How to Be the Best-Dressed Wedding Guest_ EP 84

OMG! Did you know that there is a 2-year backlog of weddings after the COVID pandemic? This means that you will be invited to 400% more weddings this year. WHAT?? Welcome to the “Wedding Boom,” y’all!

Whether it’s a black-tie event or a fun backyard family get-together, Holly is here to keep you from panicking by telling you exactly “How to be the best-dressed wedding guest!”

Get the new episode here now: https://apple.co/2XXKHfC

If you need to know what to wear and how to wear it, believe us, you came to the right place. This week we cover traditional and non-traditional wedding attire, how much you should be spending, and how to create a killer outfit from your existing wardrobe.

Your favorite stylist, Holly Katz, dishes out a bunch of different scenarios of wedding events: time of day, dress codes and outfit ideas.

Let's be honest, it would be great if we could all wear something that we already have in our wardrobe. If you have a ton of to choose from in your own closet, Holly will always recommend that you start there. Always, Always!

Event Number One: Cocktail Attire

The 6 p.m. wedding with dinner and dancing, and the dress code says “Cocktail Attire.”

Is that black-tie? No.

So let's start with the dress code. Cocktail dress code means nighttime, dressy dress, something that you would not wear during the day. And this is where it gets a little confusing, we are not gonna lie.

Can you wear sequins? Yes. Can you wear sequins during the day? If you're Holly? Yes. Can you wear said sequins for a cocktail wedding and make it a nighttime look? Absolutely.

It's all in how you style it. There are some very clear examples on Holly’s Pinterest board of amazing dresses, and even a couple pictures of Holly as well, of course, for your viewing pleasure.

Can you wear a long dress? Yes.

Can you wear an evening dress? Yes.

Can you wear a daytime dress or a casual sundress? No.

You need to aim to look dressier than you would look during the day. This is very important for people who don't have a dressy lifestyle, or who don't have a wide variety of dresses in their wardrobe.

Final note on Cocktail Attire:

The key is to look special. Get something that makes the evening dressier than you would normally dress. It could be fabulous shoes and evening bag, or just your jewelry that can be bigger and flashier and fancier than normal.

Insider Stylist Tip:

Shop for fit, not for price. We know that price needs to be consideration, however, you need to be shopping for fit first.

Holly calls this little formula “Shopping forward vs. Shopping backward.” This is actually in her corporate styling presentation.

When you shop backward, the fashion crime is when you strictly shop for color or price. This is the ultimate way to do yourself a huge fashion disservice.

Translation: don’t buy shit because it's on sale, thinking you'll find somewhere to wear it one day. That's how you end up with clothes in your closet with tags on them. Don’t shop without a plan or shop aimlessly spending money on things that are not right for you.

That is shopping backward. You don't need this fashion crime!

When you shop with a purpose, when you know your body type and you buy something because it fits really well: that is shopping forward.

Event Number Two: the 4:00 PM Outdoor Wedding

This is one of the hardest time slots to decide what to wear. When in doubt, be on the more dressy side.

How long does the four o'clock wedding go? Until sundown? That would be beautiful!

Until 10 PM? Then is it a sit-down dinner? It may not technically be dinner, but may be heavy hors d'oeuvres?

So, you have cocktails, you may or may not have seating, and you may be standing on your feet for a long time. Consider your shoe choice and the temperature after the sun goes down.

Any-who, there will be people who are just as dressed up as you, and some that are much more casual. Who is right here? Holly thinks it can honestly be interpreted either way. But again, she recommends being dressier than not.

Dress brands Holly mentions in this episode and recommends:

Intermix

Milly

alice and olivia

Chiara Boni

La Ligne

Adrianna Papell