting to take their well deserved star turn.
“They’ve often kind of been seen as the wicked or ugly stepsister,” Allen said. “It’s time for people to realize that [they are] your support system. For brides, they’re the ones who’ve got your back. At least they should be.”
One who doesn’t: The so-called “maid of dishonor,” who spends episode one dissing all of her bride’s dress selections for the attendants and generally acting up.
Just when you’re starting to agree with that whole “wicked stepsister” notion, a second bride blows in from Texas to declare that it “doesn’t matter” what her 15 bridesmaids think about anything and insist they should be willing to pay more than the previously agreed on $500 for their dresses.
“They’re dealing with issues before they ever walk through that door,” Allen said of bridesmaid gaggles. “And it all comes out and is magnified by this piece of satin that they’re all supposed to agree to walk down the aisle together in.”
A cynic might suggest that popular culture has finally used up all the good (and bad) brides ideas — we’re talking about you, “Bridezillas” — and is now simply moving on to bridesmaids.
But maybe they’re the ones we should have been paying attention to all along.
Why else would TLC’s top executive describe the decision to make this newest show as being “absolutely a no-brainer?”
“When, at any other time of your life, have you ever been able to force your friends to wear something and pay for it?” said general manager Amy Winter, who lived in Atlanta for 20 years and bought her own wedding gown at Bridals by Lori in 2002.
“That sets up such conflict and drama, and then you add in the fact that it’s multiple people of different ages and interests. I think what we’re doing is creating therapy for anyone who’s had to deal with it.”
On the other hand, what’s to “deal with,” some bridesmaids here wonder aloud? Sure there are certain unavoidable stresses associated with the job. At some point, every bridesmaid has had to wear a dress she’d never have chosen for herself, run a last- minute errand for the bride, or ride herd on a less conscientious bridesmaid. They’ve occasionally asked themselves why they made the cut, or exactly what it meant to be made an “honorary bridesmaid.”
In the end, it always means exactly that, Randolph said.
“You do feel honored to have been asked,” said Randolph, the recent bride and frequent bridesmaid. “So you do whatever the bride asks you to do or whatever you know will make her happy at what should be her happiest time.”
Yet, even with the best intentions, that’s not always easy, as maid of honor Luoma learned when she planned her best friend’s bachelorette night in 2008.
“We all went to the Cheesecake Factory and then to see ‘Sex and the City,’” said Luoma, who knew the bride-to-be wasn’t a big partier. “I thought, ‘Perfect. It’s a wedding movie.’ And then about 15 minutes in, I realized, ‘Oh no, Mr. Big is going to leave [Carrie] at the altar. This is not a good idea!’ But she loved it. So everything was fine.”
Fine? It’s much better than that.
It’s a scene straight out of “Bridesmaids 2.”
