Suggested guest colors

I'm not sure if you can tell people not to wear black unfortunately. It's a really popular color.

View Quoted Comment For sure! I just thought maybe people wouldn't want to look like they are in the wedding so they might pick something else if they have it.

"On my website could I recommend guests not wear "bridal party" colors"

I think it's fine to say that on your website, but that's as far as I would take it. I would try really hard not to worry about/get upset if someone shows up in black. Like Tiger Bride said, that's a very common evening wear color and guests in black will only negatively impact your wedding experience if you let it.

This probably isn’t helpful, but if you said don’t wear “bridal party colors,” I would assume you meant like pastel or jewel tones. I would never consider that you mean black. Fortunately, most people kind of assume white and black are both off limits for a traditional wedding. Unless you are having a formal wedding, in which case black would be my go-to as it feels more sophisticated.

View Quoted Comment I would probably say something like please avoid black, burgundy, and gold as these are our bridal party colors. It's semi formal so I'm definitely not expecting black suits and gowns from people.

I think it’s pretty impossible to have all of your guests avoid wearing black. I mean, men don’t have many options to choose from. I just wouldn’t say anything. This is kind of a risk you take when you choose to wear a super popular color for your wedding dress. It’s not like guests are going to be confused about who the bride is.

Say that the bride will be dressed in black. Most women who read that will avoid it, unless they just don't think it matters. In which case saying in a less polite way Please don't wear black would not change things, but would offend others. So keep to the positive, what you will wear. If you say formal, you will get a huge number of men in black tuxes, and lack suits, which are the most dressy suits. If you say semi-formal , many more will wear blues and greys. If your hope is not to be just one in a sea of black, lightening the men's pool will help. Especially if you start at or before 5pm, when black and after 6 formality kicks in.

You don't say a word, period. You trust guests to dress themselves or don't invite them. It is highly rude to suggest/dictate any clothing other than extremely formal as required for entry to the venue.

Weddings are semi formal by default. That means Sunday Best attire. Those who do not know will consult older female relatives who are accustomed to how weddings are typically done.

View Quoted Comment Wow thanks for calling me rude. It was just a question. I already said it wouldn't be the end of the world if people did wear the colors.

If you'd rather people avoid black, I'd say disclose that you're wearing black.


Bear in mind that many women would have defaulted to a little black dress and many men wear black.

View Quoted Comment

I didn't mean you specifically were rude because you didn't know that's it is not a polite thing. Some people do whatever they want and don't care but most will not look kindly on the couple mentioning any dress code or colors to wear/avoid because because it is considered bad manners to do so.

View Quoted Comment Oh okay. Well we have a very young guest list so I thought it might be helpful. I didn't think it would offend people. They can wear whatever they want of course

View Quoted Comment

Most will wear whatever they like (sundresses or similar) and some may ask you (doesn't happen often) and you would just say 'wear anything you like' and leave it at that. It will all work out.

I would spread by word of mouth that the bride will be in black. It feels less rude than putting it on your website.

If you don't want to tell people you are wearing black, I think its fine to ask that people avoid your wedding colors of black, burgundy, and gold. I wouldn't put it on your invitations but think it would be fine on your website.

Black is a popular color but I think most people can find something that isn't black in their wardrobe that would be wedding appropriate, especially if you are having a semi-formal event which is a bit more flexible. If you were having a black tie or formal wedding and expecting people to avoid black I think that might be asking a lot. Also, its not like you are going to make a fuss if people show up in black or turn people away for wearing the wrong colors, so making a request and then going with the flow seems completely fine and not at all rude to me.

I always find it weird how as a guest its a faux pas to show up in the wedding colors but somehow also not appropriate for couples to advertise what their wedding colors are and tell people to avoid them. Instead we consider it socially acceptable for couples to subtly hint at their colors through their wedding stationary, forcing couples to narrow all the decor in their weddings into an incredibly narrow and matchy-matchy color spectrum, and then hope guests figure it out. I know I'm going against the grain here, but I think it makes a lot more sense to make your colors known. Whether you want to openly tell guests to avoid those colors or hope they choose to do so on their own is up to you.