Paging Celia: Officiant asked me what she should wear

Change your title to "Paging Celia".

Celia will know what you should do!

Why would an officiant ask you what she should wear? Does she have experience? She should have the issue of wardrobe settled.

I hope Celia weighs in, but my opinion is that the officiant should wear a respectable black outfit or a cleric's robe (I've seen them in black or white, and with sashes containing symbols that are totally inclusive, and I've seen them in robes that are clearly denominational or religious).

Would I ask an officiant to wear a street outfit that matches the wedding colors? No, I wouldn't. I might ask him/her what she typically wears, and if he/she said a robe, I'd be very happy -- whether I was getting married at a fancy venue, in a bar, on a mountain top, or in a backyard. The robe means something to me -- it speaks of a position without which the wedding would not be taking place -- and when an individual has that much authority over an event, I think they should stand out and not look like everyone else. I would want that designation to be clear.

My officiant asked me the same question. She has three types she normally wears and I loved that I had a choice. I wouldn't go with a dress simply because what if it is something that you don't like.

Definitely add "paging Celia" to your title as Kathleen suggested. Our officiant is wearing a suit rather than the robes.

Wait am I missing something what does celia have to do with this?

Celia is an officiant. She can weigh in on what she usually wears

Our officiant asked the same thing!

Celia is an officiant who has done over 1,000 weddings. She's a fabulous writer, a deep thinker, and a great speaker (she's on youtube). She's worked with the gurus of weddings. She has earned the respect she's given. That's why people page Celia when the issue is officiants (or venues in NJ. She's a walking file cabinet).

I agree to see if Celia chimes in, but if you don't want the robes, I wouldn't ask her to match the wedding colors. I'd suggest a black dress/suit. I would think it strange if the officiant was wearing the same colors as the bridal party (unless they were also in black).

I personally hate the robes cause they look like a judge or worse, a HS graduate.

I prefer solid color and professional. Darker tones for fall winter and lighter tones for spring summer.

But these are all personal preferences and, as an adult who has done these before, I assume the officiant knows how to get dressed without much prompting lol

My officiant asked me the same question and I was glad he did because we are not having a formal wedding and my FH is wearing a suit and my officiant said he wanted to know if he should wear a tux, a robe, or a suit. I said a suit so he was not more dressed up than we were.

Thanks everyone. I was hoping Celia would comment but didn't think to add that in the title so I've updated it. From the feedback, I'm thinking about asking her to wear a dark grey or black outfit. As I mentioned in my post, she did tell me what she normally wears: a black robe or sometimes a dress, as requested by the couple. Thanks again!

Mine asked as well, said she would either wear her robes, or a black pantsuit with the stole, or just the pantsuit.

That's interesting. Our officiant was a woman and wore a nice suit.

Our officiant says he has robes but he has also worn a suit for many weddings and its completely up to us as to which we prefer.

I don't find it weird our officiate (male) asked us as well. We are going with formal robes

I wish our officiant had asked us. I honestly did not even think about it. We would have wanted him in a simple suit, since we told him it was going to be a secular ceremony. Instead he wore robes that looked very religious and it ended up causing a lot of family drama.

I always defer to my wedding couples on what I should wear. The key is to look professional without upstaging the bride and groom. My wedding couples are the center of attention, not me. I never try to match the wedding party as I am not in the wedding party. My couples get a choice of dark suit, grey suit or black robe unless they request something else.