Good lordy, SouthBound Brides, this day has gotten away from me. We're in the middle of retraining our dog, which involves lots of ignoring his adorable little face and wiggly tail, and some time consuming sheep-dog style coralling (without eye contact or commands) - for a dog lover like myself, torture. But it's all for the good... Anyway, so this afternoon when I haven't been in the middle of Manchurian Candidate-ing the pup, I've been gathering some bridesmaid inspiration of a different kind to that which we usually feature. You already know we love pretty BM dresses, but what about the BEFORE the dresses? The bridesmaid boudoir, as it were? The last while there's been a big trend to have maids in lovely little robes - from terry cloth spa style to monogram to printed silk kimono ( Plum Pretty Sugar are my FAVE). They're not everyone's cup of tea (I know some of you think they're a little cheesy), but what I love about them is that they make for GREAT photos (ones you'll actually put in your album, instead of just keep in a folder somewhere) and they also make fantastic bridesmaid gifts. Plus, they totally work for making sure that your hair and makeup don't get un-made when you pull your street clothes over your head. Of course, it's not just robes that work for this - as you'll see below, we've rounded up some other fun ideas too.

ROBES OVERSIZED SHIRTS TANK TOPS

SPORTS SHIRTS (put the number of years each BM has known the bride on the back)

Image credits (top to bottom, left to right): 1- Michelle March; 2- Jess Robertson; 3- Nicholas Wray; 4- As Sweet As Images on SBB; 5- Contagious Design + Photo via Style Me Pretty; 6- Tasha Seccombe on SBB; 7- W+E Photographie via Southern Weddings; 8- Jemma Keach/Plum Pretty Sugar via Wedding Chicks; 9- Elisa Bricker/Plum Pretty Sugar via Wedding Chicks; 10- Love is a Big Deal/Singing Slowly Bridesmaid Robes via Green Wedding Shoes; 11- Lane Dittoe/Plum Pretty Sugar via Green Wedding Shoes; 12- Zarazoo; 13- Dreampix on SBB; 14- Mi Amore Foto via Style Me Pretty; 15- via Pinterest; 16- JCCreativeWorks via Wedding Chicks; 17- Jason + Anna Photography via Style Me Pretty; 18- Studio 1208; 19- Cyn Kain Photography via Every Last Detail; 20- Taylor Rae Photography.