Dress code

Just semi formal for me. Havent really thought about how to word it.

We are having a theme wedding on Halloween weekend so our attire said “flapper and dapper or cocktail attire if you prefer”. The response has been amazing. People are really excited about dressing for the Harlem Renaissance theme. Like...more excited than I am! Everyone wants to talk about their outfits every time i see them. Lol

If people can't figure out what to wear to my wedding given the fact that it is a church wedding ceremony then giving them a vague dress code isn't going to help either. As long as our immediate families are dressed appropriately then I don't really care what anyone else wears. And it could be 5 degrees and snowing so I won't require people to be in black tie attire.

View Quoted Comment That’s awesome that you feel that way! Luckily it won’t be cold or snowing- so we won’t have to worry about that.

This is what I wrote on my wedding website on the FAQ section:

What should I wear? We hope our wedding will be a fun excuse to wear your favorite semi-formal and cocktail attire!
Suit and tie, Dress shirt and tie. Cocktail dress, Dressy top and skirt/slacks.

Hope this helps. Also, don't let other people's comments about listing the attire info on your wedding site deter you from doing so. It's your wedding NOT theirs.

View Quoted Comment That's my fear for a wedding I'm going to this Friday. The couple doesn't have attire on website or invite. But it's 6PM and the venue looks expensivish so I opted for a more formal dress to wear. Fingers crossed.

I included suggested dress code in the FAQ section of our website. But I'm pretty sure people won't read it and just show up however lol.

Absolutely I included a dress code. I made it fun, though:

"10. What should I wear?

We hope our wedding will be a fun excuse to dress up and wear your favorite cocktail attire. That means no camo (I’m talking to you, Uncle Jimmy!) "

I've always found this very helpful, especially if you are traveling from out of town and don't know the bride/groom very well (if you are a +1). It's less stressful to know what the dress code is IMO.

We put the dress code in the FAQ section of our website

View Quoted Comment

Great idea to put it in context like that!

As a guest, I need some clue how you want me to dress. I don't know what your venue is, I don't know how fancy it's supposed to be. I want directions.

"Cocktail attire". We're having a 2 PM ceremony, but in a fancy ballroom. It means no jeans, but don't come in a tux. We have it on our website and on our invitations. An uncle of mine was completely miffed when I asked him not to wear jeans to our event, but in my head, it's completely inappropriate attire for a wedding that's not in a park or in a barn, and even then.

I put it in the FAQ page. What should I wear? I think it's outdated to not specify a dress code. Whenever I am invited to a wedding its one of the first things I think about - how dressed up should I be?

No. Weddings are semiformal by default. Also known as Sunday Best. It is impolite to suggest or dictate dress code unless the venue requires super fancy Oscar-worthy clothing for entry, which very few do. Your guests are not photo props.