When is the best time to buy BM dresses?

My wedding's not until Sept'08 but I'm already looking at BM dresses and want to get them before the end of the holidays because there's a wider variety of dresses right now. My dilemma is, should I buy them now or after the holidays because aren't there usually sales after the holiday season is over? or does that not apply to BM dresses? Does anyone know of can offer a tip? Much appreciated...

If you are to buy the dresses now, I would suggest you take into consideration some "room for alteration" in the dresses. My wedding is in Aug'08 (well, Aug 31, so close to yours!), and we just found out one of my bridesmaids is expecting a baby in May! I'm having dresses made in the Philippines this January, and I know it's something I'm going to have to think about since my girls are all over the world. Just a thought!

Are there big sales when it comes to bridesmaids dresses? The ones I like are from Nordstrom, and last time they were on the website, they quickly ran out of stock. So even though my wedding isn't until July 08, I'm having the girls order them soon. And if there is a sale, hopefully they can return them and order another one.

You can find sales on Ann Taylor and JCrew, but if it's made to order they don't usually go on sale. You can also get a good deal if a wedding store is going out of business, but that is more rare.