Wedding Guest 101 / Outdoor

Mara Hoffman dress / Celine sunglasses / Mango cuff / Essie nail polish / Claire Vivier clutch / Ancient Greek sandals

I can't believe how fast June is already flying by and how quickly the weddings I've been planning for this summer are approaching. I'm a bridesmaid in one of them, so that outfit has luckily been figured out for months, but I've been shopping like crazy for the rest while various family members have been emailing me nonstop about what they should wear. It's funny how weddings always provoke so many fashion questions. I think it's because people are confused between the environment of the wedding vs. the fact that it's a wedding - particularly with any outdoor wedding. If you're going to a wedding taking place outdoors this summer - so at a beach, vineyard, barn, field, woods, country club, etc.... I've got the answers to all your questions right here...

There are two key points to keep in mind when dressing for an outdoor wedding:

1. Make sure you're factoring in the temperature and the terrain. If the wedding is on grass or sand, you may need to opt for flat sandals or wedges. Grass and stilettos don't mix no matter how badly you want them to. OR one of my favorite heel tricks for grass is to wear a thicker heel like the one shown in the barn outfit below - one like that is much less sinkable and way more stable while still giving you the elegance and height of a heel. It also might be a bit cooler OR way hotter in some outdoor locations so just make sure you're keeping that in mind. With that said...

2. It IS a wedding. So while it might feel appropriate to dress down for the outdoorsiness of the occasion, it's not Sunday brunch, it's not happy hour (unless it IS because the couple wants it that way). It's a wedding that two people have been planning every last detail of for a year and they're spending a lot of money to host you. So don't see it as an opportunity to dress the way you would for a picnic just because it's outside. Not that you would... but you'd be surprised the wedding ensembles that some people drum up with everything from jeans to sneakers to jersey knit. Just saying. If it does happen to be a picnic, then it's going to be a nice one - one you dress up for. Call me old fashioned, but I think a wedding is pretty much always a time for your finest - whatever that may be for the type of soiree you're attending.

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Collette Dinnigan dress / Linda Farrow for The Row sunglasses / Bauble Bar earrings / Tom Ford lipstick / H&M straw clutch / SPURR heels

Ted Baker dress / Marni sunglasses / Carven perfume / Bauble Bar pearl studs / Lulu Guinness clutch / Valentino heels

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Alice and Olivia dress / BCBG Max Azria clutch / Le Labo patchouli / Made Mduara headpiece / Pieces ring / Jimmy Choo heels