A bride-to-be says she doesn't expect her bridesmaids to pay for 'a single thing' when it comes to her wedding, including the hen party. Bride Claudia, who regularly shares informative wedding content via TikTok, says she doesn't think bridesmaids should ever have to pay to be part of a wedding, arguing that this really shouldn't be their 'financial responsibility' to shoulder.
Claudia, who will be tying the knot this coming August, recently shared her personal thoughts on this often very tricky subject in a recent TikTok video and ended up sparking a bit of a heated debate amongst her followers.
In a recent vid, Claudia, who goes by the username @partygirlclauds, addressed the question, 'should bridesmaids pay their way for your wedding?' and made her thoughts on the matter crystal clear.
Claudia, who lives in Australia, said: "Your wedding is not your bridesmaids' financial responsibility. If they were a guest, they will be paying a certain amount to come to your wedding, sure, and wedding gifts.
"Maybe they're buying a new dress for example, but if they're in your bridal party, they're paying for a lot of stuff. Bridal shower, hen party, make-up, hair if you're paying for that, a dress, jewellery, shoes. And a wedding gift on top of that!"
She added: "You're essentially asking them to pay for your financial responsibilities. It's your wedding. You want to have a wedding, and yet you're expecting them to put their financial goals or their finances to the side to make way for your wedding when it may not be in their budget at all."
Addressing brides who consider being appointed as a bridesmaid a 'privilege', Claudia urged them to 'think again', emphasising the amount of time and energy - both emotional and physical - that goes into such a role.
Claudia went on to state that it costs on average £570 ($1,000 AUD) to be a bridesmaid in Australia, a cost she herself would not be comfortable with if someone asked her to be a bridesmaid.
Encouraging brides to consider whether such expenses would be financially viable for their friend, Claudia urged them to weigh up whether it would be an amount they'd be happy with if the roles were reversed.
She then asked them to think about whether they want money situations to drive a potential wedge between them and their friend, and whether they themselves could actually even afford to have bridesmaids.
Reflecting that 'every situation is different', Claudia continued: "If you can't pay for it, then realistically you shouldn't have bridesmaids."
A number of people wholeheartedly agreed with Claudia, with one follower commenting: "As a bridesmaid who was asked to pay for everything I wore on my body and face, yes. That was horrible. I was unemployed and it nearly killed me."
Another wrote: "I agree I feel like you should only have the number of bridesmaids you can afford. I don't want to stress anyone out financially."
Others, however, disagreed completely, with a third person arguing: "To me, you've asked your friends/family to perform a role on your day and that comes with some expectations. If that's financial, so be it. If you can't make it work, decline the role."
A fourth remarked: "As a bridesmaid, I paid and it felt right. I would've paid anyways as a guest so it made no difference for me to pay as a part of the bridal party."
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