Yikes.

It could be your best childhood friend, a distant cousin or your brother's dose of a fiancée but the fact remains - being someone's bridesmaid is a big undertaking. It's lovely to be asked, obviously, but not everyone realises how much is involved. You're under pressure to make sure that everything from the wedding planning process to the big day itself goes smoothly, plus there's the small matter of how fecking expensive it can be. Now a new survey has shown that the average bridesmaid in Ireland spends €500 in their role. With most couples covering the cost of dresses, accessories, hair and makeup and sometimes even accommodation, this figure is what most bridesmaids are spending on extras like extravagant hen parties. Researchers for TheVow.ie asked 180 women who had been a bridesmaid at an Irish wedding about what the whole thing cost them. They found that 24 per cent of bridesmaids put their spend at between €500 and €800 while 17 per cent say they spent over €1,000 on the occasion. These results reflect the idea that when it comes to weddings in Ireland, the boom is most definitely back. Another survey earlier this year found that the average cost of an Irish wedding is now €26,015, up from €24,427 last year.