Woman Living a Real-Life27 DressesShares How She Really Feels About the 8 Gowns She's Worn (Exclusive)

Mar. 15, 2025

Emily in two bridesmaid dresses.Photo:kolonialwoman/TikTok

kolonialwoman/TikTok

A newlywed is looking back at a special period in her life.

From November 2020 to November 2024, Emily — on TikTok @kolonialwoman— served as a bridesmaid in several of her friends' weddings. November 2024 was the last of them — her own — and she honored the milestone with a walk down memory lane.

“I wanted to make this video as a kind of love letter to my bridesmaids, because I’ve held on to those dresses for so long. I definitely did not expect it to get the response that it did,” Emily tells PEOPLE.

“The order they’re in from the video is the chronological order of how I wore them,” she explains. “The first one I wore for my friend Natalie’s wedding, and so on.”

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The collection of dresses, which Emily jokes is her own personal27 Dressesexperience, features frocks of all different styles.

“The27 Dressesthing has been a running joke because I’ve been in all of these weddings in the time since November 2020. My wedding was chronologically the last one. I got married in November 2024, so I wore all these dresses in just under four years,” Emily says.

“I have a special place in my heart for the ones that I got to pick out. I really think it’s cool when brides let their bridesmaids pick out what would suit them best or gives a nod to their style. I’m all about being able to re-wear stuff again. I think that makes it a bit easier. I think that’s becoming kind of a trend recently,” she shares.

Of the dresses, Emily says, “I think all my friends have great tastes, and the coolest part about it is that all of those really kind of describe their personalities and their individual taste. When I look at the bridesmaid dresses, it just makes me think of whichever one of my friends' weddings it was. I think now people realize that your bridesmaid dresses can really enhance your wedding when they’re beautiful.”

Emily in her wedding gown.kolonialwoman/TikTok

At her own wedding — for which she wore the floral gown above — Emily did the same. “I let my bridesmaids pick out their own dresses. I went with dark green, from an olive to an emerald. They did a phenomenal job. They all picked different things that suited them really well. I hope all of my bridesmaids picked things they would like to wear again. I think it turned out beautiful. I loved it.”

“Many people were saying how lucky I was to have all these beautiful dresses. I really consider myself lucky because of the original narrative around bridesmaid’s dresses — that they’re supposed to make the bridesmaids look ‘uglier’ to build up the bride. I think I did luck out,” she says.

Emily in one of the bridesmaid dresses.kolonialwoman/TikTok

Emily is also happy to see that the video is opening up the world of weddings for people who aren’t in the trenches of it.

Emily concludes of being a bridesmaid, “It is a lot of work, but I always think it’s worth it. My friends are worth it to me. So a lot of people complain about what it takes, but it’s worth it to me.”

source: people.com