Bridesmaid left ‘shocked’ by bride’s hyper-strict wedding rules and demand for $5k: ‘At first I thought it was a joke’

Take an otherwise normal woman, load her up with enormous societal expectations, slap on a once-in-a-lifetime level of peer pressure, and let pop culture teach her that her wedding has to be absolutely perfect, and you have a recipe for the dreaded “bridezilla”.

For example, take this tale reported from a “local mums’ lounge” on Reddit (so, as always, take things with a pinch of salt), a bridesmaid allegedly received a very precise list of requirements that left her wondering if the bride (her cousin) was “actually serious”.

In a document they posted headed “Bridal Party Rules”, the unnamed bride lays down the law, telling bridesmaids, “to help create the wedding day the bride has always dreamed of, please read and respect the following expectations”.

“I genuinely can’t believe some of these expectations are real”

As per the document, these include being banned from eating from 7 am on the wedding day until the celebrations have finished, not drinking any alcohol on the wedding night, not dancing during the reception, plus ones only permitted if they’re husbands or fiances, no children (and don’t even ask if you can bring them), no visible tattoos, and hair color can only be brown or black.

On top of all that was the “Bridal Party Contribution”:

“A contribution of £5,000 will be required from each bridal party member. This covers your bridal party requirements, including your dress, shoes, hair and makeup.”

The bridesmaid says, “At first I thought it was a joke, because I genuinely can’t believe some of these expectations are real.” She says she wants to be there to support the bride, not to sign up for a “strict contract with rules to take away the fun and excitement of the day”. She concludes, “a wedding is meant to be a celebration, not something where everyone is worried about breaking rules or doing the wrong thing.

But the bride might not always be overreacting: take one who says she “went ballistic” at a bridal boutique after discovering mysterious make-up stains on her wedding dress.

Responses agreed, with comments pointing out that not being allowed to eat for an entire day is “unacceptable”, that “I am not paying 5k to be in someone else’s wedding!”, and wondering what the bridesmaids are supposed to do if they’re not allowed to eat, drink or dance?

That said, weddings should have some at least some sense of decorum. For example, a wedding in Wisconsin ended with two people shot in front of the bride after a dispute over someone eating meatballs with their hands turned violent.