What should guests wear to a wedding

Finally, do remember to wear appropriate accessories. Women can certainly carry a small or medium sized handbag, but should avoid lugging large totes unless they have small children to tend. Men, do leave caps and hats at home. Do wear a watch if you have trouble keeping track of what time the wedding begins. Of course, do wear comfortable shoes to avoid foot and leg pain at the end of the day.

Even though you should dress in flattering and comfortable styles, it can be hard not to take the concepts too far.

Check that the outfit you plan to wear avoids these common guest attire mishaps:. A good way to figure out what a guest should not wear to a wedding is to think about what you would not wear to other formal functions in your life.

For example, if you would not wear the outfit to church , don't wear it to a wedding, either. Wearing colors you like and that flatter you is something all guests should do. However, there are a few colors that are questionable when it comes to guest wedding attire. The most obvious color is plain white. A plain white dress or white top and skirt are not generally acceptable, particularly in any formal style. Avoid ivory, off-white and light beige, too. However, it is okay to wear a patterned outfit that includes other colors along with white.

Wedding colors are not necessarily off-limits, either. Women should take care that they are not wearing a dress that could double as a bridesmaid dress, while men should avoid a colored vest or cummerbund in the wedding colors.

However, a jersey wrap dress in the wedding colors is perfectly fine for female guests to wear, as is a button down shirt and matching striped tie for the men. Tradition states that guests should not wear black to a wedding. However, black is quickly becoming a very popular wedding color option. It is no longer off-limits for bridal parties or guests to make black their color of choice. Unless you know the bride or groom has strong feelings about black attire, feel free to choose an appropriate black ensemble to wear to a formal evening wedding.

Skip wearing black for a casual outdoor spring or summer wedding , as it may look out of place, not to mention attract more heat. The best way to avoid wearing something you shouldn't is to dress a little nicer than you originally planned.

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Mother of the Bride Dresses. Flower Girl Dresses. Engagement Rings Engagement Rings. Wedding Rings. Wedding Jewelry. Wedding Accessories. This designation is a bit of a contradiction but if you combine elements that are a little bit dressy with casual you should be just fine.

For instance, a cotton dress in a formal cut will work, or a chiffon dress made in a casual style would also be fine. Overall, I take this dressing designation to mean more festive, elegant attire.

Casual fabrics like cotton or knits are acceptable here if the overall style of dress is correct. The time of day and venue again will be a good guide here. Make it dressy with more accessories and a simple dress. A semi-formal dress is an evening style of dress with formal fabrics like a satin, chiffon, silk, and a bit of beading. A rich fabric like velvet or velveteen in the winter months would also be very nice. Generally, the dress length would be cocktail length—in other words, just above, or at the knee; or a little longer.

A tea-length, midi length, or a longer, ankle-skimming hemline—like a maxi dress would also be perfect, as long as it is not an overly formal silhouette or material--save those ball gown style dresses for the fully formal wedding invites you receive! Black tie optional dress code, is formal but with the option of black tie. I would assume that the wedding party will be wearing tuxedos and formal attire, but the guests need not exactly meet that level of formality.

For the women, a dressy cocktail dress, jumpsuit or sleek pantsuit, or a long formal dress or long skirt and top is appropriate for black-tie optional attire. You can see more details below in Black Tie required. For male guests, you have easy access to a tuxedo, by all means, wear black tie.

However, there will be probably many other men in a dark suit and dark tie or bow tie and these gentlemen will look just as elegant and appropriate as the dapper tuxedo-wearing folks. Find a Black Tie Optional look or Find a black tie optional wedding guest dress.

Formal attire, to me, is nearly the same as black tie optional, but I also think this implies slightly less pressure for the men to wear a tuxedo. A dark navy or black suit, and crisp white shirt, with a dark, or neutral tie is appropriate here. Look at Formal Styling ideas or find a formal dress for a wedding ,. Women should wear an elegant cocktail dress or full-length dress, and beautiful real jewelry or costume jewelry. Sparkling accessories are encouraged for formal events! This one clears up any ambiguity for the men.

In this case, a tuxedo in a dark color is in order with the other elements: either vest, or cummerbund, or suspenders, and appropriate bow tie or tie. In some cases, a well-cut black suit and black tie will do!

Women should generally wear a full-length gown for black tie dress codes, but those rules are changing. Many styles of types of mid-length, cocktail, or tiered skirt length are usually appropriate if the material, cut, or embellishment is highly formal. A long or ball gown style skirt paired with a dressy top is also a great look. If dresses aren't your thing, a formal pantsuit or women's style tuxedo or formal jumpsuit is also appropriate, especially if a skirt or gown isn't part of your personal style.

If you know it's a very formal event, to be truly correct, full-length is the standard. This is the most formal type of wedding, so you should adhere to the rules on this one. I had to consult Emily Post again on this since these types of weddings are rare in my life.

Women should wear a floor-length, formal evening gown No knee-length dresses here! Men should wear a tailcoat with a white vest, white shirt, and tie with white gloves gray is an acceptable choice as well , and fine black shoes without laces. Find a White Tie Look. If the wedding party will be wearing some sort of cultural dress that is not your own culture--for instance, kilts or saris you could wear something that might compliment those other guests styles, as long as you are sure you are not appropriating cultural dress.

For instance, if you know the groomsmen will be wearing kilts, perhaps wearing a tie with a bit of plaid is a way to join in, without upstaging the attire of wedding party or misappropriating cultural dress. I'm eager to hear first-hand stories on cultural dress, so if anyone has experience here, please let me know. If the invitation is vague, and there's no wedding website, getting more information on what to wear can also be gleaned from the wedding party.

They are likely to know the attire in advance. I would avoid asking couple getting married about the dress code unless you are already in frequent communication.

Please especially don't ask the couple for details within a few days of the wedding. The couple have so much going on already! One of the roles of the wedding party is to support and attend to other details --like assisting guests with questions like this!

If you know a member of the wedding party, ask them about the dress code. Attending the showers, bachelorette parties, are good avenues for getting in touch with the bridal party. Asking someone in the wedding party about what to wear, also help to ensure you pick a dress that is complementary to the wedding theme.