On Wedding Guest Attire

One of my few regrets concerning my 20s is that I didn’t make the most of my opportunities to attend weddings. I used to hate weddings and, if a defence is needed, I will say that I was a perpetually single person for much of that decade. Going to events where you’re alone, don’t know many people, and could feasibly get stuck with not-great tablemates is stressful, especially for introverts. Turns out, attending weddings in your 30s with a partner is a different ballgame. One, I have a newfound appreciation for a free fancy meal and a kid-free evening. Two, a partner is a built-in entertainment system. Three, in your 30s, pretty much the only people who still invite you to their weddings are relatives or close friends so weddings are like fun reunions. The downside is that weddings are now few and far between on my social calendar. Any time they come up, it’s a big deal.

Care to guess what I did last week?

That’s right: it was WEDDING TIME!

The bride is someone I’ve known since I was 15, so this was a very special occasion … but since this isn’t that kind of blog, let’s talk about clothes instead. You’re not surprised to hear that I gave a lot of thought to what I would wear. I have a decent line-up of special occasion dresses and not many special occasions to spare, so the selection process is always a tough one. Recency of acquisition often is a key deciding factor; this summer, I thrifted a lace Tadashi Shoji cocktail dress that, naturally, became the front-runner.

It’s a very nice dress, eminently wedding-appropriate:

But I wasn’t 100% feeling it. First, it’s a smidge looser around the waist than I’d like (this will come in handy at some future date, I’m sure). Second, I wore a similar silhouette 2 (3?) years ago at the last wedding I attended, and I felt in the mood for something different. There was this Tracy Reese dress I thrifted a few years ago and still haven’t had a chance to wear:

Also very nice, a little less classic and more flirty, but still occasion-appropriate. The main caveat is that it felt better suited to a summer wedding than a mid-November wedding.

Let me pause here to say that, Edmonton weather being what it is, I don’t pay a lot of attention to the climate when I decide what to wear to special occasions (unless they happen to take place outside, which is rare). Going to and from the event is not the time to be glamorous, everyone knows that; the trick is to get rid of your parka, boots and other winter accoutrements are quickly as possible, and walk into the venue looking like you simply teleported straight from your house.

After some more digging around my overflow closet, I remember another thing I thrifted some time ago: a vintage, floor-length, fully-beaded skirt. It is a “look” but one that struck me as full of potential. The tricky part was figuring out what to pair it with – something that looked evening-appropriate but not dated. I nixed a black satin camisole on the latter grounds (too much of a 90s feel) and a jewel-collar cotton shirt on the former (too business casual). I was going to resort to the safe bet – a black cashmere turtleneck – when I had a stroke of inspiration.

A leather crop top, why not? I’ve worn this Zara top for so many other occasions (including work) that it’s pretty much its own wardrobe category at this point. In this case, I think it adds a bit of edge to this classic, vintage skirt and also creates a cool, modern silhouette.

The other nice thing about this outfit was that, due to the skirt length, I had to go with a pair of low heeled shoes. I am always tempted to bring out my sadly neglected Louboutins for “fancy” occasions, but the truth is that they’re not particularly comfortable and it’s a bit of a chore to commit to them, especially when there’s dancing involved; here, the decision was made for me and while I wish I had a dressier pair of low heels, these Cole Haans worked just fine.