While trying to be the world's most easy-going bride, you told your bridesmaids to choose any style of dress in their choice of a blue color, wear their hair however they'd like, that you have no preference on open-toed shoes vs. closed-toe shoes, and so on. You want to be the Dream Bride, the opposite of a control freak micro-manager, and your bridesmaids will LOVE you, right? Not always.

Bridesmaids say they want at least a little bit of guidance from you, since they don't want the pressure of choosing the gown and shoes, and they don't want to take a fun task away from you! "We want to make our own choices, but we want to make them from a list of three options the bride loves," say several bridesmaids and maids of honor who don't want all the freedom they've been given.

"It's not my wedding. I shouldn't be making these choices for everyone!"

"What if we choose the pink dress and the bride changes her mind later when things get more stressful? She's all calm and happy now, but what happens if she gets bossed around too much and then gives *me* a hard time about making this decision?"

"The bridesmaids are calling ME a control freak, when the bride told me to make the decision for the group. I don't like this at all!"

As the bride, you're in charge. So change your well-meaning plans a little bit. Invite everyone to make their own choices in as many categories as you'd like, but tell them first what your top 3 preferences are. THEN you'll be the Dream Bride, and they'll thank you for taking the pressure off of them.