AAWP’s Weekly Words of Wedding Wisdom™

Dress Codes, Weddings and YOU!

Copyright 2009 Deborah McCoy, all rights reserved.

We at AAWP know that many of you will be going to a wedding this year-maybe even your own. But whether you’re a family member or a guest, there’s something about the way Americans dress to attend weddings that troubles us.

We frequent a lot of weddings and get the shakes when we think of the DUDS we’ve seen at these sacred occasions. We’ve been to fantastic semi-formal ceremonies held in the morning or late afternoon, in church, no less-where female guests come in shorts or slacks, and gentlemen come in khakis.

We know that many people don’t dress to go to church any longer, just like they don’t dress to see a Broadway show, which is a result of our laid-back society. but a wedding is a different cup of tea.

A wedding is one of the most important days in the life of a couple. In some religions, like Catholicism, a wedding ceremony is a sacrament, meaning that God is in attendance. Just think about that. If God is at the wedding, what’s he going to think about you, if you’re dressed in khakis or shorts? :=)

On the flip side of the coin, we’ve attended afternoon weddings in church or at a hotel or catering facility, where the female family members of the bride and groom were dressed in long, slinky, beaded gowns in the middle of the afternoon-the gentleman in tuxes. They looked like they should be going to a casino in Vegas instead of a wedding ceremony.

The rules are this:

* If you’re a guest, and you’re invited to a wedding in the middle of the day, men should wear business suits, dark in winter, light in summer. The women should wear beautiful suits or dresses, cut to the knee or below, with very little glitz. If the wedding is held in temple or church, the attire should not be flashy or provocative.

* If a formal or semi-formal reception is held hours after the wedding ceremony ends, in the evening, for example, guests (if able) are required to change into flashier evening attire, which may include cocktail or long dresses for women and tuxes and business suits for men, respectively.

* If invited to a semi-formal evening affair, men wear business suits; women short or mid-calf cocktail dresses, dressy pants’ attire, etc.

* Formal weddings, held in the evening, are a different story. These “black tie” affairs require guests to wear to come formally dressed. Women wear fancy long, or short, or mid-calf gowns. Men wear tuxes, no exceptions (they may also wear white dinner jackets in summer of tropical climates)!

These rules also hold true for the family members of the bride and groom!

Moral of the Story: When it comes to a wedding, dress appropriately and make everyone proud of you-even the Lord above!