Emphasizing Guest Attire

Unfortunately there isn’t much you can do. I understand your concern. I was raised the same way as you and am surprised the way some people dress to attend church. Hopefully when they see semi-formal it makes them think more about their attire. Good luck

Yes unfortunately you can't tell them how to dress. I would definitely put it on your wedding website but they might not even look at it. Good luck!

I don't think I've ever seen a mention of a dress code on an invitation. Something about that just rubs me the wrong way.

This is one of those situations where you can't really do anything except hope people dress appropriately

Please don't put anything instructional of dressing on your website. I'm pretty sure they are aware that they are not the fancy type and they will know your instructions are for them. Like PP said, there's nothing you can do but accept the fact that they will wear what they want. Everyone is welcome to God's house regardless of their attire. I was also brought up to have to dress up for church but these is not a priority for everyone. For the invite, there is no need to include the attire unless it is a black tie event. But, in this case, I do think that this will be the only place that you may be able to include something regarding the dress code since it seems to be an area of concern for you. It is a stretch to add it to the invite but some people do this and goes well. Good luck!

It is inappropriate to include any dress code, other than black tie, on your invitation. If your guests' attire is so important to you, you should have chosen a venue with rules, like a country club.

You can include a dress code on your website, but detailing examples would be over the top.

You can ask your parents or other close family members to socialize the idea of the type of attire you all prefer. Ex. Have FMIL casually mention it in conversation when people ask about wedding stuff. But that's about all you can do. Ultimately people will wear whatever they want to.

As a side note, while I 100% share your view on dressing nicely for the event, you won't actually have a heart attack over anyone's attire at the church. In fact, you won't even notice it. You will have so much on your mind and be so focused on not tripping as you walk down the aisle, trying not to cry, etc., that you won't notice anyone. At least this was my experience. I can't tell you what half our guests were wearing even after spending time with them at the reception, because it was just the farthest thing from my mind that day.

Unfortunately, you can't include a dress code, unless it's a black tie event. It sucks but there's not much you can do.

It is proper etiquette on formal invites to put the attire in the lower right corner. No one may follow it, but at least you can try. It doesn't just have to be for black tie.
If you are having a website you can also put it there

I’ve seen many wedding invitations that include dress attire. I don’t think it’s rude at all

View Quoted Comment This is incorrect. The only time it is appropriate to put a dress code on an invite is for Black or White Tie.

If your church or reception venue has a separate dress code, you may address that on your wedding website. Otherwise, suck it up and treat people like adults.

You absolutely don’t include dress code on invitations unless you are hosting a black tie event. You can’t tell people how to dress and it would be so over the top to include examples on your website.

View Quoted Comment Https://www.theknot.com/content/amphtml/wedding-invitations-etiquette

View Quoted Comment Lol, that’s not an accurate source of wedding etiquette.

Please use a source that actually cares about etiquette and not about ad dollars. I recommend Miss Manners.

Personally I appreciate if there is a dress code on either an insert printed small on the invite. Now when I say this- I mean formal, semi formal, casual, black tie, etc., Honestly I've yet to read an article on dress code etiquette that says this is faux pas. I don't find it dictating your guests what to wear, but to simply let them know if its a more casual or elegant event- its nice to know.

However, I have read that it is rude to tell people exactly what color, style, or theme to wear. That is over the top.

But I mean really, I would not worry about if someone is going to show up wearing a wrinkled shirt. You should be inviting your guests because you want to spend the day with them, not because they will or won't look good for a photo. My FH had an uncle tell us that if he can't show up in jorts he wasn't going. Swear.

View Quoted Comment Black Tie is not just a dress code, it’s a specific manner of hosting. “Dress codes” are pretty well made up gobbledegook. What I think is formal, another person will think is semi-formal. What’s the difference between beach formal and beach casual, ( hint nothing, they’re made up).

It's actually not okay to specify dress code on an invitation unless you're hosting a black tie event.

Otherwise, the only time you can let your guests know they might want to dress a certain way is if there's something about your venue that would make then want to wear certain attire, and you would put a note about it on your wedding website. An example of this would be if either your ceremony or reception is going to be outdoors and guests will be walking on grass or uneven, unpaved terrain. In this scenario, you'd want to let your female guests know that flats, wedges, or sandals would be a safer option than heels due to the outdoor setting. Sometimes country clubs require men to wear a tie and or a jacket to enter the venue, so you'd want to let your male guests know that the venue requires one or both of those things. Note that in these scenarios, it is the venue requiring certain dress choices so guests will be safe and not denied entry, not the couple getting married saying they want their guests to dress a certain way because they just feel like it. One last example is that some churches require ladies to cover their shoulders to enter the sanctuary. Note, though, that this rule doesn't specify how dressy a oersonust be to enter the church, just that a woman may need to bring a sweater or wrap if they are planning to wear a strapless or sleeveless dress or top. You still can't specify how dressy a guests looks to enter your church.

I'm confused! You say that love your FH. You knew how his family dressed before you started planning the wedding. Why are you concerned now about how the guests will dressed. Those guests are his family and apart of him. If you can't accept his family for they way they are then you will have a hard time accepting him. You should be happy that his family want to celebrate this once in a lifetime event with the two of you instead of criticizing and acting like you are better then them.

On your wedding day it won't matter what your guests are wearing. My brothers didn't wear suits to my wedding, for a tiny split second I internally pouted, and then moved on. My brothers arrived on time, in good spirits, and that was good enough.

You might be able to put (no jeans) after semi-formal? Idk just a thought, trying to help GOOD LUCK