S2 – European Wedding Attire, originally uploaded by academichic.Endnotes:
Allow me to introduce you to S2, my oldest childhood friend and one of my most favorite people in the world. I’ve known S2 since she was born and I was two year old and our parents brought us together to play. We were attached at the hip through out our childhood and many summers of our young adult life.
As luck would have it, S2 happened to be offered a position in Germany for the exact year that I came here for my research year abroad. So if you’ve been wondering who’s been taking my great “street style” photos here, now you know who has been behind the camera all this time.
I figured that she’s spent enough time behind the lens and asked her to please get in front of it for a guest post. Like A., S2 also spent this past weekend attending a formal wedding and she obliged and documented her wedding attire for me. S2 has a fabulous sense of style and of course did not disappoint. I love the black and white color scheme and how the detailing of the bow around the lacey mid-section is picked back up in the bows of the shoes. The black and white swirl cuff similarly echoes the swirls of the lace embellishment. Black and white is such a timeless and elegant combination, it’s no wonder White House Black Market has built a whole business concept around it. Now if I could just get my hands on that dress…
Look for S2 in more future posts in which she will be “guest lecturing”! S.
Wow, your friend is just as gorgeous as you are – stunning hair and eyes! I love the lace and ribbon midsection. Beautiful.
The dress is gorgeous, but wow, I can’t imagine wearing white to a wedding as a guest! Is it less of a faux pas in Europe than it would be in the U.S.?
S2 looks great. And her outfit is totally wedding appropriate… unless the bride has a problem with hot people.
Beautiful. What a great statement belt.
And Megan S.- this doesn’t look like white to me. More of a light tan or gold. Especially with the jacket, looks totally appropriate.
S posted it was a black/white ensemble. It is a stylish combo, but I personally would not wear a white dress to a wedding.
Looking forward to future photos!
I love this dress! She wears it well, and it is a classic style.
Why can’t you wear white at someone’s wedding. S2 looks great! Any bride who cares what her guests are wearing is a Bridezilla. Lets break the chains of the wedding industry, besides why can men wear white tuxedos?
She is very beautiful and from what you say both inside and out. I am sur eyou will have a fantastic year to look back on.
What a knockout! That lacy belted detail is sheer brilliance – well played, S2.
She looks stunning… but white at a wedding? Isn’t it one of the biggest NO! in the world?
The dress is actually off-white/golden, I got it wrong. But even if it were white, I don’t see it as a problem, especially when the dress looks nothing like a wedding gown. S.
But even if it were white, I don’t see it as a problem, especially when the dress looks nothing like a wedding gown.
You may not see it as a problem, but it’s not up to you, is it? The question is whether the bride would feel upstaged or whether other guests might make an embarrassing mistake. In Europe, just as in the US, it is not generally acceptable to wear white dresses to a wedding unless, you know, you are the one getting married. Nor is it generally acceptable to wear black to a wedding – this is often taken as a sign of disapproval of the marriage. So, however stylish she looks, if your friend had turned up at my wedding in this outfit, I’d have been pretty upset, actually. And that’s not chic at all.
wowwww Ros….
The Europeans are more creative, flexible, acceptable and nonconformist when coming to stylish events. So, S2 wasn’t stepping on any un-written “rules”; she was just stunning and gorgeously appropriated, elegant and classy, dressed for the wedding. I’ll give her a 10, for her look and the outfit.
Er, which bit of Europe is that Ros? I’ve been to weddings in France, England, Ireland and Italy where people have worn black, white or both – and it certainly wasn’t an issue at any of them. And at looking back at the photos, at least one person wore all white to my wedding, and I didn’t even notice at the time (and why would you, on your wedding day?!)
wowwww Ros….
The Europeans are more creative, flexible, acceptable and nonconformist when coming to stylish events.
Oooh, look, a nice stereotype. I am European, actually, and while there may be creativity and flexibility there are still conventions and rules in most places. By the way, Europe is pretty big and diverse, consisting of lots of different countries each with their own traditions and standards. And where I come from, this would not normally be suitable as an outfit for a wedding. Not least, actually, because the dress is strapless.
I agree, that ivory, strapless satin outfit is definitely European wedding attire – if you’re the bride. If you’re not, then put other people first and wear something else. It’s not much to ask.
You know when I first read this post, it did not even occur to me that the dress was white/off-white and she was wearing to a wedding. My response was just “Wow, what a gorgeous girl wearing a gorgeous dress!” It just looks like a nice dress, not like she’s upstaging the bride at all. I would always prefer a stylish black or white dress as opposed to some hideous floral monstrosity!
I would always prefer a stylish black or white dress as opposed to some hideous floral monstrosity!
Fortunately, those are not the only options available.
Wow, the sartorial choices of perfect strangers certainly can get people riled up, no? I certainly hope that the comments to this post won’t keep S2 — a stylish and photogenic guest lecturer — from contributing again. It would be a pity.
I am very much enjoying how the black-and-white of the outfit plays off S2′s hair colour, and I’m also inspired by the use of sheer stockings with this outfit. While I’m a big fan of stockings for practical reasons, I find that their near-ban in the North American fashion industry (the current interest in embellished, opaque, and sweater stockings is an exception) makes it difficult to imagine outfits around them. Thank you, Chics, for mixing it up a bit.
As for the appropriateness of this dress for a wedding, perhaps the title of this post is a little misleading. I am sure the outfit is not supposed to represent all European wedding traditions, which it certainly couldn’t do. Thus, the question of whether the dress represents appropriate wedding guest attire is a moot point. I’m sure S2 was perfectly appropriate in the context of the wedding she actually did attend.
Oh, I’m a little taken aback by all the controversy over this post and the idea of what one can and cannot wear to a wedding. Although there seem to be some very strong opinions about what is appropriate and what isn’t, I still feel that if you’re dressed elegantly as a way to pay respect to the occasion (if that’s what the occasion calls for), then there should still be room for your own personal interpretation of what it means to “dress up” and “feel put-together”.
I have also worn black to weddings before and have never heard that to be a no-no. In fact, A. wore black just this past weekend to the wedding she attended, and I doubt that it was read as her disapproving of the event.
I know we say that clothing speaks and is a language, but is there maybe a point where we’re no longer listening and just choosing to hear/see an interpretation we’re forcing on those garments? (i.e. black as disapproval, white as wanting to upstage the bride…)
S.
Dress? Beautiful.
S2? Gorgeous.
This dress for a wedding? Personally, I couldn’t do it. I have been to quite a few weddings (especially as of late) where the bride has chosen a less “typical” gown—using colors or opting for shorter lengths, such as the dress in question. In fact, I was recently at a wedding where the bride wore a similar dress–strapless, somewhat fitted, hit just below the knee. I feel that with the way weddings are evolving that this dress is just a tad too risky and not worth potentially causing hurt feelings or gawking. Besides, clearly S2 could wear something else stylish (she has proved that she is) and look just as gorgeous!
It’s probably not appropriate to wear in a church. It’s definitely not appropriate to wear in a synagogue. It’s white AND black. It looks like many informal wedding dresses that I have seen over the years.
If someone wore it to my wedding, I would sigh and try not to think about it as it would be different enough from my dress that it wouldn’t matter (who are all these people attending weddings where they don’t know the bride?), but if someone asked me if they ought to wear it to a wedding I would say, “only if this is the only nice dress you own, you can’t afford to buy another, and for G-d’s sake if you are inside a church or synagogue, please wear a nice jacket and/or shawl over your shoulders and a decent hat.”
Great dress! I love the lace and tie detailing around the waist.
… she did wear a black jacket on top of the dress (see first photo), which I assumed made it ceremony appropriate. And the dress alone was party-appropriate. I can bet that brides who choose to wear more ‘informal’ wedding dresses would not really care to ‘interpret’ the guests’ choices in clothing: “OMG, she wore off-white to upstage me, and to play the bride herself! She wore black to show her disapproval! She even dared to be more beautiful than me all to ruin my BIG DAY!!! Sobs…”
As for guests mistaking the bride – I truly cannot get my head around to how that would happen regardless of what the bride or any guest would wear (clue -it’s that woman who invited you to the wedding, or the woman next to the guy who invited you to the wedding).
Stefi, well put! Thanks! S. :)
I agree, in general, that white is a no-no at weddings (if only to prevent the type of over-reactions seen here). But S2′s dress is NOT a traditional style wedding dress and I think the black lace takes it right out of that grey area where someone might “mistake” her for the bride.
Also: when I go to a wedding, I usually know what the bride looks like, so I cannot imagine that a guest wearing white or off-white would be mistaken for the bride.
Finally, Ros, I’ve been to weddings in both N. America and Europe. I’ve worn black to many of those weddings. You’re right, I haven’t been to weddings in ALL European countries (and I’d wager you haven’t either…), but I think the ban on black on both continents is fairly old fashioned. These days, if someone disapproves of your wedding, they are unlikely to do so in a the subtle manner of wearing black. Much more likely they’ll tell you to your face, or through a letter/e-mail, and then not attend your wedding at all.
S2 looked great and stylish, and I think it’s clear that she was NOT the bride at this wedding. If it’s not your personal choice to wear a light color to a wedding, good for you. But it’s not as if she wore an off-white, formal length dress with white heels. Yeesh.
That ribboned, lace midsection is absolutely stunning!!!
As for my 2 cents about wearing black to a wedding.. I don’t wear black any more, so that’s a non-issue for me, but I don’t see a problem in people wearing black to weddings.
It’s formal. So they choose black.
Not only that, it isn’t a pure white dress with a veil. No one is going to mistake her for being the bride.
She looks fab.
She looks fabulous!
I am married, and damn if I even noticed what my female guests were wearing. I was getting married! To the love of my life! And everyone I loved was there to see it! Oh, some lady in was wearing off white? Who cares! What a small, stupid detail to be obsessed over.
I love the lace detailing on that dress. It seems familiar but I can’t place it. Gorgeous entry, as always!
love this dress!
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I am actually going to wear an ivory dress to a wedding, but it’s not really ivory it’s a blush color and i’m pairing it with some bright accessories. I don’t see an issue with it. She looks fabulous.