So, if you had to dress your mother for a wedding, how would you do it ?

[CMOTdibbler]

Bit of pre panicking here.. My brother is getting married next year. His fiances family are close and rather posher than mine, so it'll be a reasonably smart wedding.

My parents are a) rather eccentric, b) not in good health and c) not social.

My dads idea of dressing up is putting on a jumper that hasn't come from a jumble sale. But I can measure him, buy him a suit, and just make him put it on.

My mother is more of a problem. She has early dementia and so is a bit cranky and irrational. She will only wear what she feels like. There is no way I will be able to get her into a shop to choose anything without a major risk of her being offensive to the staff.

Do you think that if I found a nice shop, showed them her photos, gave her sizes etc that they'd be able to find an outfit that won't embarass SIL to be ?

Will I be best with a boutique, or can personal shopper services do that ? And where does the stylish 65 year old shop ?

The thought of just getting them to behave for the length of a wedding is bad enough, so getting this aspect sorted out in my mind would be great

Oh. TBH I don't think anyone will mind what they wear as long as it isn't mismatching/old/smelly. SIL must know what they are like?

I used to find clothes for my mum that I thought she would like by going to Marks and Spencer and choosing and then taking them home to her. Mind you, this does pre-suppose that you can get what you want from M and S. Autograph might just conceivably have some suitable stuff.

I had a very good idea of her size (if it fitted me it would probably fit her) and she admired my taste.

The great thing was that M and S do returns very well, so that you can always take em back very easily, and you can get more than one size in an item to try if that would help.

SIL has met them twice, so I think she has an impression, but I'm not sure that she knows that she has seen them as tidy as they get. I've only met her once - brother and I aren't close, and he isn't close to my parents either

Left to themselves it will be old and mismatched tbh.

I don't think SIL to be is a bridezilla at all, but would hate for all her family to be looking at my parents and mentally tutting. Behaviour can be forgotten, but the photos stay forever as a reminder

What size approx is she?

She's a 16-18, 5'9, not very norky (I think a D), large rib cage, not much of a waist.

Very pale skin, and white/grey hair

Ann Harvey if she is 16+

jacques vert bit more expensive but a lot of sale stuff just now

catalouge ambrose wilson type stuff?

My Mum is similar colouring to yours (but shorter) She bought a lovely weding outfit from East, a long coat type thing, quite light, wide legged trews and a boxy short sleeved round neck blouse. Dead comfy, and she wore ome lovely beads with it.

Try ebay? Search for mother of the bride and the size and you'll see lots of good optoins. Lilac / pale blue? Heaps there...

I like the Ann Harvey. Shift dresses prob won't work as she has a back problem and is quite bent over - this may be fixed by the wedding, but I don't know (depends on whether the surgery works this time)

Once I know what sort of colours SILtobe is going for, I'll get something that tones as mum looks best in strong colours rather than pastels - she won't wear makeup, so it really has to go with her natural colours iyswim

Thanks for the help - its one of those things that is stressing me !

you can get the ann harvey jacket with black wide leg trousers and blouse type thing? Its probably a good time to buy as a lot of the summer wedding stuff will be on sale.

is ann harvey only online or are there shops?

Thing with M&s is they take things back easily. Do you think she'd wear what you bought her?