Wedding

As an editor at Who What Wear, I spend a considerable amount of my week looking for new dresses, so this time of year, I also have an accidental side hustle as a “dress hunter” for my friends. My WhatsApp conversations have been dominated by talk of wedding-guest dresses. The most common question I receive is “What do I wear when the ceremony is going to be at a hot destination?” In this case, I’d recommend you avoid polyester and anything that will exacerbate the stickiness. In fact, I’ve been asked this question five times this month already. As I said, the first thing I’d look out for is the material. Avoid anything too synthetic; instead, opt for cotton, linens and silks. It can be tempting to think you have to wear as little fabric as possible...

Due to the reduced nature of weddings, one trend that designers and retailers have repeatedly told me about is the shift to more pared-back looks. Marisa Rooney who owns Beautiful Brides Liverpool, a curvy bridal boutique, said how she pivoted her business when the pandemic hit: “I was receiving enquiries from brides looking for a more casual approach to their day, and created my own small in-house  collection of dresses with modern and simplistic designs. These styles have been appealing to those who are having micro weddings.”  Designer Kate Halfpenny has said similar: “we have seen an interesting thing. What’s happened is brides have held their hero dress for their big party but then bought more pared-back looks for smaller ceremonies.”  Senior fashion ma...

A lot has changed in the bridal fashion market since I got married in 2017. At that time the options for a fashion-forward dress on a tight budget were very limited, and I knew definitively that I didn’t want to go down the traditional route of meringues and fittings and remortgaging the house to secure “the one”. So, I ended up buying an off-the-peg monochrome Proenza Schouler dress on a whim whilst in Harvey Nichols for a press event. No friends or family were with me, there were no happy tears and it couldn’t have been less of a “moment” but I was so happy with the result. The fact is, for many brides-to-be, the idea of putting aside £20k for a gown that you wear once and probably destroy on the dance-floor, has been outmoded ...

Bridesmaid style is another thing that has seen a shake-up. While there are plenty of brides who still enjoy the uniformity of matching outfits, many are forgoing this tradition in favour of more individual looks. For example,  mismatched styles are proving a popular approach right now; however, we’ve particularly fallen for the contemporary elegance of bridesmaid jumpsuits.  Perfect for friends who don’t feel so comfortable in a dress—or brides who want their attendents in something more unusual—a jumpsuit is the ultimate in grown-up elegance. Flattering, comfortable and dance floor–ready, there are so many styles at a range of price points to choose from. Highlights include Ghost’s buttoned-up pieces, Mango’s styli...

There are various factors to consider when choosing an outfit for an important event: The venue, the dress code, the weather, and even how long the ceremony lasts. Then there’s the sheer number of dress options to choose from (not to mention the tailored and jumpsuit alternatives—but that’s a whole other article). From lace and chiffon to silk and organza, we really are spoilt for choice.  More than anything else, we’re just excited about getting dressed up again and putting on heels (never thought we’d hear ourselves saying that) and painting the town red. So really, we’d be happy in anything that doesn’t come with a matching knitted top. However, we want to make sure we don’t merely get distracted, magpie-l...